Unit 1.pdf - Southwest High School

Understanding the Stranger’s
Perception of a Village
Activity
1.20
SUGGESTED LEARNING STRATEGIES: Previewing, Diffusing, Skimming/
Scanning, Marking the Text, Think-Pair-Share, Metacognitive Markers
R e f l e c t i v e E s s a y
My Notes
A b o u t t h e A u t h o r
James Baldwin (1924–1987) was born in Harlem, into
a poor household headed by his rigid and demanding
stepfather, a storefront preacher. Though he had planned
to follow in his stepfather’s footsteps and had served as
a junior minister, he eventually became disillusioned with
Christianity and resolved to become a writer. His move
to Paris in 1948 helped provide the critical distance he
needed to write the autobiographical Notes of a Native
Son and his first novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain—
powerful works about the African American experience.
After returning to the U.S., he became a leading literary
voice for civil rights. While his unsparing view of race
issues in the U.S. drew criticism from his African American
and white peers alike, he is now viewed as one of the
most significant U.S. writers of the twentieth century.
© 2011 College Board. All rights reserved.
by James Baldwin, 1955
1 From all available evidence no black man had ever set foot in this
Chunk
tiny Swiss village before I came. I was told before arriving that I would
1
probably be a “sight” for the village; I took this to mean that people of
my complexion were rarely seen in Switzerland, and also that city people
are always something of a “sight” outside of the city. It did not occur to
me—possibly because I am an American—that there could be people
anywhere who had never seen a Negro.
2 It is a fact that cannot be explained on the basis of the inaccessibility
Chunk
of the village. The village is very high, but it is only four hours from Milan
2
and three hours from Lausanne. It is true that it is virtually unknown.
Few people making plans for a holiday would elect to come here. On the
other hand, the villagers are able, presumably, to come and go as they
Unit 1 • Perception Is Everything 69