Freedom Writers Diary Essay

The nonfiction novel, Freedom Writers Diary by Erin Gruwell is a fascinating journey of students in an urban city. When she, the new teacher enters a high school with underprivileged students and unsuccessful teachers, everyone underestimates her ability to stick to the job. However, they are all dumbfounded as they watch and experience the journey Ms. Gruwell takes her students on. First, in the beginning of the novel, Gruwell explains to readers how she began as a student teacher, (a very naive one) and had a rude awakening when she realized how much one’s culture and area can impact their lives. From there, the story keeps coming back to that one point. For example, a flashback reveals that Gruwell was shocked at the amount of information teenagers lacked in a rural area. A racist drawing had been passed

“ ‘If you want her to come, you have to raise the money to get her here.’ Nice try, but that didn’t stop them. The next day, a student brought in an extra Sparkletts water jug and set it in the middle of the classroom… A couple of days later the bottom of the jug was filled with coins and a few loose dollar bills”(82). This backs up the idea of students making progress and showing how far they have come since freshman year. Finally, in the end of the novel, students share their feelings about graduation through their journal entries. One student tells his story of being the first to graduate high school and continue onto college, proving that dreams can be achieved, and new paths can be created. He says, “Historians say history repeats itself, but in my case I have managed to break the cycle because I 'm going to graduate from high school and go to college, an opportunity my parents never had”(205). This really emphasizes the theme of the entire book, which is that change is possible, and the sky 's the limit. Once a hoodlum, this young man has matured into a true student, being the first in his family to even graduate, plus he will go on to college