Sep 18 2008
Maniac Magee and Racism:
As we wrap up our novel study on Maniac Magee one of the central themes that has emerged is the idea of racism. In fact through out the book there have been numerous examples of the preconceived ideas people have about others. Many of the main characters either showed behaviors that were racist or experienced racism themselves.
As a class we had a discussion about what the McNab family believes as shown by the characters actions. The fact that they believed that the “East Enders” were going to storm the “West End” in the summer and that the only sensible response was to build a pill box or bunker in the house to shoot at them from is quite scary.
But the McNab family was not the only evidence of racism in the book. There are more examples.
Reflect on what racism means to you. Don’t simply write a dictionary definition of racism, that does not show your own thoughts. Take some time to think, what does it mean to be racist? Have you ever been treated differently based on your skin color or religion? Have you treated others differently? Have you ever assumed something to be true about a group of people without any real evidence?
Please attempt these two tasks:
1. On this blog reflect on your experience and ideas about racism means.
2. On your blog write a post showing one other (new, not the one I explained) example of racism in Maniac Magee. Explain why you feel the characters behaved that way or believed certain things.
