Citizen, by Claudia Rankine focuses on the authors many personal experiences of being a woman of color. Rankine writes in a second-person narrative in order to display descriptive imagery and heavy emotions. The first chapter breaks down Rankine’s traumatic racial based encounters that she has faced throughout her lifetime. The chapter also specifically focuses on the pain, confusion, and sadness she was faced with as she was unable to defend herself in certain situations. All the memories discussed within this chapter center on race whether it was something Rankine faced or witnessed. The primary focus of why these memories is being addressed in this chapter are due to the lack of the individual’s awareness of what they have done. For instance, most of the people who were saying racist remarks were unaware they were due to their stereotypical judgement or cognitive process of implicit bias.
One of the main struggles Rankine was faced with was the constant confusion of the racial assumptions her peers and friends made about her. The first memory she explained within the book was her encounter with a young twelve-year-old girl. At the time, Rankine attended Sts.Philip and James school and a girl in her class asked to copy her test answers. “You never really speak except for the time she makes her request and later when she tells you you smell good and have more features like a white person. You assume she thinks she is thanking you for letting her cheat and feels better cheating from an almost white person” (Rankine 5). As Rankine finishes trying to justify the young girl for her racist actions, she proceeds on the next page by mentioning the sensation of speechlessness and despair she is left with as similar encounters continue to happen. “Certain moments send adrenaline to the heart, dry out the tongue, and clog the lungs. Like thunder they drown you in sound, no, like lightning they strike across the larynx. Cough. After it happened, I was at a loss for words. Haven’t you said this to yourself? Haven’t you said this to a close friend who early in your friendship, when distracted would call you by the name of her black housekeeper?” (Rankine 7). This memory is very significant as it represents how her close friend betrayed Rankine even though she was unaware of her actions. These hurtful actions led to Rankine bottling up her painful emotions and led to her remaining silent for many years.
Later on in this chapter Rankine starts transitioning her stories by discussing memories where she finally stood up and her voice was seen and heard. She continues the chapter by telling another story about a time she witnessed a man referring to teenagers in a Starbucks by calling them racial slurs. “Hey, I am standing right here, you responded, not necessarily expecting him to turn to you” (Rankine 16). This is a strong transition in the chapter as it indicates Rankine was fed up with how the world treats people of color. Another significant memory that stood out in the end of the chapter is her encounter with her new therapist. As Rankine approaches her therapist’s house for the first time she knocks on the wrong door by mistake “. … the woman standing their yells, at the top of her lungs, Get away from my house! What are you doing in my yard? (Rankine 18). This concluding memory that wraps up the chapter is very important as it indicates even the people Rankine is supposed to confide in and trust make racial assumptions based on her appearance which is incredibly unfair as it causes many people of color to hold back, remain silent, and not show their identity.
Discussion Questions:
- Do you think the young twelve year old girl that copied Rankines test was intentionally trying to show gratitude or insult her? What are your major takeaways from this interaction?
- Why do you think Rankine remained silent and didn’t defend herself during most of the memories she explained in the beginning of this chapter? If you were in Rankines position what would you have done?
Work Cited:
Rankine, Claudia, 1963- author. Citizen : An American Lyric. Minneapolis, Minnesota : Graywolf Press, 2014.
Hello there Jenna, great job on your post today. An aspect of your post that I found to be particularly interesting was that you posed a theme for the chapter of people not recognizing their racial bias towards the main character and others. I found this to be a good perspective for the nature of the events described in the first chapter. In response to your question of whether the girl was thanking or insulting Rankine after copying her test, I believe that the girl was thanking Rankine, just in a bad manner. A point that reinforces this belief is Rankine herself, “…assume she thinks she is thanking you for letting her cheat and feels better cheating from an almost white person” (5). The girl was not projecting an insult towards Rankine, she just felt embarrassed cheating and decided to thank her in an unintentionally bad manner. My ultimate takeaways from this interaction was that people sometimes say things in the wrong way and that some people could get away with things like cheating because of their race allowing privilege.
