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Michael's Alteration In Baby Teeth

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Baby Teeth, a play written by Layla Merritt focuses on a man named Michael, who is a black male in his early 20’s with a very youthful appearance. Michael comes across as an adolescent boy and a baby to those around him. As a result, he struggles with allowing others to see he is no longer a boy, but rather a grown man.Throughout the play, he has several encounters that make him want to alter his appearance. He desires to appear older than what others see of him because he wants for everyone to see the “real Michael”. As it is later revealed, Michael’s alteration was a bad choice. He felt as if his youthful appearance overshadowed the man he tried to get everyone to see and didn 't think about what the consequences could possibly be. Michael struggles severely with his appearance. More specifically, the opinions of those in his everyday life, no one sees him as an adult. In turn, it alters the way everyone treats him and drives Michael to want others to recognize him as the man he is.To them, it is as though he is a little boy who is incapable of having intellectual ideas and taking part in adult-like activities. For instance, at work, Michael’s colleagues take …show more content…

Having his teeth altered, changed who he was, and he became someone entirely different. Michael is a typical black male, which secures him as a target in society because black men are seen as a threat not to just themselves, but to others.“ I told you don’t bother my sister again didn’t I? What? Didn’t I? … My nose! Oh my god! … Are you okay brother? That’s a lot of blood…I have something that will help. Try it… Hey! You left your bag! … You thought you’d get away didn’t you? You should be ashamed of yourself- selling drugs to your own people!” (pgs 11-12). As indicated, after the alteration Michael became another black male in society. His “baby appearance” sheltered him from being a part of the “typical black male community”, but once he received his normal teeth, he was subjected to new

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