Top 4 The Lesson quotes
“Winos ... cluttered up our parks and pissed on our handball walls and stank up our hallways.”
Narrator, Sylvia
This quote describes the poor and dilapidated condition of Sylvia’s neighborhood. She grows up in the slums of Harlem and the Upper West Side. Here she describes how the homeless alcoholics in the area had impeded the children from making use of basic amenities. These descriptions aid us in understanding how limited opportunities are for children growing up in areas wracked with poverty, and the evident disadvantage it creates in their progress.
“School suppose to let up in summer I heard, but she don't never let us.”
Narrator, Sylvia
Sylvia spends most of the story being angry with Miss Sylvia. She doesn’t like being dragged through Miss Sylvia’s educational trips because she finds her to be a little patronizing. Additionally, Sylvia doesn’t like giving up her summer vacation time for Miss Moore’s lessons.
“For some reason this pisses me off.”
Narrator, Sylvia
Sylvia’s reaction to discovering the price of the toy sailboat is anger. In the past, Sylvia’s anger is mostly directed at Miss Moore, and it serves as a hurdle in her ability to learn. At this moment, the anger suddenly begins to reorient, as Sylvia is forced to confront the blatant inequality of the world.
“What kinda work they do and how they live and how come we ain't in on it?”
Narrator, Sylvia
Sylvia begins to examine the larger implications of the fact that certain people in the society can afford to expend such large amounts on toys. She wonders about the identity of such people, the kind of lives they lead, and the work they do to earn such wealth. She wonders why she and her family are excluded from that life, and why they have to live so meagrely.
