The Lesson

The Lesson

T

he first thing that came to mind reading “The Lesson” was the language used by the narrator. I didn’t like it in the beginning, but I think it was used wisely to show that the story was real, and the way people talked in the poor suburbs. The language made me think that the story was written by a black person, and I thought It was going to be about racism. Then I realized that this story was more about different social classes, white representing the rich and black representing the poor. I believe Ms. Moore is a symbol in “The lesson”. Her name sounds like she wants her students to fight for more than their parents were allowed to. I suppose that she took the kids to the store with the following purposes: to show them that they weren’t different than white people, to make them understand that rich people seem to avoid dealing with poor people’s needs, to teach them not to forget were they’re coming from, and to teach them wise spending. When I came to America I thought the prices here were enormous, and I decided to buy clothes from Salvation Army. Now I’ve been here six years and I think totally different. I learned in economics that spending is a good tool for a country’s economical welfare, so I certainly spend a lot more than I used to, but this story made me think of giving more to the poor, and spending less for my own needs. Easy to say, hard to do. I liked this story because it was about me when I was younger and poorer. I left my country to avoid poverty, and I think all Americans should be blessed that they were born here rather than any other country. I know money isn’t everything but it surely makes life a lot less stressful.