A Comparison between The Welcome Table and What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl
ESSAY: COMPARE AND CONTRAST TWO LITERARY WORKS FROM THIS COURSE THAT SHARE THE SAME THEME
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Introduction
Racism and discrimination is the biggest challenge and plight that faces the black women in the minority society as they are treated and regarded as inferior by the white people as well as black men.
The story “The Welcome Table” written by Walker and the poem “What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl” by Patricia Smith are two literary works that illustrate both racism and discrimination towards black women in the American society in the past, present and even the future. The “Welcome Table” story reveals how an old black woman is expelled from a church believed to be occupied by the white people (Soles, 2010). This act displays how the black women are observed and treated in the society. The church is usually open for all the people and hence anyone has the right to attend the services. However, instead of the white people to welcome her into the house of the Lord, they felt ashamed and threw her out. On her way back home, she meets with Jesus which means that God does not discriminate against anyone. Moreover, the story reveals that a black woman is always seen as inferior. This simply explains why there are churches for the black people and churches for the white people in America even up to date. According to Bloom (2008) the old black woman is seen as a taint in the white community and thus an outside yet she has all the everything a white woman has expect the skin color. Such racism and discrimination actions are also witnessed in the poem “What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl” by Smith which elaborates how she faced very many challenges after being born and brought up in white society (Griffins, 2006). In this poem, Smith elaborates how hard it is for a black lady to be brought up in a white community. She moves further to explain the conflicts and challenges that faces a black girl from childhood to
By:
Name:
Course:
Tutor:
Institution:
Date
Introduction
Racism and discrimination is the biggest challenge and plight that faces the black women in the minority society as they are treated and regarded as inferior by the white people as well as black men.
The story “The Welcome Table” written by Walker and the poem “What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl” by Patricia Smith are two literary works that illustrate both racism and discrimination towards black women in the American society in the past, present and even the future. The “Welcome Table” story reveals how an old black woman is expelled from a church believed to be occupied by the white people (Soles, 2010). This act displays how the black women are observed and treated in the society. The church is usually open for all the people and hence anyone has the right to attend the services. However, instead of the white people to welcome her into the house of the Lord, they felt ashamed and threw her out. On her way back home, she meets with Jesus which means that God does not discriminate against anyone. Moreover, the story reveals that a black woman is always seen as inferior. This simply explains why there are churches for the black people and churches for the white people in America even up to date. According to Bloom (2008) the old black woman is seen as a taint in the white community and thus an outside yet she has all the everything a white woman has expect the skin color. Such racism and discrimination actions are also witnessed in the poem “What It’s Like to Be a Black Girl” by Smith which elaborates how she faced very many challenges after being born and brought up in white society (Griffins, 2006). In this poem, Smith elaborates how hard it is for a black lady to be brought up in a white community. She moves further to explain the conflicts and challenges that faces a black girl from childhood to
References: Bloom, H. (2008). The Color Purple New Edition.. New York: Infobase Pub.. Bonebakker, V. (2008). Imagine what it 's like: a literature and medicine anthology. Honolulu, Hawaii: Univ. of Hawai 'i Press. Clugston, R. W. (1983). Identification of moral reasoning levels in freshmen choosing a Christian University, as measured by responses to an admissions advertising instrument. Ann Arbor, Mich: University Microfilms International. Griffin, J. H. (2006). Black like me. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Merida, K. (2007). Being a black man: at the corner of progress and peril. New York: PublicAffairs. Soles, J. (2010). Engaging the Word: the New Testament and the Christian believer. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press.