Hi Jenna! I loved your post and how descriptive you in were in explaining this part of the book. Your second question really struck me because I don’t know for sure what I would have done if I was in Rankine’s position. I believe she remained quiet and didn’t defend herself for most of the memories that she explained in this chapter of the book for one main reason. This reason is that if she spoke up and defended herself at this stage, she could have been ridiculed or punished because in this time period, people of color were still looked down upon. Women of color were especially inferior in this society because women did not have many rights at that time to begin with. Rankine exclaims, “Sitting there staring at the closed garage door you are reminded that a friend once told you there exists a term — John Henryism — for people exposed to stresses stemming from racism… You hope by sitting in silence you are bucking the trend” (Rankine 11). The people who are exposed to this racism that speak up tend to “achieve themselves to death trying to dodge the buildup of erasure” (Rankine 11). Rankine hopes that by staying quiet, she can not be hurt or die from trying to speak up. I like to believe that I would have spoken up if in Rankine’s position, but I am not sure if I would be able to follow through with my belief. The thought of getting hurt or killed for speaking up during this time terrifies me because I know in the future what went down in history during those times.
Hi Jenna, great post! I really like how you analyzed a few of Rankine’s encounters. I also love your creative title! The title shows how racist remarks can really make a negative impact on a person. Regarding your second question, I believe that Rankine was silent because during this time she felt that as a woman of color, she did not have the right to speak out and her feelings weren’t valid. Therefore, she bottled up her emotions and stayed quiet. Rankine says “It is not only that confrontation is headache-producing; it is also that you have a destination that doesn’t include acting like this moment isn’t inhabitable, hasn’t happened before, and the before isn’t part of the now as the night darkens and the time shortens between where we are and where we are going” (Rankine 10). Rankine lives in a world of suppression where she is forced to stay silent and ignore racist remarks due to the color of her skin. Rankine wants to live in a place where you don’t have to act this certain way. I would like to say that if I were in Rankine’s position I would speak up, but I’m not entirely sure that I would. Being a colored woman during this time, by speaking up you may be risking your own life. There would also be people who would be so stuck in their racist ways that they would disregard your feelings.
Hi Jenna! I really enjoyed your blog post and how you highlight the main struggles throughout this part of the book. For your second question, I believe that Rankine didn’t defend herself because she was scared and singled out. In this part of the book, there are multiple situations and as I read them I was infuriated and wanted her to speak out, but I remembered that I have no idea how that is and why she reacts the way she does. Since Rankine is a woman of color she knows that if she did speak out there most likely would be bad outcomes that can end in violence. At the end of this part in the book is when she goes to meet her therapist for the first time in person, “When the door finally opens, the woman standing there yells, at the top of her lungs, Get away from my house! What are you doing in my yard?” (Rankine 18) After that terrible episode, all she said was that she had an appointment with her and that she was there to see her therapist, she didn’t yell back or leave right away which I probably would’ve done. This is how she responded to all the other memories talked about too. I think that she had remained silent because who knows what her therapist would’ve done if she had said something back or just responded the same way as the people throughout this chapter had treated her.
Hi Jenna, great job on your post! I like how you spoke about how Rankine was faced with racial assumptions by her peers. I don’t think it’s fair for anyone to have to go through that. I feel like she should not have let the girl in her class copy her because it’s not fair that she’s working hard and someone else is taking the credit for it. I think Rankine remained silent and didn’t defend herself because most of the memories because maybe she didn’t want any trouble. According to Rankine, “If this were a domestic tragedy, and it might well be, this would be your fatal flaw-your memory, vessel of your feelings.” (Rankine 7). This proves that people of color had no power or say in anything back in time. People of color were forced to keep quiet about their feelings. If Rankine spoke up, I think no one would’ve believed her and therefore she would’ve been in trouble and got punished. If I were in Rankines position I would’ve taken the risk and spoke up. In order to make change in the world sacrifices have to be made. I don’t think it’s fair for someone to live a miserable life so others can benefit from it.
