Why does Wright feel gratified after sharing his writing?

he feels gratified because it seems that it is a reoccurence in wrights life that he is inferior, he doesnt understand, or he works to understand the ways of the world and other people by learning. now in this situation, where Wright uses the natural knowledge in him to write a story, he knows more about this than anyone. he has something unique - something he created, some that is all his. where to this girl, she has no idea why he would do such a thing, or what point this story had. but he knows - he is superior. superior in knowledge and superior in understanding. for this, he feels happy. he has accomplished something. 

Wright says it was his ‘cultural heritage’ to dislike Jews. Relate that to his own experiences.

this is a hard one.

wright has grown up receiving different messages his whole life from the environment that he lives in. all affecting the way that he views the world. the short few pages where Wright describes the jews is just an example of one of those views that has been imbedded in him since he was a child. No matter to what extent of how religious the people were - whether it was his Granny or his mom, the majority of people back then were christians. since jews allegedly killed Christ, many people held prejudices against jews. it wasnt that wright had chose to not like jews, that he really hated them for killing christ, but he had been taught even by his mother who throughout the story doesnt seem to be racist, he had been taught by her to not dislike them. to antagonize them and distrust jews was something they were bred from childhood. most parents "generally approved, actively or passively." it was still around this age when Wright had a question, he would askhis mother, or someone close to him to learn the answer. therefore, he being surrounded by this way of distrusting jews, this prejudice, that seemed "the answer." 

Explain Wright's response to his mother's paralysis.

Wright basically goes numb. he shuts down. he doesn't understand to what is going on with her - being what, 10, and seeing his mother nearly dead, not understanding why she cant speak or move. the one constant in his life up until this point in the story is his mother. though he may despise her at times, she has always been there no matter what to care about him and his wellbeing and his morals and to help feed him clothe him shelter him and bath him. he has always had that sense of just a bit of familiarity and family and warmth. but when his mother is nearly dead, when her presence of her challenging him, beating him, teaching him, and taking care of him is not there, part of that warmth is lost. he is more alone than he has ever been. there is a large turning point in the development of Wright - he says in the story "I went through the days with a stunned consciousness, unable to believe what had happened...The utter loneliness was now terrifying.i had been suddenly thrown emotionally upon my own. within an hour the half- friendly world that i had known had turned cold and hostile. i was too frightened to weep...Though i was a child,i could no longer feel as a child, could no longer react as a child. The desire for play was gone and i brooded." something has died in him - and later we see that once he moves in and is surrounded by his family, particularly in Jackson, he is alone. these people dont understand him. and he is able to in some ways fill that gap of his mother with boys his own age - with loyalty and gangs that imbed racial tension. 

Why was Wright so hungry?

Well, this question can be answered in both a very literal sense and a metaphorical sense. in a literal sense, Wright was naturally hungry because of his fathers leaving the household. and since his father was the one to bring home the money therefore the food, he no longer has food. his mother consistently worked long hours just to put food on the table, but being a black cook in a white household during that time period does earn much, let alone to feed three children. wright was hungry - always hungry. hungry after his father left, hungry at the orphanage, hungry on the streets. it seems that since the beginning of the book, wright has always been unsatisfied in some way, like there is a part of him that has always been imprisoned due to the response of his surroundings. hiding under the burning house, he just yearns to run away or never be found again terrified of being beaten. he yearns for freedom. once moving into the city, we see that he just yearns to be on the same level as his father, to "show him." he yearns to have all the knowledge of the city. he yearns to run away from the orphanage - he wants freedom, he wants food, he wants to be fulfilled. all of those yearnings i think can just be a parallel to the emptiness in his stomach. The world around him, his surroundings and his environment - has caused him to feel discontentment in his life that he longs to fill. all the while, he is starving.

