blog




  • Essay / Racism and Perspective in Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry

    Mildred Taylor's novel, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, depicts the life of a young African-American girl, Cassie, and her family living in a racist system. Readers experience the struggles the Logan family faces through the eyes of their only daughter, Cassie. Cassie and her brother Little Man are the two youngest in the novel. They both experience almost the same racist encounters, to which they react differently, showing that the injustices of racism can be better understood in terms of the personalities of those harmed by discrimination. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay From the start of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, discover Cassie's stubborn attitude and personality. Cassie is a determined girl, reveling in "revenge well done (56)", declaring that if anyone bothered her, she would "break down [her] block." (16) » She has a strong will and doesn't let people get over her easily. On the first day of school, Cassie is annoyed by the cute Sunday outfit her mother forces her to wear, knowing it will only be dirty by the time she gets home. It was useless, “Sunday clothes were too much to ask” (4). She was trapped in “the high collar of the Sunday dress” (4). She was trapped; it didn't allow her to move as she wanted. It wasn't Cassie's first year at school; she had already experienced the difficulties of simply walking to school. It wasn't that it was a long walk, not that they didn't have a bus to catch, but that other young white kids his age took pleasure in seeing his and his brother's clothes become stained. and destroyed by the mud their children had left behind. bus caused. This upset Cassie. She can understand that life wasn't fair because she was a different color than white people, but she didn't like it at all. When Cassie finally arrived at school, she had to watch her youngest brother become furious at the treatment he was already receiving. . After what was supposed to be an exciting announcement, receiving new books for the school year, Little Man explodes with fury. Cassie realizes that the inside cover of the book describes the nigra's current condition as very bad. Unlike Little Man, who was about to be whipped for his bold disobedience, Cassie tries to show Miss Crocker why he was upset, hoping to improve the situation. She tells him “that they gave us these old books when they didn’t want them anymore” (26). She seems to be more moved and upset by this, "see what they called us" showing Miss Crocker the hurtful words from the book (26). She receives no consolation from her teacher, but rather a reaffirmation of the text "this is what you are" and is asked to sit down. Cassie, while still bold and strong-willed, lets go of the initial situation, but she always finds a way to get revenge on the other person. Even if she does not let out much indignation, she is also hurt by the discrimination. Cassie's youngest sibling, the youngest of the Logan family, Little Man, experiences racism for the first time early in the novel. For his first day of school, Mom dressed him in his best Sunday clothes, which he “never let dirt or tears stain or spoil” (4). He walks slowly, wanting to make sure his outfit is clean, which only annoys Cassie. Unlike his older siblings, he has yet to experience a typical walk to school. When the..