Hello Jenna! I found your post insightful and well developed. To answer your second question I would say that it is not surprising that Rankine remained silent and defenseless. The reasons behind her silence and lack of fight most likely have to do with how she learned to act in difficult situations that she is put into due to being biracial. She most likely learned very early on that if she kept quiet and didn’t stick up for herself then her bullies would leave her alone faster. Remember, predators enjoy a good hunt, if something plays dead then it is not as enjoyable and the predator will go look for a more exciting prey. It is horrible to think about children as predators and prey but that is often the case. The case being that children and adults who are different from the social ‘norm’ will be picked on and belittled because the unwilling are different. That is not even bringing the racism into it. Children of the same race and gender are bullied by others like them appearance wise because of what they are taught to do by the adults in their lives. Which is one of the major problems with generational racism, the children that are born innocent into these families are not taught to act any differently from their racist, sexist and homophobic relatives. Which in turn forces the children that fall into any of these categories to hide and suppress their identities for fear of what the other people will do. I myself was bullied due to being extremely shy and did the same as Rankine. I hid until I was somewhere safe. “It is not only that confrontation is headache-producing; it is also that you have a destination that doesn’t include acting like this moment isn’t inhabitable, hasn’t happened before, (Rankine 10)”. This quote shows how harmful it was to Rankine that she had to hide and suppress herself and personality to protect herself. Being unable to express ones self and to be constantly looked down upon would make anyone crazy.
Hi Jenna! I loved how you highlighted and explained the struggles that Rankine experienced. To answer your second question, i believe that Rankine stayed silent because if she was to speak up, no one would believe her or she would be punished since she is black. During this chapter we see that the protagonist feels as if she is overlooked by Sister Evelyn. One can infer that because the protagonist is in a predominantly white environment, she feels as if she is inferior to the other white kids, especially when Mary Catherine has made it obvious that she is cheating of the protagonist yet she has not been called out for it by Sister Evelyn. Because of the racism the protagonist has experienced in her early childhood, it is easy to see how this can affect the protagonist’s identity since she knows that she can;t get away with what the other white kids could.
Hi, Jenna I really enjoyed reading your blog post and liked how you touched on the main points of this chapter. We can see that Rankine struggles throughout this chapter and describes memories that stuck with her due to the distress she endured in her everyday life. She describes many incidents where people around her were racist towards her and make assumptions because of her race. Rankine seems to remain silent throughout these encounters and bottles up her emotions. We see an example of this when she is so stressed out after experiencing racism and she sits in her car for 10 minutes. “You hope by sitting in silence you are bucking the trend.” (11) Rankine knows that people of color who speak out and defend themselves are risking retaliation and even their lives. She hopes by just sitting in her car the stress and regret of not speaking out will pass and she won’t be psychologically affected from these incidents where she is subjected to racism. Touching on your second question I believe Rankine didn’t defend herself during most of the memories because of the oppressive world she lived in and people of color especially women like her, knew there was harsh consequences if they were to speak up against the racism that they went through. People in this time did not view them the same as Whites and they believed this behavior was acceptable towards people of color. I don’t think I would have spoken up if I was put into the same situation because the things people went through who did speak up were risking their lives and could be punished or ridiculed for their actions.
Hi Jenna, interesting post!
When you asked why Rankine remained silent, it made me think of Audre Lorde’s piece. I wonder if due to the fact that these silent, defenseless moments were in her past she hadn’t yet developed the anger that Lorde talks about. It seems like when she was younger she didn’t know to be angry yet, and the main reason I think this, is because her reactions to two separate moments seem rather similar in the fact that they left her unsure about how to respond, or what to think. The first moment is the one you mention about the girl who copied her work “You assume she is thanking you for letting her cheat,” in which she chooses to think that this was a show of gratitude, but she still manages to pick up on the subtle racist undertones (Rankine 5). The second is “Haven’t you said this to a close friend who early in your friendship, when distracted, would call you by the name of her black housekeeper? You assumed you two were the only black people in her life. Eventually she stopped doing this, though she never acknowledged her slippage. And you never called her on it (why not?) and yet, you don’t forget” (Rankine 7). Again it seems to me that Rankine is unsure of how to respond, and looking back on this moment she doesn’t understand her own choice to remain silent. These moments are clearly very awkward situations she was forced to sit through, and from personal experience, awkward situations are always hard to navigate. While in those moments she didn’t react with anger or her voice, she keeps these moments in mind just as Lorde says we should.
