Siu Kwan Eddie Tsui Discussion 4

Silvia and Mercedes are strong contrasts in Toni Cade Bambara’s short story “The Lesson.” They are children in the temporary care of Miss Moore, a college-educated black woman with proper speech who desires to impart a lesson on the injustices of the economic system by taking them and four other children to FAO Schwartz, which is an expensive toy store. Silvia hates Miss Moore since she forces her into these lessons instead of enjoying her summer vacation. In contrast, Mercedes doesn’t seem to be very bothered by these lessons and seems to enjoy the outing. When they arrive at the toy store, they see all sorts of expensive toys in the window, from a 35 dollar clown to a 1,195 dollar sailboat.
Silvia’s reaction to what she sees ranges from disbelief to disgust at the prices. It is all very alien to her upbringing since she is used to being poor, and she wondered what kind of people could afford to spend that much on toys. Even the least expensive item would be far beyond what is expected and could buy many things like bunk beds and a visit to family in the country along with the money for rent and some change for piano fees. She also feels jealousy and anger when she sees her friend Sugar run her fingers along with the very expensive sailboat, although she doesn’t know who to direct these feelings. When Miss Moore asks everyone what they learned from the visit, Silvia is defiant and doesn’t say anything. She also tries to silence her friend Sugar when she says that it costs less to feed everyone in their group for a year than what it costs for the sailboat. In the end, despite her resistance to Miss Moore’s teachings, her emotions are disquieted by the lesson, and she goes off to West End and then over to the Drive to think this day through.
Mercedes, on the other hand, is the outsider of the group. Her family is better off than the other kids, and she feels at ease with everything, as if it was all normal to her. It is undeniable that she is better off than the other kids when the topic of what a paperweight is for, and she is the only one with a desk and papers in the group. When the other kids enter the store, they go in awkwardly and are out of their element. Mercedes has no issues just walking in and feels no unease or inhibitions. At the end, when Miss Moore asks what everyone thought of the trip, the only thing Mercedes could think of is that she would like to return when she gets her birthday money. The whole trip seems to have not affected her much, if at all, and I don’t believe she learned any real lessons from this trip. I suspect that even though she is better off than her peers, she is probably just showing off to them, and since she still lives in the same neighborhood as they do, her family would not be able to afford such expensive goods.
In the end, I think Silvia has gained more from the experience than Mercedes did, and even though she resists the lesson that Miss Moore is trying to teach her, she is still profoundly affected by it.