Country Lovers and What its like be a Black Girl Comparsion - Essay Example

 Compare and contrast two literary works Introduction According to psychologists, racialism refers to the theory that posits that race is the primary determinant of human capacities and traits (Frable, 1997). Frable (1997) defines ethnicity as the unique affiliation to a certain social group, which shares common cultural or national traditions. Poetry defines everything that a poet senses, experiences, feels and conjures while short stories are essentially invented prose tales shorter than novels often comprising of several characters while aiming at unity in terms of effect by concentrating on the assertion of mood instead of plot. Therefore, poetry has immense intrinsic qualities since it is based on human experiences. The literary works chosen for comparison purposes are Nadine Gordimer’s 1975 short story “Country Lovers” and Patricia Smith’s 1991 poem “What it’s like to be a Black Girl”. This paper will examine the theme of race and ethnicity in the poem and short story, comparing the style, form and content used in both literary works to bring out the theme. Both literary works appear to focus primarily on the issues of prejudice, inner struggles, racial discrimination, slavery and the hunt for freedom and equality. Gordimer is an acclaimed writer with at least 200 short stories and eight novels encompassed in her collection. She is immensely talented having the capacity to create just enough information to sustain minimal content and maintain the readers’ intrigue. In her short story, Gordimer describes the struggles encountered by an African woman in an era marred by prejudices, confusion and heartbreak. Gordimer focuses primarily on various forms of suffering humans bring about and suffer during disastrous moments. “Country Lovers” is an impeccable illustration of Gordimer’s capability to convey an extremely emotional story within a few pages (Pierce, 1995). Both “Country Lovers” and “What it’s like be a Black Girl” feature women as the main characters. Both women have, in the past, dealt with different levels of discrimination on the basis of their race and ethnicity. For many centuries, people have encountered various forms of discrimination such as racism. Both literary works shed light on ethnic and racial backgrounds. Racial and ethnic discrimination is considered a taboo topic despite its entrenchment in the society. “Country Lovers” divulges the story of a white Afrikaner boy (Paulus) who forms a close relationship with a black girl (Thebedi) employed on his parent’s massive farm. The first incidence of racism appears in the initial line of “Country Lovers” where, when they were young, farm children played together, but upon the white children’s entry to school, they no longer played with the black children. Race and ethnicity become a dividing force for these children who did not notice the color differences until the differences were highlighted by adults (Clugston, 2010). Paulus’ feelings for Thebedi were largely unacceptable in their society, primarily as a consequence of their differences in race and ethnicity. When young, Paulus seemed ignorant to the racial difference between him and Thebedi, which was the basis of the society in which they lived. Paulus Eysendyck, the son of Mr. Eysendyck, the owner of a farm fell in love with Thebedi, the daughter of a farm worker. The dramatic events in the short story’s content start when Paulus begins to go to school, which defuses his and Thebedi’s bond since they both grew knowledgeable of the fact that they could not be together publically. Through Paulus, Gordimer shows the innocence inherent in children who are oblivious to the suffering and differences brought about by adults in the society. The topic of race becomes evident towards the end of the short story when Paulus goes home for the holidays and learns about Thebedi’s child (Clugston, 2010). When the character learns that Thebedi’ child is his, he becomes extremely afraid of how the society will perceive his relationship and fathering of Thebedi’s child. Although Paulus continues to visit Thebedi’s hut to see the child, he eventually kills the child to deter others from knowing about his relationship with Thebedi (Pierce, 1995). Gordimer uses characters in the story to elucidate the theme of race. It is evident that if Paulus’ baby were white, he would not have killed the child. On account of Thebedi’s race and African ethnicity, as well as the fact that she was the offspring of one of Mr. Eysendyck’s servant, Paulus shows no respect for the girl he once loved. Paulus also failed to show respect for his relationship with Thebedi by killing their baby and threatening Thebedi’s life if she told anyone about his actions. Evidently, Gordimer’s style focuses intently on depicting the emotions that emerge from characters’ treatment of each other, as well as their relations. Thebedi and Paulus’ emotions as children showed the innocence inherent in children who are essentially unaware of the significance of their color differences. The changes that occur to their emotions, especially Paulus’ emotions towards Thebedi after he goes to school demonstrate the detrimental nature of societal influence on people’s feelings towards each other. Although Paulus formerly loved Thebedi, his exposure to societal pressures transforms his feelings towards Thebedi, making him capable of killing Thebedi’s child and threatening Thebedi at the same time (Clugston, 2010). This opened Thebedi’s eyes to the fact that Paulus no longer considered her as an individual, but rather as the race and ethnicity she represented. This realization pushed Thebedi to press charges against Paulus, who was eventually arrested and charged with murder. On the other hand, Smith’s poem “What it’s like to be a Black Girl” describes a relatively similar story. Smith used a series of jagged and stern wordings to demonstrate the seriousness of the topic. The poem tells the story of a black girl’s transition from childhood to adulthood within a society in which black skinned people were shown no respect by whites. Similar to the short story, the poem’s stern wording depicts the emotions of a black girl living in a society characterized by racial and ethnic discrimination. When young, the girl was extremely curious and endeavored to look like light skinned girls who were readily accepted in the society. Smith used tones such as suffering, courage and pain in order to augment her depiction of the difficulties experienced by black girls. The girl described in the poem lost her innocence and got trapped, for instance, the line, “it’s dropping food coloring in your eyes to make them turn blue and suffering the burn in silence” demonstrates the girl’s pain when a white American man rapes her (Clugston, 2010). The blue color is quite vital in this line since it depicts the suffering and sadness experienced by the black girl. Racial discrimination is a pervasive and extremely chronic problem, which detrimentally affects communities, individuals and institutions, deterring their