Briefly identify the text and author for the quotation and explain (as far as is possible or relevant) the context in which it appears. Then identify themes in minority or African American identity or literature. Refer to specific words, phrases, and events or images in the passage. Comparisons to other texts are welcome. There may be more themes in these passages than we discussed in class, so try to explore further.

"Man, that ain't about nothin'"

This is an quote from Black Girl Lost. In this book the use of African American English Vernacular (AAEV) through the speeches of Sandra and Chink makes the book much more powerful and helps the reader to identify and relate to the characters. This quote shows the example of the double negative found in AAEV. When the African Americans were forced to learn English within the oppression of slavery, they not knowingly combined the grammar of west African languages with the vocabulary of the English language and a new dialect was born. In turn, this dialect has now become the speech of upper class southern whites who picked up parts of speech from their slaves or servants.

"Let's have a little set."

This is another quote of Chinks from Black Girl Lost. It is the language again that reflects Chink's heritage as an African American. The "souther" dialect that he uses here is the cross of African and the English language.

"Good God from Gulfport!"

This quote is spoken by one of Lena's brothers in Baby of the Family. This quote is an example of not only alliteration within the text but also of an anticlimactic statement. The "good God" is a form of taking the Lord's name is vein, but with the addition of "from Gulfport" it pulls it down to a simple funny statement. African American English Vernacular and the southern dialect are full of little phrases or sayings such as "Good God from Gulfport".

"Jesus, keep me near the cross."

This quote spoken by Lena's mother in Baby of the Family is quite like the one above. It falls in that shades of gray between praise of Jesus and using his name as a way of swearing. I also found it funny that "Jesus Keep Me Near the Cross" is a rather popular Southern church hymn that probably would not be sung in the Catholic church that Lena's family attended. In that way it would reflect Lena's mother's ethnic culture rather than her religious upbringing.

"Honey, I don't never want to go back alive, since I know they'll never let me out. I couldn't do life in prison. I just couldn't stand it, you understand. It ain't for me, baby. I'm goin' hold court in the streets, wherever they stop me. That's goin' be my court day, you hear?"

This speech made by Chink in the end of Black Girl Lost closely resembles the

"I Have a Dream" speech made by Dr. Martin Luther King, and also "The Dream" mentality of the African American culture. "It is a dream deeply rooted in the American Dream" Dr. King says. But Chink and Dr. Kings dream has not yet arrived but is off in the future. But they both know that in the end they shall be, as Dr. King said in this famous speech, "free at last". This is the speech of someone who believes in "The Dream" but not the "American Dream".

In all of the quotes above, the use of AAEV only strengthens their impact on the reader and allows the reader to relate to the characters. It also shows a strong link to the persons heritage and a link to that traditional culture that so strongly relies on speech. These quotes display the theme of objective five, which states that the use of the minority voice helps to "vicariously share the minority experience".

"Man, that ain’t about nothin’"

(Text, Black Girl Lost, Author, Donald Goines)

Chink uses double negative language, a common trait in African American speech. This is objective 5d, development and variations of Standard English language. This was his way of telling Jimmy that it was okay to join him and Sandra. It is a quick way to get the point. Also, the language is "inside" communication in that it is a language spoken in the African American community. It gives Chink and Jimmy a sense of belonging and understanding. It shows they speak the same language. By saying very little, he speaks in volume. By using the word man is a common way to address one another.

"Let’s have a little set."

"Good God from Gulfport!"

(Text, Baby of the Family, Author, Tina McElroy Ansa)

Raymond attempts to clean up his language in the presence of his grandmother. Notice how the sound rises and falls. The alliteration is an anti-climax to the situation because he wants to avoid being disciplined. This is also an example of double-language usage. It is figure of speech (objective 5e).

"Jesus, keep me near the cross."

(Text, Baby of the Family, Author, Tina McElroy Ansa)

It’s hard to tell if Grandma is praying or cursing. We get the sense of her losing her patience. This is a phrase that can be used in different contexts, so it is double-language. It’s an old saying that was very common in her community (objective 5e). It gives two signals at once.

"Honey, I don't never want to go back alive, since I know they'll never let me out. I couldn't do life in prison. I just couldn't stand it, you understand. It ain't for me, baby. I'm goin' hold court in the streets, wherever they stop me. That's goin' be my court day, you hear?"

(Text, Black Girl Lost, Author, Donald Goines)

This shows development and variations of Standard English (objective 5d). The language imitates speech of what is real. Standard (white) English tends to sound flat and minority language tends to fluctuate to emphasize and use the voice that is sometimes silenced. The use of double negative language is to emphasize the point he is trying to make. This is a strong attempt to voice his choice. By intensifying it and by saying it twice he wants to assure he is heard. Since African Americans were denied their voice, this style reflects the voice breaking out with force to break through the barriers.

He is also using language as a figure of speech, objective 5e, by using metaphors in saying he’s going to hold court in the streets. The figurative elevates the intensity. We hear the voice of the people that have been denied power. There is emotion, which isn’t noticeable in Standard English. Also, this can be referenced to Dr. King’s speech in that Chink wants to be free. He doesn’t want to be manipulated by the White man’s system. [DR 01]

Q3. She disrupted two rituals . . . that you were lucky to even be connected with. . . . You been scared of what you should have understood."

This Quotation is in Ansa's "Baby" on p. 262 . In this part of the novel the grandmama is trying to reconnect Lena to her past. In minority culture, especially in the African American culture, there is a need to reconnect to the past. As in the chart on Obj. 3 Lena's past is like a wound that needs healing. In this quote two things are happening: One is the approval for the traditional and two is the rejection for the modern . . . If it is looked at in this way it also tends to seem as if it is representing resistance for the dominant culture. This explanation gives the healing she needs to understand the past and go on with her life, she receives closure. Her wound is healed. [NK 01]

Q4."I only wish it hadn't went like this, Sandra. There was so much we could have did together." . . . Whether she was tried for his death or not didn't make any difference to her now. All that mattered was that her man was free. He was free at last.

Chink's comment is filled with sorrow. His "pursuit of happiness" was cut short because of the social constraints that he faced from an early age. The social constraints are in a way the "insufficient funds" that Martin Luther King spoke about. Chink and Sandra do indeed make choices that give birth to the consequences that separate them, but the alternative choices are not recognizable because they have come from a "lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity..." in which the only feasible escape is the drug running business. In the end she does not care that she might be tried for his death because she knew that he was free from what she saw as an oppressive American Dream and able to achieve the ultimate dream of freedom through an alternative medium - death.