Cita Y Reflexion

Beverly Nicole Rivera
Eng. 3211/ Advanced English I
Prof. Rosa Vallejo
22 October 2012
Quote and Reflection
“Incident” by Countee Cullen
“Of all the things that happened there
That’sall that I remember.” (pg. 143)
I selected this poem because it has a very strong meaning concerning racism and discrimination from the point of view of a child. Children are innocentand simple beings that do not understand such complex matters of racism and discrimination and when I saw the impact the word “nigger” had on the child, I could only imagine the child’s facetrying to understand the meaning behind the word. I selected this line because it represents that although during the trip the child saw many beautiful things, the only thing that the childcould remember was that single comment that made such an impact on him/her. This line is important because it finishes the poem giving the reader something to think about, an insight, adeep thought about the matters of racism and discrimination, a view from a child experiencing his/her first alienation.

“Suicide Note” by Janice Mirikitani
“If only I were a son, shouldersbroad
As the sunset threading through pine” (pg. 165)
I selected this poem because it relates a story that many students especially females can relate to. The poems precision with thefeelings and situations of many students gives it a serious and melancholic tone. These lines stood out for me because it mentions the issue of gender, if the speaker were a male, she wouldn’thave the problem she has now and her parents would be proud her. It is important because it goes of the way to say that her problem is not that she is not good enough, it is that she is nota man. These lines have a very strong meaning because it represents the extent that discrimination against women has gotten to; that women would prefer to be men to be accepted by others.