Response to “The Lesson”

After reading “The Lesson,” as a student in 2018, it’s pretty easy to see the themes in this story like exclusion of black Americans, how the world of a young black girl is seemingly curated by her immediate neighborhood and once she’s outside of it, it’s a complete change of behavior and struggle of identity. I looked up the author, firstly to get a better idea of who wrote the character of Sylvia, a frustrated, impulsive black girl. Her entire point of view opposes Ms. Moore attempt to broaden their view of their racial and socio-economic differences. Sylvia wants nothing to do with Ms. Moore’s life lessons, and even hates to see that her peers and friends “fall” into even responding to Ms. Moore. I found the following quote by the author, “The dream is real, my friends. The failure to realize it is the only unreality.” This quote goes along with the lesson Ms. Moore was trying to convey with her trip to the toy store. In her own way tries to make the kids see this quote and even uses Sylvia as an example. Yes, there are racial division but that it takes learning and understanding to get to a level of success—mostly economical, as put in the story to be able to afford things that just aren’t plausible  expenses in their current circumstances. The main character, fails to see it. And as the story ends, we see that it is because her ignorance of incomprehension, which is sadly deeply rooted into her character. Although we see these children long for more than just what they have, they are also very much persuaded by alliance to Sylvia. They are capable of understanding, but behavior like Sylvia’s, repeatedly undermining adults, resorting and giving into theft, participating in peer pressure, as readers we see the detrimental effects that will have to her and her friends.