Essay1-Drafts-page2

In the essay “Teaching New Worlds/New Words” Bell Hookes dotes on the statement, “this is the oppressors’ language yet I need it to talk to you”. Through her essay we learn that this statement is significant because within that short sentence it critiques the English language. It provides an assessment of how the English language is used as a means of oppression by autocrats. Thinking of Hooke’s essay I forced to conceptualize English in a different manner than before. English is not the language that we have learned by choice but rather a language that became dominant in society by force. Yet any type of English is not deemed acceptable. This paper will analyze different uses of language how it’s used as a tool of oppression and the linguistic hierarchy that exists within the English language through the works of Bell Hookes.

- Whitney J

What if your only form of communication was taken, and another forced upon you? Would you allow that to be the end of your destiny? Although many may see English as “the mass that hides the loss of so many tongues, all these sounds of diverse, native communities we will never hear” (Hooks 168). I however, see it as something we as minorities have gained. We may have lost our native tongue, but we gained an important form of communication. English. Africans may have lost the identity that defined them as un educated slaves, but the gained education and power by learning “the oppressors language”(Hooks 169). Like the quote states: “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade”. African Americans took English, which was once a weakness, and turned it into a strength. They learned how to communicate with one another, and most of all, they learned how to communicate with their oppressors.

Brittany Arnold

Defiance was the word; or better yet the action that orion chose to take against Aunt Lissy and others in john Edgar Widemans Damballah. His guardians, or better yet capturers, chose to take his life in order to take away his actions. Take away his voice, silencing his defiancy. This raises the question whether it is better to live as a person others want you to be, or die as the person your spirit makes you to be. Defiance is defined as open disobedience, bold, or hostile refusal to obey or conform also Synonymous with insubordination,, insolence, rebelliousness, and noncooperation.Out of this short list of definitions on the word, "bold", can be interpreted to have a somewhat different connotation other than a negative one.That’s whats the books tell us, but after reading Damballah, I do not feel that the defiance orion displayed was negative, I feel like words that should describe his actions could be summed up as brave, proud, fearless, and mighty. This creates the argument that the definition of this word depends on who is on the giving, as well as receiving end of it.

Edward Fernandez

Learning The New & Embracing The Old (great title!) Paule Marshall, author of “To Da-Duh, in Memoriam”, is a brilliant woman who wrote a captivating story set around family ties, and generational differences between a young girl (Paule Marshall), and her grandmother aka Da-Duh. This story shows how a young girl from New York goes to visit Barbados where they have older traditions and embrace life. This story is truly about “Old Negro” vs. “New Negro”. Not only is this story about family ties and generational differences, it is also about leaning different

-Jacqueline Johnson

Devon Boone (Devon, cutting it down a little, thanks for posting! ~Dr. Schettler)

Through there generational differences they were able to learn things from each other and even Da Duh was interested in learning what New York could contribute that the Island of Barbados could not. Da Duh wondered what it would be like to experience snow as the grandchild described, “looking up, I studied her closely, sensing my chance, and then I told her, describing at length and with as much drama as I could summon not only what snow in the city was like, but what it would be like here, in her perennial summer kingdom”(Pg. 279). The grandchild was now able to express to Da Duh that while New York lacked some of the things Barbados provided, they were also able to produce things that Barbados could not summon up. The grandchild also showed Da Duh the other things she could do like dance and sing but the grandchild did not receive the reaction she thought she would. The grandchild stated, “Da Duh stared at me as if I were a creature from Mars, an emissary from some world she did not know but which intrigued her and whose power she both felt and feared”(Pg. 280). This quote depicted to me an example of the grandchild’s culture, although Da Duh may have not been able to understand her grandchild’s actions, Da Duh expressed her fear of the unknown but also recognized the empowerment of her grandchild’s ability.

Adriana Gomez (cutting it down a little!)

