Arrangement in Black and White Essay

In the 1930s, racism was one of society’s most pressing issues both in and out of the novel.

Practically everyone in the story has a hidden agenda for his or her actions. The protagonist, a 22-year-old named Helga, was a teacher at an institute of higher learning called Naxos where the true agenda was not education but instead was teaching Blacks their accepted status in life—lower than that of Whites. She became convinced that she needed to leave Naxos after hearing a speech from a visiting white preacher whose remarks she found offensive. The preacher stated that if everyone acted like those from Naxos “there would be no race problem, because Naxos Negros knew what was expected of them” because they “knew enough to stay in their places” (Larsen 1724). At the beginning of the story, the reader would feel sympathy towards the workers at Naxos, who truly believed they were preparing the students for better lives and sympathy for Helga who tried to convince the new principle, Dr. Anderson, as to the true state of affairs. Helga failed to realize, however, that Dr. Anderson was aware of the situation at Naxos but felt that for change to occur there needed to be “more people like you, people with a sense of values, and proportion, an appreciation of the rarer things of life” (Larsen 1735). Helga mistakenly became offended at Dr. Anderson’s compliment by calling her “a lady” with “dignity and breeding” because of her belief that being able to trace one’s ancestry was more important that one’s actions (Larsen 1735).

Segregation had had many effects on the black nation, to the point that it started building up ones character, “See the depressing clouds of inferiority begin to form in her little mental sky and see her begin to distort her little personality by unconsciously developing a bitterness towards white people”, King shows readers that segregation is even affecting little children, that it is starting to build up a young girls character and is contributing to the child developing hatred “bitterness” towards the white Americans. King makes readers imagine a black cloud settling in a young girls brain mentally, when instead she should have an image of a colorful blue sky with a rainbow, isn’t that suppose to be part of a 6 year-old’s imagination? King gives readers an image of destruction civil disobedience had created in the black community, especially in the young innocent little children.

I am writing my critical reaction journal based on my readings in regards to a two writings titled, “Seeing More Than Black and White” by Elizabeth Martinez (1998) in “Race, Class, and Gender: An Anthology,” [edited by] Margaret L Andersen; Patricia Hill Collins, 2013, (8th Edition ed., pp. 85-90) and “Color-Blind Privilege” by Charles A. Gallagher (2003) in “Race, Class, and Gender: An Anthology,” [edited by] Margaret L Andersen; Patricia Hill Collins, 2013, (8th Edition ed., pp. 91-95).

Another theme and issue that arrives from the play A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry, is racism. During the 1950’s blacks and whites were segregated. The house the Younger’s purchased was in the Clybourne Park neighborhood, an all white neighborhood. When Lena told the family they were moving to Clybourne Park they stood with amazement. “Mama, there ain’t no colored people in Clybourne Park” (p.734). The family heard of other colored families’ houses being set on fire in this neighborhood, they were concerned that the same thing would happen to them.

In the story “Blue against White”, the author, Jeannette C. Armstrong, writes about a native girl coming home to her reserve after spending time in the city. The topic of memories is very apparent throughout the story as the main character, Lena, is reminiscing through most of it. Whether we like it or not, life always goes on and sometimes, there are things we don’t really pay attention to until it’s too late. Memories can help to keep the past alive and get us through some pretty tough situations. In the story, Lena thinks about her time in the city and how she got through it with her memories of the place she grew up in. Armstrong represents her idea of memory of the past in her text with the use of the blue door as a symbol, comparing

A conflicts occurs when she engages in this change because of her uncomfortableness with structure. While experimenting her new lifestyle, she goes to a room with all the walls are white and decides to live there; the white walls a demonstrate a fresh new start, which is exactly what she intends to do. Godwins states "She tried these personalities on like costumes, then discarded them." (Godwin 41) When she has to play the new role, she starts to feel captured and has to conform to the structure of the new character. Once she arrives at the point, she gets rid off the role and goes on to the next. A feminist would view this character a lost person in search of empowerment. She wants a life she is in control but does not want to conform to a structured lifestyle which can possibly lead her to the destruction of her and her family.

The first conflict is how Ruth and her children receives a lot of displeasure from their society. Ruth is a white women living in a black neighborhood, raising 12 children of the opposite race of her. She faces a lot of discrimination towards her and her children because she is a different race from them. “I could see it in the faces of the white people who stared at

This is explained by the reaction of each to a jazz orchestra at a Harlem night club. The music has a profoundly different effect on her than it does on a white person sitting next to her.

The structure of the novel is significant in presenting the issues of racism from both sides of the story. The story starts with a prologue which sets the scene and

The reader is also affected by the reaction of the Southerner and the Woman. Throughout, these two individuals are presented as unified and in the end the Southerner chooses the Woman. Specifically, the narrator states that these two were "heard to say something about fools" (94). Who exactly are the fools? Are the fools the Southerner and the Woman for having listened to the story? Are they the emancipationists who gave the colored man a voice? Or are the fools all emancipated colored men? The word "fool" is used in a plural sense and consequently leaves the reader to openly interpret its meaning. The effect on the audience is one of disassociation from the Southerner because the reader does not want to be lumped in with the

The major idea of this movie is the growing racial problems between having a Negro mother as and being a Caucasian, this causes stress for Sarah Jane because she doesn’t understand nor want to claim her black side. This causes plenty of problems in

Furthermore, the movie Pleasantville reflects some of the cultural conflicts of the 1950s. To begin, racial discrimination in the 1950s was extremely prominent in society. Whites discriminated against blacks because they were taught that anyone different than themselves was evil. Pleasantville portrays this when the citizens thereof begin changing color from black and white to color. These people represent an embrace of cultural change which goes against the normal, stable and secure status quo. The people of color are persecuted against by those of black and white color because they feel their existence is threatened by this symbol of change. For example, this persecution is seen in the scene when Betty Parker is persecuted by five black and white people while out in town. The five boys threaten her with verbal and physical attacks, as would blacks or “coloreds” would be by whites in the 1950s. Another cultural conflict exemplified by Pleasantville is changing teenage culture. Two ideas that challenged the cultural status quo in the ’50s were the idea that sex is ok, and Rock n Roll. Teenagers embraced these changes, and these changes are seen in Pleasantville. For example, a location called “lover’s lane” is where teens would go in this movie to participate in taboo, status quo-challenging sexual activity with the opposite sex. The idea of this in the 1950s was not even considered,

The central conflicts of the story are Man vs. Man and Man vs. Society and these are due highly to race, culture, and societal problems. The setting of the story took place in the 1940’s or 50’s when the two main characters were eight years old. Twyla has very much settled into a warm home and family life, whereas Roberta has had quite the opposite.

	Throughout A Raisin in the Sun, Lorraine Hansberry does not avoid the harsh, yet realistic facts of African American life during the 50’s. Conflict is one of many realistic characteristics of life that are portrayed in the play. Above all, the conflict between Walter and Beneatha is the most