I have gained a very
interesting perspective on education for African Americans during the reading of Beloved.
Living in the present day I go to schools with all different types of people
from many different races and cultural backgrounds. I get a free quality education
provided by the government that everyone has equal access too. This is a huge
factor in what makes the American dream so attainable for anyone who works
hard.
In the days of slavery up until the 1960’s, people did not have equal rights or equal access to education. This is very evident on page 120 where Denver gives some insight on what school was like for her. The fact that Bible Lady Jones is the only teacher for all the children shows just how weak this system was. On top of this she very unqualified to teach but still tried to do it for the good of the African American children. With this huge gap in education between whites and blacks I think that it was a direct factor in suppressing African Americans and kept them in the poorest bottom of society.
In the days of slavery up until the 1960’s, people did not have equal rights or equal access to education. This is very evident on page 120 where Denver gives some insight on what school was like for her. The fact that Bible Lady Jones is the only teacher for all the children shows just how weak this system was. On top of this she very unqualified to teach but still tried to do it for the good of the African American children. With this huge gap in education between whites and blacks I think that it was a direct factor in suppressing African Americans and kept them in the poorest bottom of society.
I did not really
think of how difficult it must have been for ex slaves to progress in society
after being freed until reading this book. With out being able to read or write
sufficiently it must have been nearly impossible for African Americans at this time
to be successful. While white children got to go to good schools with qualified
teachers and lots of resources African Americans essentially had no formal
education. This seems absolutely ridiculous as it goes against all my beliefs I
have today in terms of equality. A good and equal education system is the first
step of starting a life and becoming a successful person. With African
Americans being denied this very basic right our society was only setting them
up for more hardship and failure in the future.
This is a really good point you bring up, something that I haven't really thought about. It is hard to empathize with these characters because we are lucky enough to be educated at such and early age. Yet some people still take it for granted!
ReplyDelete