Analysis of- Coming of Age in Mississippi
Deep inside every single one of us is a younger, a more youthful self. Although it seems as if we’re completely different people as we grow, that isn’t the case. We are simply a more mature version of our old self shaped by our previous life experiences. Our theme is seen when the narrator, Anne Moody gets into high school and soon develops a sense of personal growth. In doing so, Anne was capable of living her life to the fullest, her perspective on everything changing. “I was sick of pretending, sick of selling my feelings for a dollar a day, and for this I could tell I was going through an element of growth” (Moody 226) Admirable considering the time period Anne was living in. How was she able to, at such a young age, look past all of the negative and discouraging things that were in her surroundings, with all the hatred due to the color of her skin? It was at this point that Anne decided her future was hers and nobody else’s, showing she in a sense had reached her own personal growth. Having a rather hard childhood, being dirt poor, having too work as a maid at a young age, always feeling alone, Anne grew up rather fast. In a sense, she didn’t really have a childhood and could have easily blamed life for all her troubles and making nothing of her life but she instead did the complete opposite. Moody instead made the decision to not feel sorry for herself but to make something out of herself and be the change she wanted to see. After reaching this point we saw Anne blossom into a beautiful,, smart, radiant, strong young adult. She was her own person, aspiring others around her including her peers along with the adults that surrounded her. Being a straight A student, Homecoming queen, star basketball player, Anne graduates from high school and goes to college on a full ride scholarship. Anne soon realizes, as the movement must realize, that the future of the movement is in the youth, and the movement must focus on practical affairs. Symbolically, she