July 8, 2011
Pages 33 - 66
Chapters 5 - 8
In these chapters, my theory of Grant feeling trapped by the racism in society takes more shape. On page 47, while talking to a group of white men, Grant struggles because he is trying to decide if he should "act like the teacher that [he] was, or the nigger that [he] was supposed to be." He is told from a former teacher the only way to escape the precedent set for him, is to run away. While Grant could have run he chooses to stay. This supports my tied to the town theory. So, why does he stay if he wants to escape? Maybe the answer lays in the conversations he will have with Jefferson. Perhaps this will not only be a teaching experience for Grant, but a learning experience too.
Something else that I've recognized is a motif. Miss Emma keeps repeating the same phrase to Grant, or rather about Grant. "I don't want him doing nothing he don't want do," she says. This might be Grant's first brush with freedom and the right to choose his own choices, yet he ignores her and listens to his demanding aunt instead. Miss Emma might be his key to finding himself.
Hm Ms K, what happens when the good or the intelligent leave an area ? What happens if no one ever comes back or stays? Does Grant wrestle with want versus societal expectations in other arenas of his life?
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