From the beginning we find Orion recollecting his past life, and specifically his religion, “Orion thought of the eldest priest chalking a design on the floor of the sacred obi.”(421) We can then see how Orion remembers his life before America, and how he has not forgotten his religion, and remembers the designs that were drawn on the floor. Because of this we also know he wants to pass down this tradition. When he meets the boy he feels an energy that tells him that he is the best selection to pass down the forgotten culture of his hometown. The boy though has to keep his new culture hidden. Aunt Lissy tells him “You talk Merican, boy.”(424) After hitting him for repeating “Damballah”. The boy learns at that instant that his newfound religion cannot be talked about openly with some people. Later the boy demonstrates to really soak up his new culture, “The boy knew many kinds of ghosts and learned the ways you get round their tricks.” (425) With this we know then that the boy has indeed embraced his new god. These were only glimpses of Orion’s traditions and culture, which he gladly taught the boy.

Lolita Bounyavong

In Damballah written by John Edgar Wideman, Orion was the outcast among those who were also in the unfortunate situation of slavery and forced to work on a plantation. He chose to cling to his Haitian religion Damballah a creator god, instead of accepting and adapting to the wide spreading, reforming Christian religion as many slaves did once they were settled into the new lands. His actions had dire consequences and eventually lead to his demise. Exploitation, violence, and oppression are three things that become closely intertwined. When there is one of those forces another is trailing closely behind.


 * Family Ties and Generational Differences**
 * The enduring nature of family intrigues me. The family unit with its ups and its downs, love and differences, history and new life all intermingling and coming together as one. Family is versatile, multifaceted.**
 * In To Da-Duh, in Memoriam the story focuses on the relationship between a grandmother and grandchild and the generational differences between the two. The story, which is a narrative based on childhood memories, is from a child’s point of view. It gives a glimpse into the power of influence a later generation can have on a young soul.**


 * -Erika Shanklin**

At a time when African American freedom was fresh and new to the world, former slaves and their families encountered an issue that freedom had not confronted – identity. With a newly found freedom, African Americans struggled to find a place in society and in their own culture. The damage of slavery, which corrupted African American culture, played a strong role in the self consciousness of African Americans and, as a result, many found themselves at a crossroad with American customs and the culture that was crafted from American corruption. In the stories //Damballah// by John Edgar Wideman and //To Da-Duh//, //in Memoriam// by Paule Marshall, the characters struggle to find their identity among American customs and what is left of their own culture.

- Kiani Shaw

This poem stood out to me since the first day we read it in class, it had a lot of power in its words. In the poem //If We Must Die// by Claude Mckay, it had emotion throughout the whole poem because it was written in the time of the Harlem Renaissance. I found strength and courage in this poem, it gave me a lot to think about. Mckay states “Though far outnumbered let us show us brave, And for their thousand blows deal one death blow!” in his poem this statement showed an abundance of courage. In the time of the Harlem Renaissance (1920’s), African Americans were being mistreated and not treated as real people. The statement I used shows that African Americans were growing tired of the bad treatment and were ready to stand up for themselves. Mckay also displays strength by saying “Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack, Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!” this is amazing and also inspiring display. Even though the men knew they were fighting a lost cause, they felt better about themselves because they were standing up as men for their people. From reading this poem it brought to mind the quote “if you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything” -Malcolm X.

-Peter Bowie

Within the compelling short story “ To da-dah” I witnessed different images of nature and land. These different segments of imagery filled the story to convey a deeper theme. The story “To-da dah” is about a young girl who goes to visit her grandmother with her mother. Through out her visit, her grandmother takes her on these walks in which she learns more than she thought she would. Besides her grandmothers negativity on her hometown New york, she learns that her grandmother is very knowledgeable. The story brings the different images of nature/land when the little girl mentions “I thought of them as giant weeds that had overrun the island, leaving scarcely any room for the small houses of the sun …. “ (278.)

-- Courtnei Johnson