Brent Staples The Lesson: A Sense Of One's Personal Identity

1025 Words5 Pages
Identity is a word that describes a sense of ones self. It starts the moment that we are born developing up until adulthood. Many things in the world affect someone’s identity. Family, media and social interactions with other people help shape our identity. Personal identity is very important because it shows who a person is. Identity can be used in a positive or negative way. People can be judgmental on the identity of people because it can transcend a particular lifestyle and background. Race, gender, economic status, and social status are all rooted to develop one’s self-identity. In the two short personal essays, “ Black Men and Public Space ” by Brent Staples and “ The Lesson ” by Toni Cade Bambara the authors tell about their social…show more content…
In this essay the narrator describes how a young girl realizes her own identity and becomes determined to change her social status. As a young girl raised in Harlem, Sylvia starts to realize her own social status when, Miss Moore brings her out of her comfort zone to help her see the other side. While in this process of seeing the other side Sylvia becomes intimidated by the expensive prices at F.A.0 Schwarz. Realizing she can’t afford any of the toys in the store her identity begins to grow. She feels unwelcomed in the store because she knows she can’t afford anything in there, which bothered her. In the essay Sylvia states “ Thirty-five dollars would pay for the rent and the piano bill too. Who are these people that spend that much for performing clowns and $1000 for toy sailboats ”( Bambara). At this point of the story she starts to have a sense of wonder asking how and who. Sylvia’s identity is now opened more to the truth, to the reality of life and to what she doesn’t have from what her social status is. When Miss Moore says “ Where we are is who we are ..” (Bambara), Sylvia takes a step back and realizes that’s not true. Sylvia is a young bright girl who starts to understand more about her social status now, and would like to change…show more content…
She is also secretly enraged at the fact that people besides her can afford such toys, and she wants in. At the end of this essay she says “ But ain’t nobody gonna beat me at nuthin” (Bambara), she now has a better understanding of life and is now a determined young girl. She understands her social status as a poor girl from Harlem. She learns “ The Lesson” which was to find out what real money is. At the end of the story she finds her true identity, which was to become a more motivated and successful person. Identity is something that’s in everyone, and will grow over time with new experiences and new social surroundings. At the end of the day everyone will find his or her own sense of identity. Both stories “ Black Men in Public Space” and “The Lesson” share the fact that Brent Staples and Sylvia find their identities with past backgrounds and new life experience. Coming to an understanding of their social status and where they came from was the key to finding their natural identity. Understanding how the world is around a person will ultimately shape a person’s true
Open Document