Wednesday, April 18, 2012
The Street
The ending of the novel really took me by surprise. The part when Lutie beats Boots with the iron candlestick did not catch me off guard because I feel as if she was just protecting herself; however, it did surprise me that she left Bub behind to take care of himself after everything that she stood for throughout the novel. In the beginning of the novel, she wanted Bub to go to school, get a good education, and stay out of the streets. Since she leaves him behind she leaves him no other option but living in the streets. Leaving Bub alone demonstrates how weak of a mother she truly is. She could have defended herself in the case of Boots and claim it was self defense, but she decided to run away and leave her son behind. Not only did Bub lose a mother, but he lost his father awhile go so now he is left all by himself. If Lutie really believed that Bub should stay out of the streets, then she should have never left him.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I completely agree. We talked in class about how Lutie wanted Bub to stop shining shoes so as not to fill his pre-destined fate, which she describes as what white folks think he should do. She wants him to go to school and be successful, but in the end, she selfishly ignores all of that and leaves him alone to fend for himself. I found that to be incredibly selfish and she does a complete 180 from how she felt originally in the boot. She helps Bub fulfill what the "white folks" think he should be doing.
ReplyDeleteThis moment also surprised me, especially after her powerful reaction to the shoe shining incident. It seemed like a complete reversal of everything she had worked for throughout the novel. Maybe she was just too tired to keep trying?
ReplyDelete