A Literary Comparison of 'What It's Like to Be a Black Girl' by Patricia Smith and 'Child of the Americas' by Aurora Levins Morales

“For Colored Girls” is comprised of seven women who represented a different shade of the rainbow. The colors are brown, red, yellow, white, green, orange and blue. Their costumes and make-up transformed each of them and were symbolic of the color their character embodied. The ensemble acting made all of their roles of equal importance, without one dominating the other. These women together formed a bond through their various adversities, gradually taking them from strangers to acquaintances. From an objective view, the audience is allowed to simply observe the events as they take place (Goodykoontz & Jacobs, 2011, pg. 82) chronologically. Throughout the movie during some of the conflicting and traumatic scenes, one of the women recites a

You have a dream. Do not let your dreams be dreams. Althea Gibson and Barbara Jordan both had a dream. Some people thought it would never happen, but with some perseverance and determination, they made their dreams come true. Although these two may seam alike, they also have some key differences. According to the articles Althea Gibson and Barbara C. Jordan, it is evident that they were both very successful African American women with the odds against them. On the other hand, both had different achievements.

As Americans, we are privileged with diverse experiences. With this comes a perceived understanding of many cultures and their influences but in fact full cultural literacy is impossible to achieve.

As stated in Webster's II Dictionary, a woman is defined to be an adult female human. In today's society being an African American woman is a rigid task to live up to. It means to reside to what their ancestors have left behind, which means to be stronger than ever. Rosa Parks was strong, Harriet Tubman was also strong, and Jezebel was even stronger. So what exactly does it mean to be a woman? It means to stand up for what is right, even if that means sacrifice, it means to be strong whether it be physically, emotionally, or mentally. African American women are perceived to be the backbone of the family, meaning that even though the male may support the family financially, that the women have the emotional and mental part in the bag.

The content of this pamphlet is very strong from a health standpoint and also from a reading standpoint. It is easy to follow, but not childish in nature. There are simple, practical tips that can be followed, and there is enough content to feel as though something was learned. Still, it is very easy to get through and there is not so much content that one feels he or she has to read a lot to get the information. That is the mark of a high-quality pamphlet that can really help people with their health.

n 1619 a Dutch ship brought 20 slaves to America and it took nearly 240 years for slavery to end in 1865. In the absence of rights or freedom, my ancestors were put to work growing anything from cotton to tobacco. For centuries, my people fought for equality. Although we are “free” the fight has still remain. As a black women raised in America, I was hit with some harsh realities at a very young age.

1 . What issues most concerned black political leaders during Reconstruction? Reconstruction brought important social changes to former slaves. Families that had been separated before and during the Civil War were reunited, and slave marriages were formalized through legally recognized ceremonies. Families also took advantage of the schools established by the Freedmen's Bureau and the expansion of public education, albeit segregated, under the Reconstruction legislatures. New opportunities for higher education also became available with the founding soon after the Civil War of black colleges, such as Howard University in Washington, D.C., and Fisk University in Nashville,

Being born black in the United States of America carries certain stereotypical ideas that automatically invade a person’s mind. At the top of the list they come from a single parent home, and more than likely have no relationship with their father if they even know who their father is. I was one of the fortunate few blacks in my community to be raised by my biological parents who were married long before I was born and remained married 48 years and were separated by the passing of my dad in 2014. My parents were born and raised under the harsh oppressive conditions of the Jim Crow Law southern state of Alabama that no doubt left undeniable mark on how they viewed the world; my dad was number seven of eleven children, many of them were adults when my dad was a child; two of his sisters were his teachers in school. My mom on the other hand was the third child of seventeen; four of my uncles are younger than me. I felt it imperative to mention their family order believing it to be indicative of the possible level of parenting skills that was imparted on them from their families of origin. Newly married, they moved to Los Angeles, California and a year and a half later I was born. Dad faced a different form of racism in Los Angeles than he faced in Alabama as a result he turned to alcohol to cope. My mom was a house with my first four years. Dad would drink and physically abuse my mother. I would jump on top of my mother while he would hit her and that would make him stop. My

It is impossible for anyone to survive a horrible event in their life without a relationship to have to keep them alive. The connection and emotional bond between the person suffering and the other is sometimes all they need to survive. On the other hand, not having anyone to believe in can make death appear easier than life allowing the person to give up instead of fighting for survival. In The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill, Aminata Diallo survives her course through slavery by remembering her family and the friends that she makes. Aminata is taught by her mother, Sira to deliver babies in the villages of her homeland. This skill proves to be very valuable to Aminata as it helps her deliver her friends babies and create a source of

Patricia Smith's "What its like to be a black girl is a breathtaking poem to read as it gives the real picture of what a black American girl who is faced by racial prejudice, inner struggles and slavery. This poem will be compared and contrasted with Nadine Gordimer's country lover which is also a heart-rending story about a young black skinned girl-Thebedi finding herself in love with a white skinned Afrikaner boy-Paula whose parents are the young girls' masters. She is also faced with slavery, prejudice, racism and pursuit for freedom (Brown, 2009). This paper will critically compare the two literary works in terms of content, style and form.

“The Book of Negroes is a master piece, daring and impressive in its geographic, historical and human reach, convincing in its narrative art and detail, necessary for imagining the real beyond the traces left by history.” I completely agree with The Globe and Mail’s interpretation of this story. One could almost see the desolate conditions of the slave boats and feel the pain of every person brought into slavery. Lawrence Hill created a compelling story that depicts the hard ships, emotional turmoil and bravery when he wrote The Book of Negroes.

In John H. McWhorter’s essay “Why I am Black, Not African American”, the term “African American” is being stressed out and misused. McWhorter says, “It’s time we descendants of slaves brought to the United States let go of the term “African American” and go back to calling ourselves black – with a capital B” (527). I agree with McWhorter’s argument about calling African American’s Black. I feel people should not be addressing a person as an “Italian American”, if one has a heritage in America. So why should the term African American be treated by one descendant’s nationality? McWhorter’s essay is trying to make people realize that there is a difference between the terms African American and Black. He wants people to realize that people

The style of flyers, Campus Health use is a persuasive style that encourages and wants students to have a long living healthy life. The flyer mentions “you” a lot making it seem like it was addressed to myself making it persuasive. The flyer is a survey based information from students on campus. Students giving information to students can make them feel more connected and more intrigued to the flyer. Evidence:

past but at the same time still be proud that she is a member of her

The orientation of the page is portrait which is a good rotation because it fits many words on one page. It also allows pictures to be placed without drowning the user with information. Lots of boxes are found throughout the booklet which holds all important information regarding the subject in the box. All spaces between borders are the same and precise which further strengthens the authenticity of the booklet. Unwanted but important information like Terms and conditions are placed at the bottom right where the user won’t look at instantly. Instead, lots of pictures and boxes with important information take up the majority of the page. The size of the paper