optimal growth and functioning. Racism in the US has long been depicted as an expression of institutionalized trends of white supremacist power, as well as their direct social control exerted on the colored populace as a consequence of their racial affiliation. In spite of obliterating racist policies such as segregated schooling, as well as the development of policies aimed at correcting ethnic disparities disorders, racial discrimination continues to plague the society (Frable, 1997). Racial discrimination has been part and parcel of the American society and the consequences of racism are evidenced rather accurately in both “What it’s like to be a Black Girl” and “Country Lovers”. Both the poet and author used other themes in order to augment the themes of race and ethnicity. One of the most prominent themes that affirm the theme of race and ethnicity is the theme of gender. Although gender also plays a critical role in the girl’s suffering, it comes second to their race and ethnicity (Fluehr-Lobban, 2010). The main characters in the poem and short story fall victim to discrimination; the similar nature of the brutality they encounter at the hands the society where their color is largely unacceptable by white people in the society. Part of this suffering is primarily attributable to the girls’ gender. In “Country Lovers”, Thebedi and the raped girl in the poem both lose their innocence as a consequence of discrimination along racial lines. This discrimination is pegged on partly on the girls’ femininity, which makes them vulnerable to falling victim to rape and gender-based discrimination and violence. However, the only difference is that in “Country Lovers”, Thebedi loses her innocence (virginity) under the stern cover of false love while in “What it’s like to be a Black Girl”, the black girl’s rape ordeal causes the loss of her innocence. Pain is one of the most characteristic features presented in both literary works. The pain experienced by both characters is relatively similar and the core reason behind their suffering and pain lies solely on the color of their skin. The themes of race and ethnicity in both literary works also serve to portray the brutality, effects of discrimination and ignorance inherent in the society. Both works depict the brutality of racial discrimination, as well as the unjust harshness and ignorance encountered by people on account of their color. The difficulties that Thebedi and the girl in the poem experience is common in the modern society where black females encounter injustice at the hands white men. Similarities in the presentation of race and ethnicity in both literary works are in line with the modern society in which black people are ignored while white people are respected (Dovidio, & Gaertner, 1996). A notable difference between the short story and the poem is the willingness and unwillingness of loss of innocence and virginity. Paulus threw away Thebedi’s love and emotions merely on account of the societal factors. These factors clearly affirm the society’s stance towards black people. Conversely, the girl in the poem is raped because white people in that society believed that black people deserved no respect and were undignified. In terms of style, both the poet and author use symbolism to highlight the significance of race and ethnic backgrounds in the society. In the poem, the black girl’s defilement by the white man is symbolic of the acts perpetrated towards black people that plunder and dishonor their image and perception towards themselves. On the other hand, Paulus’ murderous act towards Thebedi’s child is symbolic of the white race’s disrespect and disdain towards the value of the lives of black people. Clearly, there is no equality among African Americans and white people in terms of law. White people are afforded preferences over black people in all areas, including the societal courts. This situation is clearly and accurately affirmed in both literary works where black people encounter profound pains and suffering on account of their race (Fluehr-Lobban, 2010). Race and ethnic differences in the poem are also highlighted by the girl in the poem. During puberty, the black girl considers the white race as superior to the black race, thereby constantly degrades herself by comparing herself to white girls. This demonstrates the deeply entrenched societal notions of the supremacy of the white race. The society’s stance on racial supremacy influences the personal views of individuals in the society, for instance, the effects on the minds of young black girls. The black girl in the poem attempts to alter her appearance in order to look like a white girl so as to be acceptable in a society where black people are misused and disrespected (Clugston, 2010). Conclusion The poem “What it’s like to be a Black Girl” and the short story “Country Lovers” both depict the worst implications of unjust behavior such as racism within the society meted towards Africans and African Americans. The girls in both literary works lose their respect, dignity and innocence on account of their skin color. The ethnic factors that influence the society are extremely detrimental towards dark skinned people. Both societies in the poem and story show how dark skinned people are disrespected and considered substandard to white people. The consequences of racial and ethnic discrimination include the emergence of unjust behaviors within the society. These unjust behaviors include, among others, the rape of black girls by white men and the murder of black people by whites. Race and ethnic affiliations are bases for bloody conflicts within the societies depicted in “Country Lovers” and “What it’s like to be a Black Girl”. Race is underpinned by other themes and literary devices such as symbolism in both literary works. Racial and ethnic discrimination is clearly depicted in both literary works to provide a comprehensive depiction and reflection of the significance of race and ethnicity in the society (Dovidio & Gaertner, 1996). References Clugston, R. W. (2010). Country lovers, Nadine Gordimer: Journey into literature (chapter 3). Retrieved from Ashford University Online Library https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUENG125.10.2/sections/h3.2 Clugston, R. W. (2010). Poems for reflection in journey into literature (chapter 12 section 2). Retrieved from Ashford University Online Library https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUENG125.10.2/sections/sec12.2 Dovidio, J. F., & Gaertner, S. L. (1996). Affirmative action, unintentional racial Biases and inter group relations. Journal of Social Issues, 52, 51–75. Fluehr-Lobban, C. (2010). Race and racism: An introduction. Ontario: Rowman Altamira. Frable, D. E. S. (1997). Gender, racial, ethnic, sexual, and class identities. Annual Review Psychology, 48, 139–162. Pierce, C. M. (1995). “Stress analogs of racism and sexism: Terrorism, torture, and disaster.” In C. V. Willie., P. P. Rieker., B. M. Kramer., & B. S. Brown (Eds.), Mental health, racism, and sexism. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press. Read More