Links to Other W.E.B. Du Bois Material

California State University, Dominguez Hills
Created: September 22, 2000
Latest update: May 18, 2001
:jeannecurran@habermas.org.

On Tursday, May 17, 2001, Tamisha Diaz and Tiffany Bolling wrote:

Hi jeanne. it's Tamisha and Tiffany, and we decided to work together on W.E.B. DuBois's double consciousness. We feel that double consciousness is one way you are made aware that you are different from other people, whether it be in class or race, and you are left out of the in crowd because of those factors. And, no matter what, you are always aware of your position in life; you are always aware of your status. And you are constantly reminded that everyone else is better than you.

For instance, when children are small they learn their first words from their parents and, depending on what type of family you were raised in, your first word could be just about any word you hear frequently. Double consciousness comes in much later in a child's life. When children go to school they become aware of standard English and they are forced to speak properly in school. But as soon as the child leaves school he or she knows that it is okay for them talk however they'd like.

Now let's make that same child an African American child. When that same child goes to school he/she may try to speak standard English, but because his/ her parents don't speak proper English the way that the child is being taught it becomes extremely hard for the child to deal with the transitions at school. The child is then made aware that he/she is stupid or dumb by peers and ridiculed by teachers. The child is then made aware that he/she is different, and that is when double consciousness comes into play. These experiences turn children of many different cultures and races away from learning. And this is where we as a society lose.

We feel it is wrong to single people out and make them feel out of place or unwanted because they are differnt. We are all different, but first we must be aware of who we are, before we can learn another person's rights and wrongs. We first have to establish for ourselves what is right and what is wrong. If we are aware of the rich history that each of us has, then it becomes easier for us to accept ourselves and for others to accept us.

On Friday, May 1, 2001, jeanne wrote:

Tamisha and Tiffany,

I am so glad you put this together, especially since I realize that you two are working across classes. This is the kind of sharing that will integrate your learning for you.

I liked your definition of double consciousness as "one way you are made aware that you are different from other people, whether it be in class or race, and you are left out of the in crowd because of those factors." That one sentence brings together three issues we have discussed all semester:

• difference
• class and race as sources of difference
• exlusion as a result of that difference

I liked also that you gave a very clear example of how a child's first words could be almost any sound the child frequently hears. We often forget the amount of babbling we do with infants in correcting their sounds towards our own language. This is truly an example of interdependence. The infant makes a sound. We decide that it "sounds like," and then we repeat until the infant responds even more closely to a sound like the word we've decided the infant is saying.

And then, in school, the standard language used in the school, shapes the child's language again. Did you mean to describe that process as structurally violent? You did, you know. "[T]hey are forced to speak properly in school." The choice of two words provides the clue: "forced" and "properly." The "forced" suggests that this does not come naturally, and that the children are not given any decision-making power over the language they will use. The "properly" suggest that such "force" is good and natural, and that there are no major decisions being forced on anyone.

I would agree with you that the process is structurally violent. Unstated assumptions about the speaking of standard English in school operate to the disadvantage of children who speak a different first language, even when that language is English, but mixed with, and/or specific to dialect from other languages or regions. An explanation of how such unstated assumptions harm those against whom they are applied "out-of-awareness" Chapter 1: The Unstated Assumptions of Privilege: Understanding Normative Expectations The assumption that only "standard English" is correct and worthy of respect creates a status difference in speaking style and grammar that harms those who are not privileged to speak "standard English" as their native language. And the "forcing" of that "standard English" as the school norm, through it's recognition as the sole "proper" norm for English in school, and, hence, in the corporate world for which school trains, bestows power and status on "standard English," which is then in a position to denigrate other forms of English. These are powerful tools of oppression.

You gave an excellent example of this process when you stated: "But as soon as the child leaves school he or she knows that it is okay for them talk however they'd like." You are illustrating here a sense of relief in being able to relax newly learned rules of language production, put your feet up, and just talk as you would at home. Even bell hooks expresses the occasional delight such relaxation provides.

You further illustrate this problem when you for a child whose parents speak a dialect other than standard, or another lanuage entirely, the child experiences difficulty in school. "[B]ecause his/ her parents don't speak proper English the way that the child is being taught it becomes extremely hard for the child to deal with the transitions at school." Notice that as you are making this passionate argument against creating discriminatory difference in language, you still refer to "proper English." Now, there's an example of the structural violence of underlying assumptions which privilege the dominant discourse. And I think it is well-reflected in your conclusion: "These experiences turn children of many different cultures and races away from learning. And this is where we as a society lose."

I also like your concluding paragraph, in which you take a clear position on the issue of language differences. It would be a good idea to tie the whole issue back into Du Bois' double-consciousness with a sentence or two. Good essay; well done.

love and peace, jeanne

---

---