The Dear One and From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun by Jacqueline
Woodson
I felt a sense of pity for the main character, Melanin Sun, in the
Notebooks of Melanin Sun because of
the gender confusion he experienced in his mother’s lesbian relationship. When
Melanin becomes angry and confused about his mother’s sexual identity, it
reveals the secrecy and taboo that affects him because of homophobia in
American society. In one example, Sean, an enemy of Melanin, yells: “You
mother’s a dyke” in front of crowd when he is with his mother (Woodson, 1995,
p.106). A feeling of vulnerability and despair ripped though me as Melanin and
his mother were humiliated in this part of the novel. I think this type of
gender challenge is crucial for student to read in the classroom. They need to
know that stereotypes about a person’s sexuality do not make them “different”
and that lesbians are, in fact, human beings too. Woodson’s The Dear One also gave me a feeling of
pity and compassion for a pregnant teenager having to live with a family in a
middle class suburban neighborhood. Rebecca is a city girl that has a very poor
education and she has become accidentally impregnated. This book can be extremely
helpful to the class by understanding how suburban girls, such as Feni, must
come to understand poverty, ignorance, and class status that cloud her
stereotypes about urban life. I enjoyed this book because Woodson has a
impressive ability to communicate issues of sexuality that teach diversity and
tolerance towards young women from differing backgrounds.
How about the acceptance that eventually comes to all of the main characters in both of these stories. Melanin is working through a lot of issues that he must face as an adolescent, but..................he loves his mother very much and he and she have developed a wonderful bond over the years. I do believe that that is what Woodson is telling us in this story. If we love someone and have grown to appreciate that person then we do not have to be concerned about their sexual orientation. You do not mention the fact that the mother's "lover" is white which also makes this acceptance much more difficulty for Melanin to accept. What do you think of the way in which the mother introduced her "lover" into Melanin's world and do you believe that this relationship will be a lasting one? You are correct...........tolerance is what Woodson preaches.
ReplyDelete"Dear One" is also a story of tolerance and acceptance. How did you feel about the young pregnant girl? Was she not in need of a great deal of love? Her mother was an alcoholic and she was responsible for everyone in the household............her telephone calls home indicated just that. She was, indeed, the mother of that family. She needed love and went to her boyfriend in order to receive some type of love. She was too young to realize the seriousness of what she was doing, to be sure.
Would you use these two novels in your class? Why or why not? YOu never elaborate on that point. Do you think that each of these stories would stimulate a great deal of discussion in your class............and hopefully, a geat deal of sympathy and understanding and tolerance. I would like to know how accepting your students would be of these topics. Would they understand? Would reading these books help them to look a life from another perspective? I would hope.
I agree on the difficulty that Melanin must face and that it is underlying relationship between mother and son that drives the stability of their family. This is an important point because the struggles that they endure are pretty shocking, but they always come to an understanding between each other regardless of one’s sexuality. I feel that the family unit is a much stronger bond than the institutional or societal views of sexuality that can affect relationships like those of Melanin and his mother. Woodsen’s overarching view is tolerance, but it should be more accurately defined through the power of the family to love one another and find an acceptance of one’s romantic choices. More so, the racial identity of the Mother’s white girlfriend is also overlooked even though Melanin is black. Due to the love he shares with his mother, even racial issues are over looked through the family unit. I would most certainly use this novel in the classroom because it teaches that familial love can overcome superficial sexual and racial biases. While some of the students my react like Melanin, it is defines the strong bonds of family life. In “Dear One” , I felt that students in the classroom would easily understand the pregnant girl. More so, since there are more young pregnant mothers in American society, the students can see the “human” side of her life and not label her as a sexual deviant for becoming pregnant. My students would understand this because they are friends with some of these girls and they know they will not be alienated because of their circumstances.
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