Toni Cade Bambara's The Lesson

Toni Cade Bambara’s short story, “The Lesson”, is more than just a vivacious story about a girl in poverty out of place in a high-end toy store. Instead, Sylvia’s transformation, the change in both her mindset and attitude, is clearly seen throughout the length of the story, especially after Miss Moore’s trip to the toy store. Toni Cade Bambara wrote “The Lesson” as part of her short fiction collection, Gorilla, My Love that was published in 1972 (Wikipedia). She is a social activist most recognized by her African-American experiences in her writing. Bambara was born in Harlem, a neighborhood in New York City (Toni Cade Bambara Biography).

#1 In the short story “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara, the conflict between Sylvia and Miss Moore is that while Miss Moore wants Sylvia to strive for something better, Sylvia believes that she is wasting Sylvia’s time. In the text, it stated “And the starch in my pinafore scratching the shit outta me and I'm really hating this nappy-head bitch and her goddamn college degree. I'd much rather go to the pool or to the show where it's cool.” When Sylvia would much rather be doing something that keeps her cool during a hot summer afternoon, Miss Moore takes her and her friends to a toy store.

The essays “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara and “Lions and Tigers and and Bears” by Bil Buford, both challenge the ideas that individuals sometimes feel bonded by, beliefs that stunt growth and freedom. These essays take place in New York City, circa 1970 and 2000 respectively. In Buford’s essay, the reader is given a historical account of Central Park, the murders, past visitors and lastly the people he meet that night. A park one might say mimics the atmosphere of a wilderness, though devoid of the animals that prevent one from immersing oneself with nature.

Lesson Learned Toni Cade Bambara creates a character that is way too smart to ignore what is happening around her in the real world. Throughout the story story, she learns that there is a difference between the rich and the poor, and even though it isn’t fair is not fair, it is very real. By the end, Sylvia, a rebellious, “terrorize the West Indian kids and take their hair ribbons and their money” (625) kind of girl with terrible people skills, living in a typical African American neighborhood finds she experiences a huge attitude adjustment in regards to her outlook on not just money, but life in Bambara’s The Lesson.

The symbols present in “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara, depict the economic and social injustices faced by specific members of society, specifically the children in the story. The characters in the story are being mentored by Miss Moore, a woman from their block who has taken up the role of taking them out on weekly outings. The story touches on the situation of the children that are stuck in living in almost poverty. “The Lesson” focuses on the socioeconomic disparities between the different racial groups and how. Bambara uses several techniques such as irony, othering, and second person point of view to make the story meaningful and demonstrate the characteristics of the characters.

Adventure and desire are common qualities in humans and Sarah Orne Jewett’s excerpt from “A White Heron” is no different. The heroine, Sylvia, a “small and silly” girl, is determined to do whatever it takes to know what can be seen from the highest point near her home. Jewett uses literary elements such as diction, imagery, and narrative pace to dramatize this “gray-eyed child” on her remarkable adventure. Word choice and imagery are necessary elements to put the reader in the mind of Sylvia as she embarks on her treacherous climb to the top of the world. Jewett is picturesque when describing Sylvia’s journey to the tip of one unconquered pine tree.

Harlem Renaissance essay Humans for centuries have always attempted to take one step forward but there is always someone trying to pull them two steps back. Anytime you want to complete a challenge you persevere and don't stop until the challenge is completed, but it wouldn't be a challenge if there wasn't someone or something holding you back from finishing what you started. That's why when someone is taking you back two steps you need to take three steps forward to take the upper hand. The work of Claude McKay and other inspirational writers of the Harlem Renaissance had a message of independence that allowed the readers to persevere. McKay’s poems “Harlem Dancer” and “America” both include metaphors and imagery to illustrate a sense of

Essay #2 The life you save may be your own The story “The Life You Save May Be Your Own” is written by an American writer and essayist called Flannery O’Connor, who is an important figure for the American literature. The origin of the author is from the southern part of America and largest part of the time she uses the Southern Gothic style. Very often she relies on the grotesque characters, just like Mr. Shiftlet in this story, which originate from the Southern Gothic style.

Character is the thing that defines a person. What you will do, what you will say, how you interact with the world. Admittedly, all of us have character. But, the character of Christopher is a very interesting and a complex one. In times, it feels as if he is an alien compared to everyone else.

Shah 1 Neil Shah Prof. Paden ENG 232 Section 4202 28 March 2017 An Analysis of Symbolism in “A White Heron” Sarah Orne Jewett’s “A White Heron” follows the life of a young girl, Sylvia, through her childhood in the Maine countryside. Before encountering an ornithologist who seeks to add a unique bird, the white heron, to his collection, Sylvia lives a simple life in the country with her grandmother Mrs. Tilley after moving from a manufacturing town at the age of eight. “A White Heron” does indeed embody Regionalism and local color at heart, but it also touches on a number of other areas, including the innocence of nature, corruption of civilization, gender roles, and environmentalism.

In a story an author can describe the characters by using a direct or indirect presentation. The effect of using these presentations help us see how the characters are like and imagine what they might do in certain situations. In an indirect presentation a character is revealed by their actions or by their dialogue in the story. In a direct presentation the character is described by the author or by another character in the story. Some stories might use direct presentation and others might use indirect presentation, but in the story “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell; the author uses both indirect and direct presentation to describe his characters.

The Lesson In “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara, a preteen named Sylvia is taken to a field trip with a group of friends by an educated woman named Miss Moore in hopes to motivate them to become successful. While Sylvia prefers to do something better with her summertime, she becomes aware of the vast financial gap between the wealthy and poor. Miss Moore conveys the message of working hard through education to achieve dreams. Through the elements of character, setting, and conflict, Sylvia begins to realize her intelligence is powerful and can be used for success.