The author and literary work I am focusing on for my literary essay is “The Lesson” by Toni Cade Bambara.
My thesis statement of my literary essay is: “Through the use of various literary devices and characterizations, Toni Cade Bambara’s ‘The Lesson’ highlights the themes of social and economic inequality, the importance of education, and the transformative power of knowledge.”
To support my thesis, I feel that using secondary sources that analyze the symbolism and characterization in “The Lesson” and the historical and social context of the story would be helpful.
The BMCC databases I have explored to date include JSTOR and Gale Literature Criticism. I found several articles and essays analyzing “The Lesson” in these databases, but I chose “Economic Inequality and Social Justice in Toni Cade Bambara’s ‘The Lesson'” by Linda Sue Grimes and “Bambara’s the Lesson” by Jerome Cartwright. These sources provided valuable insights into the themes and literary techniques used in the story, as well as the historical and social context in which it was written.
