Toni Cade Bambara The Lesson

It has always been distinctive that knowledge arises through realization of the surrounding world. “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara and “Araby” by James Joyce deal with the lessons learned in life. Sylvia from “The Lesson” lives in one of the burrows of New York and journeys to the Fifth Avenue and learns about the immeasurably diverse lifestyle of the people there. The main character of “Araby” possesses the craving to venture onto the enchanted market Araby to purchase a gift for his beloved. Sylvia and the main character of “Araby” soon learn how the world is so different and how it will transform their lives.

I mean, damn, I have never been shy about doing nothing or going nowhere"(Bambara 5). Sylvia is about to be forced to rethink her perceptions of herself and her place in  society. She is too brave and too clever not to run away from the lesson she learned about the unfairness of social class with a new understanding  of  how the world works  she prepares her future .

"The Lesson" by Toni Cade Bambara is not just a spirited story about a poor girl out of place in an expensive toy store, it is a social commentary. "The Lesson" is a story about one African-American girl's struggle with her growing awareness of class inequality. The character Miss Moore introduces the facts of social inequality to a distracted group of city kids, of whom Sylvia, the main character, is the most cynical. Flyboy, Fat Butt, Junebug, Sugar, Rosie, Sylvia and the rest think of Miss Moore as an unsolicited educator, and Sylvia would rather be doing anything else than listening to her. The conflict between Sylvia and Miss Moore, "This

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Toni Cade Bambara wrote the short story, The Lesson, in 1972. The Lesson is considered by the Literary Canon to be a wonderful work of fiction because of its use of language, humanistic theme, symbolism, and non-genre plot. Two essential elements that add to the depth and enhance a reader?s comprehension of The Lesson are Bambara?s use of symbolism and theme.

The major theme of the story was creating awareness in adolescents about what life has to offer. The nature of human beings of accepting the realities of life to such an extent that apathy and lethargy sets in, is what proves to be destructive for the social fabric of today’s world. In this stagnation, Mrs. Moore provides the impetus required for people to realize their god given right to something better. We are told that Mrs. Moore has a college degree, is well dressed most of the times, and has a good command on her language. She seems to be a kind of a person who has seen the world. She has experienced life, and wants to use that experience in providing the children with an opportunity to broaden

Toni Cade Bambara's The Lesson is a very well written piece of history. This is a story from yesterday, when Harlem children didn't have good education or the money to spring for it. Bambara's tale tells about a little girl who doesn't really know how to take it when a good teacher finally does come along. This girl's whole life is within the poverty stricken area and she doesn't see why she must try hard. The teacher, Miss Moore, shows them what it is all about by taking them to a rich toy store, one in which a single toy costs more than year's supply of food.

“The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara is a short story set in the part of New York City. In this story, the plot takes a journey from the place like a ghetto to F.A.O. Schwartz, an expensive upscale toy store. The children live in an African-American neighborhood, in Harlem, NY. They travel to upscale stores, on Fifth Avenue in midtown, which is a much more expensive part of New York City. The story is narrated by a young girl named Sylvia, as she explains an afternoon she spent with an educated neighbor named Miss Moore. Miss Moore wants to teach the neighborhood children about the world outside of ghetto and around them “the lesson she wants to impart is the economic inequality that exists in the

The theme in "The Lesson" by Toni Cade Bambara appears to be a lesson on

Toni Cade Bambara addresses how knowledge is the means by which one can escape out of poverty in her story The Lesson. In her story she identifies with race, economic inequality, and literary epiphany during the early 1970’s. In this story children of African American progeny come face to face with their own poverty and reality. This realism of society’s social standard was made known to them on a sunny afternoon field trip to a toy store on Fifth Avenue. Through the use of an African American protagonist Miss Moore and antagonist Sylvia who later becomes the sub protagonist and White society the antagonist “the lesson” was ironically taught.

Toni Cade Bambara addresses how knowledge is the means by which one can escape out of poverty in her story The Lesson. In her story she identifies with race, economic inequality, and literary epiphany during the early 1970’s. In this story children of African American progeny come face to face with their own poverty and reality. This realism of society’s social standard was made known to them on a sunny afternoon field trip to a toy store on Fifth Avenue. Through the use of an African American protagonist Miss Moore and antagonist Sylvia who later becomes the sub protagonist and White society the antagonist “the lesson” was ironically taught. Sylvia belong to a lower economic class, which affects her views of herself within highlights the

One of the most important elements of this story is the setting. Taking place in the drug-plagued, poverty-stricken, and frustrated streets of Harlem in the 1950s, the setting

“The Lesson” by Bambara really does have a lesson at the end. This lesson that is really shown to the kids is that life is not what it really seems. The kids thought that they had an alright life but after going to that toy store, they got to how life really is. While the kids were at the toy store they didn’t understand why the prices were so high when you can get the same thing at a knockoff store, but that’s when they realized the expensive stuff cost more money. So the real lesson learned in this short store is life is not what it seems and you really have to work to get what you need in life. Now you see how Miss Moore

The predominant theme in “The Lesson” composed by Toni Cade Bambara is creating an understanding to adolescents of all the opportunities life has to offer; a lesson on social class and having a choice which society you choose to live in. Miss. Moore who takes on the responsibility to educate the young ones has intentions of more than just taking the children to the store for amusement. Miss Moore 's informal lessons are aimed at educating the neighborhood children

Sylvia hated her “nappy hair and proper speech”. She despised the way her parents kissed her ass. But most of all, she hated that Miss Moore had a college education, something her parents did not have. That “nappy-head bitch” had seen parts of the world that Sylvia had not, she had experienced things in life that Sylvia may never see. This is part of the reason Sylvia hated her so much. But Sylvia also did not like Miss Moore because she opened her eyes to the reality that her life is not as perfect as she thought. She thought that life was perfect the way it was, a care free life with no education. She continues to say that she would rather have fun than listen to her.