Question

Bama's experience is that of a victim of caste system. What kind of discrimination does Zitkala-Sa experience ? Describe their respective responses.

Hint:

When comparing characters, create a clear structure. First, analyze one character's situation and response completely. Then, do the same for the second character. This point-by-point comparison makes your answer clear, organized, and easy to follow.

Answer 1

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
This question asks for a comparative analysis of the forms of discrimination faced by two characters, Zitkala-Sa and Bama, from the text 'Memories of Childhood'. It also requires a description of how each character responded to their oppression.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Zitkala-Sa's Experience and Response:

Form of Discrimination: Zitkala-Sa faced racial and cultural discrimination. As a Native American girl forced into a residential school run by white missionaries, her identity, traditions, and freedom were systematically attacked. The goal of the school was to erase her native culture and assimilate her into the dominant white culture.
Key Incident: The most traumatic incident for her was the "cutting of her long, heavy hair." In her culture, long hair was a symbol of pride, and only cowards or mourners had their hair shingled. This act was a humiliating and violent stripping of her cultural identity.
Response: Her response was one of active but futile resistance. She tried to fight back by hiding under a bed and kicking and scratching wildly. However, she was a child and was eventually overpowered. The experience left her deeply traumatized, feeling like "one of many little animals driven by a herder" and losing her spirit. Her response highlights the helplessness of an individual against an oppressive system.

Bama's Experience and Response:

Form of Discrimination: Bama faced caste-based discrimination, specifically the practice of 'untouchability'. As a member of a Dalit community in India, she was considered 'lower-caste' and was subjected to dehumanizing social rules by the 'upper-caste' community.
Key Incident: Her realization of this oppression came when she saw an elder from her community carrying a food packet for the landlord by its string, without touching it, to avoid 'polluting' the food. This practice, which she initially found funny, was revealed to be a symbol of the humiliation her community faced.
Response: Bama's response evolved from innocence to anger and finally to proactive rebellion. After her brother explained the injustice, she felt enraged. Her brother advised her that the only way to overcome this indignity was through education. Bama took his words to heart, studied diligently, and stood first in her class. Her response was to use education as a tool for empowerment and to earn dignity and respect, thereby challenging the oppressive system from within.

Step 3: Final Answer:
Zitkala-Sa experienced racial and cultural discrimination aimed at erasing her Native American identity, to which she responded with physical resistance that was ultimately crushed. Bama experienced caste-based discrimination (untouchability) within her own society, and her response was to channel her anger into educational achievement as a form of rebellion and a means to reclaim her dignity.