Chloe Knuth The Red Pencil Andrea Davis Pinkney September 16, 2014 Fiction Sudan
The Red Pencil takes place in Sudan, Africa. Amira is the main character and she is a 12 year old who only desire is to attend school. She wants to learn how to read and write, which is forbidden in her village. Her village is attacked, and she loses everything. Her family, her friends, and her entire village is burned to the ground. She can’t speak because of the horror she witnessed, and so she walks on foot to a refugee camp. That is where she find a red pencil and is finally able get the education she hoped to have before.
The book indicates that the Sudan culture is against educating women and doesn’t treat them as equals. In this, a civil war is brewing in Sudan, and that is why Amira’s village was destroyed. Her family was everything to her. Her dad dictated her actions and was considered the leader of the family. Her mom was very traditional and never allowed her to deviate from the traditions of her culture. This depicts Sudan’s culture including this relationship between mother and daugher.
American culture is not similar to Sudan’s culture, but the only thing we have in common is the history of experiencing a civil war. Otherwise, these two cultures seem to be opposite of each other.
I connected with Amira because her ambitions are similar to mine. I have always excelled in school and I’m always learning new things. Amira is in a country that doesn’t allow females to go to school, which is horrible. I have never experienced this before, but if I had not been adopted by American parents, I wouldn’t have the opportunity to gain an education. I would still be in China, and would have probably not been able to attend high school as an orphan. This is why I connect to Amira the most.
The central conflict was Amira’s inability to attend school. This was resolved by her village getting attacked. The cause of the ban of education for females is part of Sudan’s culture. In Africa, the women are considered the caretakers and are viewed by men as their childbearers, not their equals. This stems from traditional customs ingrained in Africa’s culture. I think that the cause is inhumane and unfair. In the story, when Amira is finally able to attend school, it’s after she experiences hardships no one should go through. I don’t think this was handled in the best way. The cause is culturally based.
This book changed my world view by showing me that everyone is passionate about something and that they are capable of changing their own culture. It showed me that Africa is beginning to allow females to have an education, but is still holding onto that traditional thinking. I learned to not judge people based on their culture depict them as but on who they really are.
3. What preconceived ideas or stereotypes were changed after reading the text? I had this stereotype that all African females were unintelligent because of their lack of education, but after reading this book, I realized that this is not true. Girls want to learn, but are unable to because of the place they live. It’s not a matter of not wanting an education, it’s the result of traditional thinking that’s been instilled in African culture for centuries.