Passages that represent the whole novel

"My fingers curl into fists, automatically

This is the way, my mother said,

of every baby's hand.

I do not know if these hands will become Malcom's - raised and fisted

or Martin's- open and asking

or Jame's - curled around a pen....ready to change the world (5)." 

In this quote, the author mentions people that have played an important role in the civil rights movement. Around the time Jacqueline was born, injustice was still going on and their were a lot of things colored people couldn't do. I believe that this passage was introduced during the first few pages of the book because it sets the tone for the book as a whole. Jacqueline is growing up and learning about the world around her. She sees the way colored people are being treated like having to sit in the back of the bus and making sure to talk appropriately to white folks in Greenville, South Carolina. She's living in a split world at a very young age which is why I believe that this is what will shape her as a writer. In the next page, I also think it's interesting that her father wanted to name her Jack. His name was also Jack but the fact that he said " name a girl jack and she can't help but grown strong," made me realize there was a deeper meaning behind that. I believe that what he was trying to say is that naming her after a male would make make her stronger and and face fewer hardships.