ipl-logo

Human Agency And Structural Forces In The Little White Lie

514 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Analysis of a slave narrative

Human agency is the ability of individuals to have control over their actions and decisions. Structural forces are the larger factors in society that influence and human behavior. Human agency and structural forces can have opposing influences on the formations of identity as we have discussed in class. An example of this opposition was discussed in the film Little White Lie. In this film the main character, Lacey, grew up believing she was a white Jewish girl, only to discover that her biological father was actually a black man. Structural forces had a huge impact on how Lacey understood her racial identity. Being raised in a largely white and Jewish community, being white is what was seen as “normal” or “unmarked.” The fact that Lacey's …show more content…

Jackson challenges conventional accounts of slavery and highlights the value of finding out the accounts and knowledge of descendants. Jackson specifically discusses several descendents of slaves that he talked to, one of whom was Mattie Gaillard. Ms. Gaillard was interviewed as part of a National Park Service grant to learn more about the descendants of enslaved. By participating in this, Ms. Gaillard was using her human agency to impact the story that is told about her ancestors. The story that is told about her ancestors impacts how young descendants of enslaved feel about their identity and race. Sharing her ancestors story and history can also help Ms. Gaillard and other descendants of the enslaved feel more ownership over their history rather than letting it be told by the descendants of wealthy white slave-owners. Structural forces play a large role in our understanding of enslaved peoples past, especially when it comes to life on plantations. Traditional accounts of slavery have often been told from the perspective of slave-owners and other members of the “unmarked” group, rather from enslaved people themselves. These structural forces force members of the “unmarked” group to feel like their ancestors role in history is being altered from what it truly

Show More
Related

Gabriel's Rebellion: The Virginia Slave Conspiracies Of 1800 And 1802

427 Words | 2 Pages

The author, Douglas R. Egerton, has his M.A. and Ph.D. from Georgetown University. His grandparents were slaveholders and believed that slaves were property. He became interested in race relations because of grandparents and the television series “Roots”. He specifically concentrates on race relations in the American South. He is now a history professor at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York.

Read More

Summary Of Speech By Florence Kelley Ap Language

463 Words | 2 Pages

In life, there are decisions made by the powerful few, that effect the powerless many. Oftentimes, we find ourselves oppressed by a systematic institution designed to benefit the masses, but they end up oppressing us. Throughout American history, there have been varying degrees of enslavement and indentured servitude which oppressed African-Americans and American youth. From the plantation to the factory, these systems have had magnificent effects on the economy. Through the use of personification in her speech, Florence Kelley develops the idea of fixing today's mistakes by learning from yesterday’s failures.

Read More

Summary Of The Interview Of General Washington Dukes

645 Words | 3 Pages

Since these interviews were performed during 1936-1938, they were able to interview the ex-slaves lives before and after the Civil War. A perspective not seen is the ex-master’s point of view. Each interview is a

Read More

The Hampton Mansion: Conversations About Slavery

205 Words | 1 Pages

It felt like there is still a sense of guilt or embarrassment . Slavery is a difficult topic , for both black and white people. ”“Conversations about slavery in today's society are contentious precisely because understanding

Read More

Summary Of Don T Be Uneased My Children By Lisa Gilbert

466 Words | 2 Pages

“Don’t be Uneased My Children” Finding Strength in Stories of the Enslaves” In the article “Don’t be Uneased My Children” Finding Strength in Stories of the Enslaves”, Lisa Gilbert, discussed how to take on teaching difficult topics in the classroom, such as slavery. Finding age appropriate ways to teach painful facts and stories from slavery had been a struggle for Elementary teachers. Starting a focus group, Gilbert invited teachers, nonprofits, and other leaders in her surrounding region. This group later lead to a roundtable for teachers.

Read More

Michelle's Historical Context Analysis

266 Words | 2 Pages

Michelle’s historical context derives from numerous ideals. One of which she had been unaware of until the year of 2008, when she found out her direct relation to a slave on Friendfield plantation in Georgetown, South Carolina. Her great- great grandfather, Jim Robinson, was one of over 200 slaves on this plantation in the early 1800s (Bond, 2012). “Michelle has said that knowing the truth about her family history has helped her understand her upbringing, and in a larger sense how the legacy of slavery continues to impact the lives of African Americans to this day” (Bond, 2012, p.2). Michelle herself recognizes the importance of the historical context to her own life and the lives of other African Americans.

Read More

How Did Sarah And Angelina Grimke Question The Morality Of Slavery?

1026 Words | 5 Pages

Sarah and Angelina Grimke were born and raised on a plantation in Charleston, South Carolina. Though 13 years apart in age, the two shared similar ideologies and were practically inseparable. At an early age Sarah, and later Angelina, came to question the morality of slavery. Sarah wrote that, “Slavery was a millstone about my neck, and marred my comfort from the time I can remember myself. " It wasn’t until their father fell sick and Sarah traveled to Philadelphia to help him receive medical care that she ever felt that she could do anything about the social inequalities that plagued society.