Hey Jenna, I loved your blog post. You did a great job! I think its really interesting how you talk about the concept how people make these hurtful racial remarks unintentionally. Not only that but how people of color have to try and justify people whom say these racial remarks. To answer your first discussion question, I don’t think that the twelve-year-old was purposely insulting Rankine even though she did offend her. I think this girl just lives in her own bubble surrounded by privilege and didn’t actually understand the remark she was making, and how hurtful it could come across. My major takes away from this interaction is this clarity that a lot of people do make this unintentional racial remark in passing without giving it a second thought as to how that remark could impact individuals especially all those of color. This twelve-year-old girl tells the author “…You smell good and have features more like a white person.” (Rankine 5). This comment implies many things all of them I doubt this little girl really meant which doesn’t make it any less hurtful. I think this comment also displays white privilege and this cultural ignorance. Just using the words white girl is hurtful and kind of implies that she is in a different classification apart from white people. Ultimately this comment was an unnecessary, stereotypical comment.
Hi Jenna, I really enjoyed reading your blog post! I liked that you brought up how people aren’t always aware of the judgement they pass onto others. I think the twelve year old girl that copied Rankine’s test was not trying to insult her, but it seems like she was insulting her. “…she tells you you smell good and have features more like a white person”(Rankine 5). I think the girl did not know how else to compliment the girl, and by saying she looked white, may have seemed rude to Rankine, but the girl had probably thought that would make Rankine feel good. I believe that Rankine was silent and never spoke up because people of color were looked down on, whether is was always intentional or not, they do not receive the same treatment. If I was in her place, I like to think that I would have the courage to speak up. In reality, I think that I would probably stay silent though, because I would feel like I wouldn’t be heard if I did speak up.
Hi Jenna, this was a great blog post! When you asked why Rankine stayed silent, it made me think of the other two articles we had to read for class; Especially Audrie Lorde’s, “The Use of Anger.” When women of color, or people of color for that matter speak out, they could potentially be facing retaliation and extreme consequences. This makes me wonder if this is the reason she stayed silent – so she did not have to face that retaliation. Once she started to get older, it seemed as if she started to begin to slowly stand up for herself and others. On page 16, Rankine had a small confrontation with a man at a Starbucks who called a group of teenagers the n-word. At the end of the page, she states, “…and something about hearing yourself repeating this stranger’s accusation in a voice reserved for your partner makes you smile” (Rankine 16). As for if I was in Rankine’s position, I think I would have stayed silent as well, but I think that is just because I hate confrontation. I’m excited to see what happens in the rest of this book and how the rest of the book plays out.
Hi Jenna, I have to say I found your post to be extremely intriguing. Your perspective on Rankine’s first chapter influenced my own. I think it is important for us as college students and citizens of this world to understand the society we live in. Racial prejudice has been going on for far too long and books like these need to be taught, read, and heard about more. I believe in the idea that we must educate ourselves on any matter that is foreign to us, whether that be technology, the arts, or culture. As humans, we are products of our environment, the people we surround ourself with, and the knowledge we bear. To answer your first question, I think that the interaction between Rankine and her peer was a prime example of times when people can be unintentionally racist. In the chapter she states,”…when she tells you you smell good and have more features like a white person. You assume she thinks she is thanking you for letting her cheat and feels better cheating from an almost white person.” (Rankine 5) Racism is a learned behavior and I am almost positive this twelve year old was not even aware of how insulting her remarks came off. As for the second question, I personally think that Rankine remained silent because that was what she was accustomed to do. She did not realize she had a voice, she was used to her oppression without even realizing it. Additionally, I think she was not exposed to situations in which people of color would stand up for themselves. If I were in Rankine’s exact position, I also probably would have remained silent. If I were in Rankine’s position with the knowledge and confidence I have today, I would have stood up for myself and educated my peer on how her words can be harmful.
