Paper Summary:

The paper looks at Toni Cade Bambara's "The Lesson" and discusses what exactly it is that the children in the story learn from the odd woman in the tale, Miss Moore, who subtly forces them to re-examine the way in which they have always viewed the world around them. Specifically, the paper argues that Miss Moore teaches these children what their parents dare not say in their presence: America and all its glittering potential exists for somebody else's pleasure, not for theirs. The paper looks at the negative view the narrator and her young friends hold of Miss Moore and how this suggests that, maybe, these children are unused to seeing a tough-minded and well-educated black woman in their midst. Moving forward, the paper looks at how Miss Moore slowly impresses upon the children the harsh realities of being black in white America; the moment of epiphany does not arrive immediately, but it slowly begins to formulate in the minds of the youngsters as they spend time at the store with the outrageously-priced items. From there, the paper looks at the aforementioned moment of epiphany and how that moment brings into sharp relief the grim fact that there are people - white people - who have more money to spend on mindless trinkets than many black families have to spend on food and shelter; America, it seems, is not willing to give all Americans an equal share in the pie. The paper shows how those "boring" lessons with Miss Moore are life lessons that awaken the children's incipient racial and social consciousnesses.

From the Paper:

"The following paper will look at Toni Cade Bambara's "The Lesson" and discuss what exactly it is that the children in the story learn from the odd woman in the tale, Miss Moore, who subtly forces them to re-examine the way in which they have always viewed the world around them. Specifically, the ensuing paper will argue that Miss Moore teaches these children what their parents dare not say in their presence: America and all its glittering potential exists for somebody else's pleasure, not for theirs. However, the children do not immediately grasp the importance of Miss Moore in shaping their world-view: the essay will commence by looking

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