1a. What does Hurston say happened to her when she moved to Jacksonville?
2a. What is Hurston's reaction when someone reminds her that she is the granddaughter of a slave? What does she think is thrilling? According to Hurston, whose position is more difficult than her own?
3a. When does Hurston feel most colored? What example does she provide of a time when she feels this way? What other example of a situation when it is "the other way around" does she provide?
4a. Identify the different attitudes toward race that Hurston reveals in this essay.
5a. Do you find Hurston's attitude toward her race and toward discrimination outdated, or do you think it holds true today? Using evidence from the text, state whether or not you think Hurston's attitude about race is healthy.
1b. What forces did Hurston become aware of when she went away to school?
2b. What does Hurston mean by the statement "I am not tragically colored"? In what way does her attitude toward her position as the granddaughter of a slave support this statement? Why does she believe the position of white people is more difficult than her own?
3b. Explain why both examples make Hurston aware of her race.
4b. Why does Hurston see the bags of different colors as all being essentially alike? What inner resources do her attitudes about color reveal?
5b. What other attitudes about race and discrimination have you encountered in literature, films, or everyday life? In what way do these attitudes compare and contrast with Hurston's?
Archetype. What fall from innocence to experience does Hurston undergo in this selection? Explain to what extent, if any, she describes tragic consequences to this event.
Symbol and Theme. Refer to the cluster chart you made in Literary Tools. What do the bags of different colors Hurston mentions at the end of the selection represent? What do their contents represent? What or whom does the "Great Stuffer of Bags" symbolize? Considering such symbolism, what do you believe is the theme of this selection?
1. Write a personal anecdote, focusing on what it means to be you by describing a specific aspect of your background, upbringing, or personality.
2. Imagine you are the thirteen-year-old Hurston in Jacksonville. Write a journal entry in which you describe how you once saw yourself and how you see yourself through others' eyes now.
3. Write a paragraph describing your reaction to a musical experience.
Connotation and Denotation. Indicate the word in each pair that has the more positive connotation.
1. thin; skinny
2. obese; stout
3. stingy; frugal
4. easygoing; lazy
5. lie; fabrication
The Parts of a Dictionary Definition.Write out the dictionary entry for hegira, labeling each part.