Hi Jenna! I loved your post and thought you brought up a lot of important points and I loved the quotes that you chose. In regards to your second question I don’t think I have the right to say what I would have done because I will never completely understand what it is like to be a black woman. One thing I found interesting in this book is how blatant the racism is. There is also presently the stereotype of the “angry black woman”. In one part of the book the speaker says, “He has just referred to the boisterous teenagers in Starbucks as n——. Hey I am standing right here you responded, not necessarily expecting him to turn to you … They are just being kids. Come on, no need to get all KKK on them, you say. Now there you go, he responds” (Rankine 16). In this passage one clearly sees the woman standing up for these boys and then she is immediately regarded by the man as being an “angry black woman”. By the man saying “there you go again” is assuming that because she is a black woman who confronts him for his racist comments that she is just fitting the stereotype. That all black woman would do the same thing. This is seen by the fact that this is the first time she is confronting him, yet, he says the word “again” which places her as not an individual but a part of the larger group that is black women.
Another thing that I found interesting in this book is the use of the second person “you”. I thought this was interesting for the fact that the main character could also be viewing her experiences as not only her individual experience but other black people’s or specifically black women’s experiences. I don’t want to speak for the main character and assume that this is what the author meant by using the second person “you”. I just was wondering if maybe this was her way of saying that all of her experiences are similar to that of the black community as a whole. That this is the type of racism that occurs on a daily basis for them. And maybe telling the white readers that the black community suffers from racism more that we think. For example, the fact that there is a medical term called John Henryism which is described as “people exposed to stresses stemming from racism” (Rakine 11). This shows that the there are long term effects of racism on the mental health of the black community. That it is not just situational stressors of racism but that it affects people of color more than white people realize.
Hey Jenna! I really enjoyed reading your discussion post and thought you brought up some great points about the first part of Citizen. I especially like how you talked about how words have so much of an impact on someone even when they’re intended to come off in a kind matter and how that can come off as racial bias to people. Your title also connected to this really well and throughout your blog post showed how words can impact one’s life. To answer your first question, I think the twelve year old girl who was copying off of Rankine’s test, was trying to show gratitude towards her, but did so in a bad manner that she might have not realized could have been taken as racial bias. We can see that Rankine took the girl thanking her as a negative connotation when Rankine says, “you assume she thinks she is thanking you for letting her cheat and feels better cheating from an almost white person” (Rankine, 5). My takeaway from this interaction is that the girl who thanked Rankine for cheating, wasn’t trying to insult her, but trying to make herself feel better for cheating especially since she can get away with things like that.
Hi Jenna! I enjoyed reading your post. I liked your title. It demonstrates that words can stick with people and in this case and really affect a person in the future. Throughout the first chapter Rankine tells us situations where she is treated unfairly and remains quiet. If I was in her position, I would say now I would stand up for myself, but I know when you are literally in the position it’s a different story. Rankine doesn’t speak up because she knows there will be a negative outcome. In any uncomfortable situation you always say to yourself “I wish I could have said this or that.” Rankine is unsure of what to do or say and most likely just overwhelmed. “…she tells you you smell good and have features more like a white person”(Rankine 5). The classmate tried to complement her by comparing her to a white person, at the time Rankine was unsure how to respond because she most likely was told to stay quiet. I don’t think Rankine was taught that she can speak up for herself, and these words are not okay. I believe deep down she didn’t like the comment the classmate made and knew it was wrong but it wasn’t until looking back on it that she realized. She most likely was unsure of her own choice looking back. I also noticed the trend of “you.” Rankine says “You hope by sitting in silence you are bucking the trend.” (Rankine 11) You assume she thinks she is thanking you for letting her cheat and feels better cheating from an almost white person.” (Rankine 5) I believe she kept using this type of style saying “you hope” or “you assume” to indicate that is what you are expected to think. She is unsure of her past actions and it seems like she is regretful. Saying “you” in these sentences makes me believe she was trying to justify herself for remaining quiet.
