Transformative Power of Education

Chereese Brown

Professor Ortiz

English 101

23 February 2017

The Transformative Power of Knowledge

        There can and should be more to life, no situation is fated or certain, it’s just challenging and scary when you first attempt to change it. Paolo Freire, In Pedagogy of the Oppressed lays out how to break free of the mental chains of oppression by thinking critically and engaging with others; while being present and conscious of our constantly changing reality.  He refers to this as the “problem-posing” method and it is essential to a more comprehensive engaging method of education and the evolution of oneself.  The following authors are fantastic examples of how the application of this theory can truly be life changing when faced with any form of oppression from any type of oppressor. In keeping close to home: class and education Bell Hooks shares her struggle with reconciling growing up poor and attending a prestigious university while attempting to maintain a connection to where she came from and who she has become through higher education. Next, in “the dreamer” Junot Diaz tells the story of his mother’s difficult and painful quest for education as a young girl in rural Dominican Republic and how it changed the course of the next generations lives.  Finally, in Aria: Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood Richard Rodriquez writes about his feelings of isolation and anxiety during and after being forced to learn English as a child and its effect on intimacy within his family.  Their unique experiences show that their quest for knowledge and the desire to grow share and learn quiets fears, gives birth to hope and ultimately a better life for themselves and those they encounter.

        There are stigmas attached to people that have attended prestigious universities in this country. The expectation is that everyone one that is or was in attendance are privileged, of higher intelligence and in general they are a class above everyone else. This type of thinking is condescending and oppressive and alienates a significant amount of people. It causes internal conflicts in those that attend that were not privileged but merely academically gifted.  Bell Hooks attended and taught in two of the most elite schools in the United States. She attended Stanford University and taught at Yale. She immediately recognized how the Black people that were assimilated into Yale separated themselves and even avoided the working class Black people in the neighborhoods outside of Yale. The Black professors at Stanford would even downgrade and express contempt for the Black students.  As a Black female coming from a working-class background in Kentucky; it became crucial for her to find a way within herself to maintain a real connection with her family and community, especially those that were underprivileged, working class or poor. Hooks states, “It was my responsibility to formulate a way of being that would allow me to participate fully in my new environment while integrating and maintaining aspects of the old.” The pressure from her other Black colleagues to separate herself from her past and to fall in line with the culture of Yale was something that she couldn’t and wouldn’t do. She believed that there was a great importance for bridging the gap and being inclusive of all people no matter where they came or how much money they had. As an example, we can look at Freire’s thought on overcoming oppression and social divide. Freire states, “The pursuit of full humanity, however, cannot be carried out in isolation or individualism, but only in fellowship and solidarity…” The culture shock of attending Stanford forced her to deeply examine who she wanted to be as a Black woman and ask herself would she do what was expected and abandon her roots.  She admits that while first attending Stanford the thought and act of returning home was difficult for her because of the extreme reality differences which eventually she worked through this insecurity. Instead of conforming she started a black woman’s support group at Yale for students from poor backgrounds to have a place to share their experiences and find ways to accept their past while moving forward with their educational future.

Parents often want their children to lead a life that they envisioned for them and it usually disappoints or angers them if the child resists. They do this for various reasons but fear and control are usually highest on the list. They believe survival is more important than some “childish” dream.  The problem with this is that if the child stops dreaming and never thinks about what if, they lose their creative license, never fully reach their potential ultimately repeating the cycle of oppression. Junot Diaz’s mother faced this exact situation from her mother as a young girl growing up in rural Dominican Republic. She dreamed of becoming a nurse and desperately wanted to go to school and learn. Her mother forbade her from attending school but the crafty little girl found ways around her mother’s rules and suffered her mother’s wrath for doing so. Diaz’s mother told him, “Your grandmother beat me almost every day, but I got my education.” Getting beaten almost every day wasn’t enough to kill her desperate thirst for knowledge. In the Dominican Republic, back then there was no law stating that children had to go to school; but as soon as it became a crime to prevent a child from getting an education she courageously went as far as to report her mother and have her arrested so that she could go. Similarly, Freire says, “Any situation in which some men prevent others from engaging in the process of inquiry is one of violence.” Her mother saw her as a tool. An object that was to be filled with just enough knowledge to maintain their way of living nothing more and nothing less. Diaz’s mother instinctively and bravely rebelled against the institution that was her mother. The method used to keep his mother away from school is not the important thing here, what is important is had Diaz’s grandmother been successful and put out that fire for knowledge in her daughter the negative effects would have rippled through the generations that followed and directly impacted Diaz’s life. His mother’s dream of becoming a nurse were sadly not realized but arguably she got something more valuable for her valiant efforts. Her son became a professional writer and deeply appreciates and values education and creative freedom.