Memories of Childhood

Here’s a summary of the chapter “Memories of Childhood” and answers to all the given questions, explained with ease and emojis! 📚👶👧

Summary of “Memories of Childhood” 📖✨

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“Memories of Childhood” comprises two autobiographical excerpts, offering powerful insights into the experiences of two women from marginalised communities. Both stories reflect on their childhood and their relationship with the mainstream culture.

Part I: “The Cutting of My Long Hair” by Zitkala-Sa 💇‍♀️😔

This section is written by Zitkala-Sa, an American Indian woman born in the late nineteenth century. It recounts her painful experience at a residential school run by “palefaces” (white people).

• Arrival at School: She describes the first day as “bitter-cold” and filled with distressing sounds – loud bells, clatter of shoes, and murmuring voices speaking an “unknown tongue”. She feels her spirit “tore itself in struggling for its lost freedom”.
• Cultural Shock: She notes the Indian girls are forced into “stiff shoes and closely clinging dresses” and have “shingled hair”, which she finds immodest compared to her soft moccasins and traditional clothing. During breakfast, she struggles to understand the rules of sitting and eating, feeling “keenly watched”.
• The Hair Incident: Her friend, Judewin, warns her that the authorities plan to cut their long, heavy hair. For Zitkala-Sa’s people, long hair symbolises respect and is worn by free, skilled warriors; short hair is for mourners, and shingled hair for “cowards” or “captured” enemies. This news deeply distresses her.
• Rebellion and Loss: Zitkala-Sa declares, “No, I will not submit! I will struggle first!”. She attempts to hide under a bed in a dim room, but is discovered, “dragged out,” “tied fast in a chair,” and despite her resistance, her braids are “gnaw[ed] off”. She cries, feeling her “spirit lost” and that she “had suffered extreme indignities”. She feels dehumanised, like “one of many little animals driven by a herder”.

Part II: “We Too are Human Beings” by Bama 🧍‍♀️🚫🤝

This part is by Bama, a contemporary Tamil Dalit writer, taken from her autobiography ‘Karukku’. It describes an incident from her childhood that made her acutely aware of untouchability and caste discrimination.

• Daily Observations: Bama recounts her leisurely walk home from school, observing various fascinating street activities and vendors.
• The Humiliating Incident: One day, she sees an elder from her street carrying a packet of “vadai or green banana bhajji” for the landlord. What strikes her as comic is the way he carries it: by its string, without touching the package itself, with his other hand cupping the string. She initially laughs at the sight.
• Brother’s Explanation: Her elder brother, Annan, explains that the elder was not being funny. He clarifies that the so-called “upper caste” people believe they would be “polluted” if they touched the lower castes. This is why the elder had to carry the packet by its string.
• Realisation and Anger: Upon hearing this, Bama stops laughing and feels “terribly sad,” “provoked and angry”. She questions why they, as human beings, should “fetch and carry for these people” and endure such lack of “honour or dignity or respect”.
• Path to Overcoming: Annan advises her that if they “study and make progress,” they “can throw away these indignities” and gain respect. Inspired, Bama studies “hard, with all her breath and being,” stands “first in her class,” and as a result, many people become her friends.

Answers to Questions ❓

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1. The two accounts that you read above are based in two distant cultures. What is the commonality of theme found in both of them? 🌍🤝 The commonality of theme found in both accounts, despite their distant cultures, is the experience of discrimination, oppression, and dehumanisation faced by individuals from marginalised communities. Both narratives highlight:

   • Loss of Identity and Dignity 💔: Zitkala-Sa’s account details the forced assimilation attempts where her traditional long hair, a symbol of her culture, is cut, and she is stripped of her freedom and made to feel like an “animal”. Bama’s story reveals the indignity and lack of respect faced by her community due to untouchability, where physical contact is seen as “polluting”. Both children feel a profound loss of their inherent worth and respect.
   • Injustice Perceived by Children 👁️‍🗨️: Both children, at a young age, recognise and react to the unfairness and cruelty they experience. Zitkala-Sa rebels fiercely against the hair cutting, while Bama, initially amused, quickly grasps the gravity of caste discrimination and feels “terribly sad” and “infuriated”.
   • Struggle Against Oppression 💪: Both stories portray the characters’ internal and external struggles against the oppressive systems. Zitkala-Sa physically resists her captors. Bama, guided by her brother, chooses education as a means to “throw away these indignities” and gain respect.
   • Social Alienation 😔: Both protagonists experience a sense of being ‘othered’ or treated differently simply because of who they are (their race/culture or caste). Zitkala-Sa feels she is “securely tied” in a bedlam and is keenly watched, while Bama’s community is denied honour and dignity.