What extent do you agree that we don't really need to go to school?

there is an extent that i believe we dont really need to go to school- a lot because i think a lot of the work we do is like gatto said, out of boredom, and a lot of the work that we are given is just busy work or work that requires cramming. and when i cram, i forget. for instance, i have studied so many dates for US history, or so many formulas for pre-calc. i am sure i have forgotten the majority of them, because the reason i memorize them are for the class or that specific test. how many times have we heard the question, when am i EVER going to use this stuff in the real world. though i do believe that at school, by broadening our perspectives, we find out our direction and what we like and what we want to do in school. but i think a lot of the work that is done is out of boredom and what teachers believe they have to do - or what the government thinks kids should know. i learn a lot more in classes like AP english were i get to really talk or listen about things that matter, and hear other peoples perspectives and hear people engaging rather than just bored and doing only to what is expected. in terms of socially, i think school can be both good and bad. i think it is great to meet different kinds of people, and forcing yourself (like in public schools) to be around people that you may not like, have different opinions than you, and who are just completely different people helps understand more of the world, more perspectives, it can also help social awkwardness to have people get used to be around people. but i also think that being forced to be around people can get people in the wrong crowd, or cause people who dont realy know where they fit to sell out or get lost in the social world vs. the academic world. that is exactly how zionsville - my old school seemed to be. that school just seems to be filled with all sorts of social drama and everything is about the social part of school. rarely do i/did i hear about students prime academic focus. homeschooling, i believe can give people maybe a bit more direction and have them focus more on what they want to do and what they like. though it often could cause social awkwardness. just a thought. 

Do you value the nonacademic education you are receiving?

Yes, i believe i do value my nonacademic education - or the nonacademic education i have received since i began school at the Gingerbread pre - school. i value my academic education as well - but that kind of education, for the most part, is just annoying. with that kind of education i certainly have to work and apply myself. i definitely value my academic education, but on a more surface level. on a level where my primary concern is "succeeding" in the real world - getting a good job and making a lot of money. i value my nonacademic education much more. and up until now, i havent even really thought about the "nonacademic" education i have consistently received throughout my school years. such as in the media unit we just studied - we were asked to think and observe the world around us. it wasnt so much academic, but more where we became less ignorant and discovered a lot more insight within ourself about the outside world. like mann said, from an early age i have been conditioned through school systems to have morals similar to ones in religion. dont steal. be nice to one another. do your best in school. etc. all of those are conditioned in me. i think the part i like most about school isnt the academic work - i love art and photography and sometimes math - but not because they are academics, but because it requires me to think and interpret and see different perspectives. it allows me to, as Maggie Dooley said, "find my purpose," or what i like. i have learned i like discussions in class- expressing opinions, developing  opinions. i have learned that i HATE writing papers - therefore, i know i wont become a journalist or anything of the sort. so yes, i do value my nonacademic education much more than the actual academic part of it. 

fashion mall vs. castleton

i thought the point that ethan made about the structure, architecture, and the tone of the fashion mall is very interesting. i had never really looked at it that way before or attempted to see the rhetorical message. like ethan said, the fashion mall is a very soft and white toned mall. half of the ceiling are windows allowing the mall to be lit by mostly sunlight instead of florescent overhead lights. the fashion mall also carries really nice stores - and nicer ones just keep coming in. i remember when the mall used to have Claires - which is just a regular cheap jewelry/hair stuff shop. but for some reason, they took Claires out of the mall and now just recently they are/ already have put in Anthropology, Nordstroms, and an Arts Theaters. all these stores, and even an arts theater can typically appeal to the more wealthy type of people. the type of people who go to arts movies and like a quiet atmosphere. the type of people who would rather eat from le petit bistro, panda express, or have frozen yogurt. while castleton mall has much wider hallways to fit a lot more people - more people equals more noise. castleton mall is much bigger and holds much more traditional department stores such as Sears and JCPenny vs. the fashion mall that just got a Sacs 5th Avenue. though castleton and keystone hold a lot of the same stores, castleton does sells a more random, cheaper priced stores. like forever 21, jewelry stores, build a bear, etc.