Hi Jenna, I enjoyed reading your blog post. To answer your second question, I feel that Rankine didn’t defend herself during most of the memories she explained because it could potentially be dangerous to do so. Rankine experiences many microaggressions that frustrate her, but she may fear to respond with anger because confrontation can lead to even more unfair treatment. Rankine states, “Certain moments send adrenaline to the heart, dry out the tongue, and clog the lungs. Like thunder they drown you in sound, no, like lightning they strike you across the larynx” (Rankine 7). Rankine shows that racism is incredibly hard to deal with and these experiences she has faced cause a great deal of pain. Rankine depicts the feelings of being a woman of color enduring racism. All of these racist interactions she has faced show readers the “headache-producing” effect these memories weigh on her. I don’t know exactly what I would have done in Rankine’s postion but I probably would have remained silent as well.
Hey Jenna, great job on your post! In response to your second question I feel like there could be many reasons that Rankine did not defend herself. First of all its definitely intimidating to go through a situation like hers. I think we’ve all been in situations like hers not knowing what to do. Personally I connected to her actions because growing up with a physical disability I have been treated differently, and most of the time I never stood up for myself until I was older. It was hard but it also made me a stronger person where I never got mad over something I heard. Rankine i feel like was in disbelief of what was being said because she said “What did he just say? Did she really just say that? (Rankine, 7). Therefore it sounds like she was in denial about what was being said to her. So it would be hard for her to say something back.
Jenna, I enjoyed the way you described Rankine’s heavy emotions. I believe that she used heavy emotions not only in a way to express her own thoughts and life experiences but to connect more to the readers. Rankine is using her personal stories to teach a lesson to her readers; this also gives her readers a chance to grow as a person learning off of her life experiences. Rankine states an example of when she was scared to speak up about someone cheating on her exam. To respond to your second guiding question I believe that she did not confront the situation by telling someone because she has grown up her whole life being used to the fact that her voice is silenced. This is a setback for Rankine because she was not able to stand up for something she believed in because she was afraid no one would listen to her. The text states, “You hope by sitting in silence you are bucking the trend” (Rankine 11). This quote inherently reveals that Rankine staying in silence would not be making a change; you need to be the change that you aspire to see in life.
Hey Jenna! Great post, I also noted the fact that she didn’t speak up or stand up for herself towards the beginning. The reason I think this is, is because she was probably just so stunned. Especially when kids are younger, they do not always see the differences that others do, kids will not automatically assume that they are different from anyone else. So when they get a bad reaction it must be not only frightening but also confusing, to the point where they do not know how to initially react. This is most clearly seen on page 18 and 19, “And though you back up a few steps , you manage to tell her you have an appointment.” (Rankine, 18) and we see the image of a deer with a human’s face in a submissive/wounded position. Her taking the steps back, and the scared pose on the animal shows that they are extremely frightened. It makes the reader feel as though they are winded and are physically unable to speak out because being shouted at for no reason would scare anyone, which is the reason why I think they never spoke up for themselves.
Works Cited
Rankine, Claudia, 1963- author. Citizen : An American Lyric. Minneapolis, Minnesota : Graywolf Press, 2014.
Hi Jenna I enjoyed reading your post. In regards to your first question I feel like the girl who cheated off her was somewhat insulting her and I feel this way because Rankine said “Sister Evelyn never figures out your arrangements perhaps because you never turn around to copy Mary Catherine’s answers” (6). I feel like this is saying that Mary could get away with cheating off Rankine probably because of her skin color while if Rankine copied Mary, then Sister Evelyn would discipline Rankine probably because of her skin color. I also feel like that is how Mary was raised so she is just doing what she sees her parents doing. Even though this might have not been going through Mary’s head maybe she was thinking that if she copied off Rankine it would not be noticed because Rankine is easy for the class to not notice because of her skin color.