Richard Feels Gratified

In the second-to-last sentence of chapter four, Wright writes that "Her inability to grasp what I had done or was trying to do somehow gratified me." This explicitly answers the question; he is gratified (and perceivebly amused) by the fact that his imaginative and creative writing was able to baffle the intellectual ability of those much older than him. He likes the fact that he is able to create a work of art that intrigues people; it shows him that he is very intelligent for his age.

Richard's Pain

When Richard Wright's mother suffers a paralytic stroke, she becomes unable to support herself and Richard. He assumed that she would get better. When she suffers the second stroke, he realizes that he is on is own and he has to find a way to somehow support himself.

Jew Must Be Kidding Me. . .

Richard feels that it is his cultural heritage to hate the Jews for many reasons. For one, blacks were second-rate citizens in America, so he feels that this can be compensated by putting down another group of people. This was probably not a conscious decision; it was something he learned by observing other blacks in his community. Another reason for his prejudice is the fact that many Christians blamed the Jews for Jesus's death, which led to their being labeled as "Christ-killers". Again, he was most likely taught this through observation, but he probably also heard others talking about the subject. I believe that if he were explicitly told these things by people such as his mother, or especially his grandmother, he might have disbelieved them.

Hungry Hungry Hobos

Richard is hungry because his father, Nathan Wright, has left the family to be with a 'nother woman. This has left them with very little money. This isn't the only hunger he has to endure, though. He is hungry for knowledge about the world, and why it is the way it is. He doesn't fully understand the reasons why the relations between whites and blacks are the way they are, but he has no way of satisfying his hunger. He demonstrates his hunger for knowledge by learning to count to 100 when the deliveryman teaches him how.

Necessarius

I somewhat agree with the idea that school is unnecessary. Presently, many public (and even some private) schools do exactly as the author describes: they stifle individuality and personal achievement and advancement in favor of generalized education. Years ago, someone who thought they were really smart came up with the idea for standardized testing as a way to see if schools are succeeding or not. This, of course, led to many a curricula being designed according to standardized tests, rather than actual usefulness. I have heard stories of this being very detrimental to a student's academic career, especially from an early age. My mom, being a substitute teacher, has experienced this firsthand. One day, when she was assigned to a 2nd grade special education class, she came across a student who seemed to stand out from all of the others. The other teacher in the room said that he was placed in the class because he performed poorly on standardized tests. The teacher also said that the student never talks. Later that day, my mother carried on a conversation with him. The regular teacher was shocked because he believed that because the student failed a test, the student must have severe mental disabilities. He obviously never talked because the other students were so different from him. This is a very good example of how standardizing such an important process can have negative effects on a student. The concept of schooling itself, however, should not be abandoned, because it is a great way to instruct someone how to learn. In my case, I feel as if I am taught to cater to my learning style, as are my classmates, rather than just treated as a way to reach a standardized goal based purely on sameness.

Education

I believe that the education that I am receiving is, for the better, much different than how it used to be in America. Before, as we discussed in class, it was very rigid, and students were taught to perform very specific and basic tasks. To be honest, this would have bored me in a very extreme way. Now, I am free to pursue my own desires by taking specific classes that interest me, such as AP English, band, or biochem. Many people around the world (and in the past) don't have this opportunity, so I consider myself lucky.

30 Minutes of Fame [Previously Unreleased]

The following is from my archive of unfinished blogs. Feel free to comment.

I watched the sitcom The Office. It was an episode in which there was a somewhat substantiated (they had received many calls from management that day) rumor that the Scranton Branch of Dunder Mifflin was going to be shut down, and the boss, Michael Scott, decided to take everyone's mind off the ordeal by playing a Southern-style murder mystery game. This seemed to really speak to the many people that have been affected by the recent economic downturn. The

Rawr, Splash, and One Tablespoon Pickling Spices (Did Your Sweet, Sweet Music Pleasure the Camel, or Did It Have a Heart Attack?)

I think that it is dangerous to depict men and women as sex objects for a variety of reasons. According to Kilbourne, it can lead not only to gender stereotyping—
—which can cause suppression or overexpression of certain traits and/or behaviors, depending on the environment surrounding the person, but also to negative actions taken against others based on corrupted view of what people "should be doing". It's major cause for concern, however, is sexual victimization, especially in regards to women. The objectification leads to peoples' well-being and feelings being generally ignored, which can lead to worse things, such as sexual assault or rape. The objectification of women is much more dangerous than men, mainly because it is much less common for a woman to rape a man than the other way around (barring unreported cases). If someone is viewed as an object, then the "user" can use it any way he or she sees fit.