2. It may take a long time for oppression to be resisted, but the seeds of rebellion are sowed early in life. Do you agree that injustice in any form cannot escape being noticed even by children? 🌱🔥 Yes, I strongly agree that injustice in any form cannot escape being noticed even by children, and the stories provided in “Memories of Childhood” powerfully support this statement.

   • Zitkala-Sa’s Immediate Rebellion: Even as a child, Zitkala-Sa explicitly refuses to submit to the cutting of her hair. She declares, “No, I will not submit! I will struggle first!”. She then attempts to hide and, when found, resists by “kicking and scratching wildly”. This shows an innate, visceral reaction to the perceived injustice and violation of her cultural identity. She felt her “spirit tore itself in struggling for its lost freedom” from the very first day, indicating that the seeds of rebellion were sown instantly.
   • Bama’s Shift from Amusement to Anger: Bama, initially amused by the elder’s peculiar way of carrying the package, quickly understands the deeper, painful reality of caste discrimination after her brother’s explanation. Her reaction shifts from laughter to feeling “terribly sad,” “provoked and angry”. She then questions the entire discriminatory practice, thinking, “Why should we have to fetch and carry for these people… But we too are human beings”. This demonstrates a child’s ability to not only notice but also internalise and react emotionally and intellectually to injustice. Both narratives showcase that children, despite their limited understanding of complex societal structures, possess an inherent sense of fairness and a strong emotional response to indignity and oppression. This early recognition often forms the foundational “seeds of rebellion” that may blossom into active resistance later in life.

3. Bama’s experience is that of a victim of the caste system. What kind of discrimination does Zitkala-Sa’s experience depict? What are their responses to their respective situations? 😢🚫

   • Bama’s Experience of Discrimination: Bama’s experience depicts the caste system and the practice of untouchability prevalent in Indian society.
     • This is shown through the elder of her street carrying a package of snacks by a string without touching it, because he believed contact with lower castes like Bama’s community would “pollute” him.
     • Her brother’s experience of being asked about his street to ascertain his caste further highlights this systemic discrimination.
     • Bama’s community is denied “honour or dignity or respect” simply by virtue of their birth.
   • Zitkala-Sa’s Experience of Discrimination: Zitkala-Sa’s experience depicts racial and cultural discrimination, specifically the forced assimilation policies imposed on Native American children in residential schools.
     • This is evident in the forceful imposition of foreign clothing (“stiff shoes and closely clinging dresses”) over traditional attire.
     • The most significant act of discrimination is the forced cutting of her long hair, which held deep cultural significance for her people, symbolising dignity and being unworn by “cowards” or “captured” individuals.
     • She experiences a profound loss of freedom and identity, feeling like a “puppet” and an “animal driven by a herder”, highlighting the attempt to strip her of her cultural heritage and individuality.
   • Their Responses to Their Respective Situations:
     • Bama’s Response: Initially, Bama finds the elder’s behaviour funny. However, once her brother explains the underlying caste prejudice, her amusement turns into deep sadness, provocation, and anger. Her active response is to embrace education as a tool for empowerment. Inspired by her brother’s advice (“if we study and make progress, we can throw away these indignities”), she studies “hard” and excels academically, standing “first in her class” to gain respect and overcome the societal barriers.
     • Zitkala-Sa’s Response: Zitkala-Sa’s immediate response is direct rebellion and physical resistance. Upon learning about the forced hair cutting, she hides under a bed and, when discovered, resists forcefully by “kicking and scratching wildly”. Although she is eventually subdued and her hair is cut, her initial struggle demonstrates a powerful defiance against the oppressive act. After the act, she feels her “spirit lost” and weeps in anguish, signifying the profound impact of the indignity.