Read More

My Greatest Save, By Briana Scurry

855 Words | 4 Pages

After finding out her first ancestor in America was Henry Gordon, who arrived in New Orlean via slave ship, Scurry marvels at how far her bloodline and African Americans as a whole have come since being in America, "One hundred and fifty years later, Henry Gordon's great(x four) granddaughter wore the crest of the U.S. Women's National Team and won a World Cup in front of a jam-packed Rose Bowl. One day maybe I'll be able to wrap my mind around that" (Scurry 10). When comparing African Americans' lives throughout history, people need to acknowledge how far they've come when given so little.

Read More

Why Is Mister Fish Considered A Serial Killer?

1875 Words | 8 Pages

Albert Fish, serial killer, and sexual deviant who preyed on extremely young children and sadisticly inclined cannibal, also known as, the grey man, the werewolf of wysteria and the vampire of Brooklyn. What could drive a mortal man to such great unspeakable acts of sin as these? Mister Fish's story begins on May nineteenth 1870 as one Hamilton Howard Fish he was born in Washington district of Columbia to a father of English descent and a mother of scot-irish ancestry. He was born the youngest in his family to three older siblings whose names were Walter, Annie, and Edwin Fish. When Hamilton grew older he wished to be known as Albert in the memory of a dead sibling as well as to escape the nickname his many childhood bullies had so harshly branded him with when he lived in the cold often times

Read More

Differences Between The Antebellum Period And The Civil War

1545 Words | 7 Pages

Devin Plascencia HST 2201 Enslavement may have functioned as the single-greatest contributing factor to the economic prosperity of the United States. Even so, enslaved Americans’ experiences were far from singular. Not only did enslaved experiences differ based on the demands of each cash crop – namely tobacco, rice, sugar, and cotton – but also based on the size of slaveholding residencies, urban or rural conditions, and the temperaments of individual enslavers. Historical eras also informed differing slave experiences. Making use of evidence from historians Peter Kolchin and Chandra Manning, I argue that the experiences of enslaved Americans differed between the antebellum period and the Civil War.

Read More

Frederick Douglass Chapter 1 Quotes

1019 Words | 5 Pages

This cycle of being sold, abused, and resold leaves a loss in familial knowledge and weakens bonds between biological family members. Chapter 2 Humans use the excitement of unordinary tasks to rise above hardship and difficulty. Slaves on Colonel Lloyd’s farm that were picked to go to the main farm were “associated… with greatness” (Douglass 7).

Read More

Stereotypes In The Film Imitation Of Life

418 Words | 2 Pages

Moreover, demonstrate consequences are taken to oppress racial and ethnic minorities to keep them in a subservient position. Overall, this film has provided me with a visual depiction of how stereotypes are a mental tool that enforces racial segregation and self-hate. The label of “White” became a necessity for Sarah Jane to achieve in society. To attain it she needed to move to a new city, change her name and deny her mother.

Read More

Literary Devices In The Underground Railroad

1642 Words | 7 Pages

From this, derives a bond with the reader that pushes their understanding of the evil nature of slavery that society deemed appropriate therefore enhancing their understanding of history. While only glossed over in most classroom settings of the twenty-first century, students often neglect the sad but true reality that the backbone of slavery, was the dehumanization of an entire race of people. To create a group of individuals known for their extreme oppression derived from slavery, required plantation owner’s of the South to constantly embedded certain values into the lives of their slaves. To talk back means to be whipped.

Read More

Teenagers Are Advocating For Mental Health Days Off School By Christina Caron

946 Words | 4 Pages

Gavin Vandervest 3 Mrs. Guerndt ELA 10 30 April 2023 Mental Health Day Essay Did you know that busy school schedules have a dangerous affect on teens' mental health? I will go over the article “Teens Are Advocating for Mental Health Days Off School” by Christina Caron. Christina Caron is a reporter at the well station for new york times and specializes in mental health. “Teens Are Advocating for Mental Health Days Off School” by Christina Caron goes over what it’s like to be a teenager in current times and struggles that follow.

Read More

Slavery In Ronald Takaki's A Different Mirror

828 Words | 4 Pages

In Chapter 3 of A Different Mirror by Ronald Takaki, he attempts to understand the hidden origins of slavery. In this essay, I will describe and analyze how Takaki uses race, ethnicity, historical events, and famous people to have a better understanding of slavery. We know that slavery itself is a system where an individual owns, buys, or sells another individual. The Irish served as indentured servants, not just blacks, but as time passed slavery consisted of just African Americans.

Read More

More about Human Agency And Structural Forces In The Little White Lie

Related Topics

Open Document