Amy Chastain
Ms. Chastain
English 100
November 5, 2010
The Art of Education, Voice and Persons
As a child, I have always loved learning and reading and writing. You would most often find me buried behind the pages of an R.L. Stine novel, a book about serial killers or the Holocaust. Or you would most often find me glued to the computer, typing my latest short story. This passion has not ceased even at the age of 25. My passion has led me to the art of teaching. Now I am sharing my passion for the written word with others. This passion and finding would not have been possible without two incidents and two persons who instilled in me the art of education and voice. “Sister Flowers” written by Maya Angelou tells a story about Mrs. Flowers and Angelou as a child. Angelou tells us about the one person who threw her a life line. This life line encouraged Marguerite to read and voice her thoughts. As Mrs. Flowers recited the first few lines of A Tale of Two Cities, it was then that Marguerite saw the music behind the words. The passion that I had for learning and reading and writing is presented in this story. Like Mrs. Flowers, I saw myself as Marguerite. I was a character in this story, but here, my life was presented, not as fiction, but as a reality.
“Sister Flowers” tells a story about an aristocratic African American womyn who threw Angelou, a young child at the setting of the story, a life line. Marguerite, as Angelou went by as a child, considered Mrs. Bertha Flowers a refined gentlewomyn. Angelou describes Mrs. Flowers as a rich African American womyn. She compares her to a refined, mature white womyn during the setting of the story. Mrs. Flowers invites Marguerite to her home to talk with her. When she arrives, Mrs. Flowers talks with her about her love of reading, but she has been informed that Marguerite does not speak up in class. Mrs. Flowers tells Marguerite that it is important to speak up because the human voice is then able to construct meaning. As an example, Mrs. Flowers opens A Tale of Two Cities and begins to recite, “It was the best of times and the worst of times…” This is music to Marguerite’s ears; she is then instructed to take a book of poetry with her and upon her next visit, she is to memorize and recite a poem for Mrs. Flowers. Marguerite, at the time of this setting, was simply pleased to be liked by Mrs. Flowers.
Mrs. Flowers, or as we may refer to her as Sister Flowers, played an important role in Marguerite’s young life. Before her visit to Mrs. Flowers, even the presence of her warmed Marguerite’s young eyes. Angelou writes, “When she chose to smile on me, I always wanted to thank her. The action was so graceful and inclusively benign” (93). She was an idol in some way to Marguerite. In the story, Marguerite tells us about her irritation of her mother. She defined her mother’s relationship to Mrs. Flowers as a “strange relationship” (93). Before her visit to Mrs. Flowers, Marguerite despised her mother’s ignorance because she felt that Mrs. Flowers was above them. Only years later did Marguerite find that “they were alike as sisters, separated only by formal education” (93). Because Marguerite’s mother and Mrs. Flowers are both African American womyn, this is the manner in which they are related. They are closely tied to the same community and the same gender; however, as Mrs. Flowers later explains to her that even though others are not able to go to school, they are just as intelligent as the ones who do. Mrs. Flowers instructs Marguerite to be tolerant to those who are illiterate like her mother.
The real story, I feel, lies in the essence of person. What I mean here is we see the definition of what a role model is. The relationship between Mrs. Flowers and Marguerite is intact. Angelou writes, “She was one of the few gentlewomen I have ever known, and has remained throughout my life the measure of what a human being can be” (93). I have had the privilege of two persons who have helped me on my path of careful finding. “The measure of what a human can be” was revealed to me throughout my time at Missouri Western beginning in 2003 (Angelou 93). I came to Missouri Western, a high school graduate who loved to learn, in the fall of 2003, ready and willing. Like Marguerite, I too loved to read and write; however, the essence of person had been missing in my life. While there were teachers who had sought me out and commended me on how well I wrote, there was never a person or perhaps a time that I carefully heeded their words or took to heart what they actually meant until Dawn, like Mrs. Flowers had done for Marguerite.
After graduating from Braymer High School at 18, I made the decision to attend Missouri Western in 2003. Because of my ACT scores, I was placed into English 100: Introduction to College Writing, a development reading and writing course. Originally I had wanted to become a high school English teacher. I enjoyed reading and writing and as a teacher, I wanted to share my passion for the written language with others. However, because I was placed in a developmental reading and writing course, I thought that I was not smart enough to teach others. I thought that I had to be among the elite, the smartest. One letter changed my thoughts. Dawn Terrick, the director of developmental writing and English 100 professor, wrote a letter recognizing my written skills and encouraging me to pursue a career in writing. Needless to say, Dawn and I work together now. I am now teaching English 100.
So, like Mrs. Flowers had down for Marguerite, Dawn had taken me aside to instill in me pride, motivation and encouragement. She taught me that a test should not determine your fate as it does not determine whether we can read and write. Mrs. Flowers came to me in the presence of Dawn, but six years later, she came disguised as another person who carefully took me aside and taught me the importance of voice. Upon her visit to Mrs. Flowers, Marguerite was a reader. Angelou writes, “Your grandmother says you read a lot. Every chance you get. That’s good, but not good enough. Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with the shades of deeper meaning” (95). Mrs. Flowers was informed that the work that Marguerite did was good, but it was written work. The teachers found it difficult to encourage her to speak up in class. While I can only assume that Marguerite at this time was introverted like myself, once a upon a time, I found myself in this same predicament six years after Dawn’s letter encouraged me to pursue a career in writing.
Six years later, I was in Kay Siebler’s English 664 class, a course in Composition Theory. I was the only graduate student in the class among undergraduates, two of which were men. While I was vocal in the class, it was not to the level Kay wanted. I was called into her office at midterm and during our conference, Kay told me that because I was only a graduate student that I should be the most vocal in the classroom. Traditionally, men are more vocal in the classroom. As a womyn, I needed to establish my authority and as Kay suggested, the undergraduates could learn from my experiences because I was teaching at the time. In the past, I was introverted, but now I was in a new context, so I took her advice seriously. If I wanted to excel, I had to begin to read each essay critically, evaluating how I might apply it to my classroom. So as I began to read, I began to mark up the pages with my analysis and my comments of which I would bring up in English 664.
I have been fortunate to have two Mrs. Flowers in my life in the last seven years. I only hope that like Mrs. Flowers, Dawn and Kay, one day, I can too can be that person for someone else. Angelou writes, “Then I met, or rather got to know, the lady who threw me my first life line.” (92). Dawn threw me a life line, recognizing my written skills, and Kay, six years later, educated me about the importance of the human voice and what it can do. I have had two persons in my educational career who took the time to work with me. It would have been easy to look at me as just another student. However, Dawn recognized the skills in my writing. She later explained to me that because I was placed in English 100, this did not mean that I was stupid or could not read and write. A test does not determine your fate, just as it did not determine whether I could read and write. I could. Because I was placed in English 100, Dawn saw in me an excitement for writing that I will continue on in my career as I share it with others. Although it was a different time and setting because I was a graduate student, Kay like Dawn took the time to work with me. She took me aside because, as a fellow sister, she realized that I had things to tell that was worth sharing. The classroom can be a frightening and intimidating place; however, Kay taught me that everyone has something to say. We each can learn from what the other has said. The value of voice and being able to speak is so important that it is freeing in a way.
Works Cited
Angelou, Maya. "Sister Flowers." Introduction to College Writing. Boston: The McGraw-
Hill Companies, 2010: 92-96. Print.
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