Social classes, a term used to describe the division of society, usually based on social or economical richness, has existed for a long time. One is usually born into a social class and is in that class for the rest of their lives. African American’s in the 70s, suffered a lot with gaps of different social classes as they were on the bottom of the social ladder. This can be illustrated in the short story, “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara, with a group of kids that live in extreme poverty and depression. Toni Cade Bambara conveys the lesson of breaking free from social classes through symbolism of both the paperweight and the sailboat. This story takes place in New York city and centers around a group of poor, uneducated children with a mentor, …show more content…
Moreover, Mrs. Moore is trying to convey that life is not as bad as one makes it, one must work to succeed in life. In order to properly convince the children of this she takes them to F.A.O Schwartz, a expensive toy store, where they glance upon toys, such as a sailboat and a paperweight. At first glance, none of the children knew what the paperweight was and Sylvia says, “My eyes tell me it’s a chunk of glass cracked with something heavy, and different-color inks dripped into the splits, then the whole thing put into a oven or something. But for $480 it don’t make sense” (Bambara 123). Even after explaining that the paperweight is used to hold down important papers, the children cannot comprehend why the cost is so high. However, the paperweight is used as a symbol for importance, as a paperweight is used to hold something down that is important to someone. The paperweight represents the children being held down by society and cursed with a horrible life. But, it does not always have to be that way, in order to break free of the paperweight one must pay a price. If the children wanted to escape the clutches of society, they must realize that it is not going to be an easy ride. Similarly, the sailboat, which costs a