My Experience
I chose the audiobook format, which I think will enhance my comprehension of the book. The reason I say this is that I had to listen to this audiobook about four times to actually get a sense of what was happening; as well as when the main character was referring to someone else, jokingly, or in some other context, with her southern slang. Also, I think the audiobook narrator did a good job of portraying the southern accent, which was used in this story because the characters came from the South and moved to New York, and the change in dialect between the children’s and Miss Moore’s when conversing.
Classify My Experiences and the Features Prompting My Experience
Somehow, I feel a connection while listening to this book from when I was a kid, from when the main character stated
Walking on tiptoes and hardly touching the games….
The Lesson Audionook, 12:05
I remember being told, “Don’t touch anything, don’t look at anything, or even smell anything” before entering a store with my parents. Now writing about it, I find it funny. Still, I tend to do it unconsciously, and I’m kinda hesitant to pick things up when shopping if I’m not going to buy them at certain stores. Ultimately, I think this fits into the experience titled Double Identification. At the beginning of the audiobook, one of the kids asked if they could steal, which I think connects to the idea that, once comfortable in a store in a neighborhood with people who look like him, they would feel confident enough to do so, leading to a change in the store. These people don’t look like him, so he felt he had to ask for permission.
Suspended judgment is something I would apply to the whole book because I am unfamiliar with certain phrases. For example,
She’s been screwed into the go along for so long at the blood deep natural thing, which is how she got saddled with me…
The Lesson Audionook, 1:59
After listening a third time, I understood that she was saying her aunt gets easily tricked into things, like giving up ownership of her nieces and nephews to her sister. However, I believe the aunt is often aware when she is getting “screwed” and sees it as an opportunity. She often gives the children to Miss Moore to expose them to a world they must work for, rather than one handed to them willingly. I made this connection when the kids asked how long it would take to save up for a toy or how much it would cost to buy an actual boat.
Immersion is the best one, best explains my experience, re-listening to the audiobook and, in a way, hearing the immersion of the side characters, such as the children who also went to the toy store with Sylvia. The first time listening to the audiobook, I felt it kinda challenging to get the main point of the story due to the main focus on the character’s feelings and thoughts, which I interpreted as rude, stubborn, and mad that she was wasting her free day going to the toy store instead of her original plan of hanging out with boys. However, after listening to it a couple of times, you were able to hear that many of the other children were enjoying the trip and did not interpret it in the way the main character makes it out to be the most dreadful thing in the world.
Lastly, another experience would be empathy, mainly because I can see the character starting to question why she should be scared of being in a place where anyone can be. She wonders if this makes her different, saying,
When we get there I kind of hang back not that I’m scared what there’s to be afraid of just a toy store but I feel funny shame but what I got to be shamed about and got as much right to go in as anybody.
The Lesson Audionook, 10:55-11:50
I never question why I should be in a certain place until I arrive. Often, I find myself in environments that don’t quite resemble what I’m used to, or among people who don’t look like me. This usually gives me a sense of being less than, which I think both I and this character can relate to.
The Narrative Technology That Prompted My Experience
In The Lesson by Toni Cade Bambara, I think the voice of “You and Me” is most clearly shown in the way Sylvia tells the story herself. Since it’s written in first person, we only know what she knows and feel what she feels in that exact moment. It honestly feels like she’s just talking and letting us in on her thoughts, instead of telling a perfect, organized story, which is ultimately how we process unfamiliar experiences.
The way she speaks with old southern slang and attitude makes it feel real and not sugarcoated. When she gets defensive, talks about Miss More, or acts like she doesn’t care, you can tell she actually does care deep down. That’s what made me feel connected to her. It didn’t feel like I was listening to her experience; it felt like I was going through it with her. Especially in the toy store, when she starts to feel shame but doesn’t want to admit it, that moment felt very real to me. Which I think intertwines this technology with my empathy for her. I think that’s why this narrative technology worked so well. Because we are inside her head, we get to see her pride, her confusion, and her slow realization all at once. It creates that “you and me” feeling.
I also think the opportunity to observe plays a big role in this story. The author doesn’t just state the lesson. Instead, she lets us see it through what happens. We observe the difference between their neighborhood and Fifth Avenue just by how the kids react to the prices and the environment.
When they started talking about how long it would take to save up for one toy, that part really stood out to me. Miss Moore doesn’t explain why it’s unfair; we see it. And I think, ultimately, if this story were to progress to Sylvia being older, she would also come to the same realization as the listeners do.
Miss Moore also contributes to this by not lecturing them the whole time. She asks questions and makes them figure things out. By the end, even though Sylvia doesn’t fully admit she understands the lesson, you can tell something shifted in her.
Another narrative technology I would add is the idea of a second look. I say this because when I first listened to the audiobook, I didn’t fully understand everything. It actually took me multiple listens to really catch certain phrases and understand what Sylvia was really saying. The first time, I mostly focused on what was happening on the surface. But the more I went back, the more I realized there were deeper meanings behind certain comments and reactions.
For example, at first, Sylvia just seemed rude or stubborn to me. But after taking a second look, I could see that her attitude was really a defense mechanism. She was processing something uncomfortable. The “second look” made me realize that the story isn’t just about a trip to a toy store. It’s about awareness, pride, and shame.
Featured Image
Cover for The Lesson by Toni Cade Bambara. All Rights Reserved: Transatlantic Literary Women
