The Lesson"
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In the short story "The Lesson" by Toni Cade Bambara, a group of African-American children are confronted with class and economic distinctions for the first time during a trip to F.A.O. Schwartz in New York. Sylvia, the story's narrator, is clearly affected by this discovery, as she learns a powerful lesson at the hands of her neighbor, Miss Moore, who shows her the economic inequalities that exists in the world they inhabit. Yet, while it is a story that deals with the bleak reality of both racial and class injustice, there is a sense of hope at the conclusion because Sylvia is determined to rise above her current circumstances and create a better life for herself. In this sense, the story is about more than simply racial or economic inequalities; it is about the importance of being open to all of life's lessons and the value of learning itself. As the story begins, Sylvia and her friends are largely insulated in the neighborhood in which they live. They are thus unaware of the way that other people live, particularly the rich, white patrons of the toy store that they later encounter. In fact, Sylvia is so ignorant of the economic differences that exist in the world that she perceives that people like she and her cousin Sugar are at the top of the social structure as they look down at others in the neighborhood. She explains that they laughed: ąthe junk man who went about his business like he was some big-time president and his sorry-ass horse his secretary. A
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don't think all of us here put together eat in a year what that sailboat costs" (Bambara 664). The difference between the rich white people that they saw at the toy store, and the families that live in Sylvia's neighborhood is that the rich folks seemingly have money to waste. Sylvia thinks of the toy clown that she saw at the store that cost thirty-five dollars - she immediately converts that price to what it would mean in her world: a new bunk bed for the boys, a trip to her grandfather's home in the country. Even these things are luxuries in Sylvia's world, but the rich white customers at F.A.O Schwartz are able to spend over a thousand dollars on a toy sail boat, and still afford to wear fur coats in summer. Miss Moore prods the children about what this means, musing, "Imagine for a minute what kind of society it is in which some people can spend on a toy what it would cost to feed a family of six or seven" (Bambara 665). The children do realize the implication of such a fact; it makes them aware that they do not have the same economic opportunities that rich, white children might. Sugar believes that "ąthis is not much of a democracy if you ask me. Equal chance to pursue happiness means an equal crack at the dough, do
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Miss Moore, Indeed Sugar, According Hargrove, Furthermore Hargrove, Cade Bambara, Jerome Cartwright, Indeed Sylvia, FAO Schwartz, miss moore, York Sylvia, Nancy Hargrove, rich white, gonna beat, bambara 665, toni cade, white people, sylvia friends, 'the lesson', rich white people, gonna beat nuthin, value learning, fao schwartz, ain't gonna beat, gonna beat nuthiną, trip fao schwartz,
Approximate Word count = 1623
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)
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