In the book Citizen, by Claudia Rankine, we see it opens up by Rankine recalling memories and stories of what her life was like growing up as a woman of color. She starts off by sharing a story about an experience in her classroom when she was at school. In class, a girl that she refers to as Mary Catherine sat behind her. Mary Catherine proceeds to tell her to lean to one side when taking the test so that she can copy off her. Mary Catherine than tells the girl “You smell really good and have features more like a white person.” (Rankine 5). At this point we learn that the girl she is cheating off of is a woman of color and that Mary Catherine shows her own racism towards her. This comment by Mary Catherine can make the girl feel like she is not pretty because she looks different and hurt her self-confidence. She than goes on to share about how her teacher, Sister Evelyn does not notice that Mary Catherine is cheating off her. This than makes her question how Sister Evelyn goes without noticing the cheating when it is very obvious. She considers the possibility that Sister Evelyn does not care about the cheating or does not actually see it but it still does not sit right with her. This encounter shows us that she feels invisible in a predominantly white school. It seems like Sister Evelyn does not acknowledge her presence making her feel like she is invisible to her.
Later on in the chapter, we hear a story about a young boy of color. The young boy was riding the subway with his mother when a white man ran into him knocking him to the floor. The white man continues with his day and walks away without giving any attention to the young boy. The mother grabs the man’s arm and insist that he apologizes to her son. “Yes, and you want it to stop, you want the child pushed to the ground to be seen, to be helped to his feet, to be brushed off by the person that did not see him, has never seen him, has perhaps never seen anyone who is not a reflection of himself” (Rankine 17). This quote shows us that people of color feel like they will not be seen or heard if they are not a reflection of a white man or women. This quote also goes to show us another example of a person of color feeling invisible when it comes to being around a predominantly white setting. Luckily this story had a happy ending with a group of men standing behind the mother of the boy “like newly found uncles and brothers.” (Rankine 17). Even though these men stood behind the mother and supported her it does not take away from the fact that this young boy felt invisible to this white man.
Rankine uses this memory and story to show the audience what people of color went through and still are going through. It shows the audience what it looks like to feel invisible because of your skin color. This has an impact on how a person sees their identity. When someone feels invisible it can destroy their self-esteem, self-confidence and devalue their self-worth.
Another thing that stood out to me that I found interesting was how Claudia Rankine decided to write her book Citizen in second person. I believe that writing in second person is a good way for the author to get their audience to feel like they are a part of the book and better understand the emotions of the characters. I will admit in the beginning I was a little confused but after I kept reading it started to make more sense to me. Another thing that also stood out to me was how Rankine used images in her book. On page 6 we see a picture of what looks like a suburban neighborhood with big white houses and well put together yards. Also, in the picture we see a sign on the adjacent street called Jim Crow Road. This stood out to be because the Jim Crow Laws were laws that enforced racial segregation in the South.
After reading the first chapter of Citizen by Claudia Rankine, I believe she did an amazing job sharing her memories and stories in second person making her audience feel as if they were in the book. Based off the first chapter by discussion questions are:
- Do you think that the title Citizen has any correlation with feeling invisible?
- Why do you believe that Rankine wrote her book Citizen using second person?
- What are your thoughts on how Rankine uses images in the book Citizen?
Rankine, Claudia. Citizen: An American Lyric. Graywolf Press, 2014.
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Hi Maddy, I really enjoyed reading your blog post! To answer your second question, I do agree with your statement when you said she speaks in second person to feel like we are in the book. The use of second person in Claudia Rankine’s book challenges the readers to step into the author’s shoes, even if you are white, black, or any other ethnicity. Claudia draws the readers into her pain, vulnerability, and her awkwardness. By doing this Claudia can form a connection from herself to the readers. Rankine has many different writing styles, such as her second person writing and/or her poetry style in the book. These writing styles show power and beauty to her writing. For example, Rankine states, “it’s dark light dims in degrees depending on the density of clouds” (5). This gives us a feel of the moon behind a “low, gray ceiling” of clouds. Claudia Rankine’s writing styles give us that feel of being there with her and going through the situation by her side.
Hey Maddy. I thought that you had a great blog post and that you put all of your thoughts well together and was very organized in your writing, which helped me see things in the book I had not previously seen. To answer your second question of why Rankine wrote her book in the second person is for the reason you stated, so that the audience can feel like they are a part of the book. I also agree that it helps the audience better understand the emotions in the scene/story. Another reason I think she uses the second person is because it doesn’t matter if the story is really about her, or it is a story of another person, no matter what you will always be able to put yourself in the sentences that have the word “you” in them. For example, Rankine says “When the stranger asks, Why do you care? You just stand there staring at him” (pg 16). After reading this the audience is able to think of them standing and staring at this man, as opposed to if it was the 1st or 3rd, it would read I just stand there staring, or he just stood there standing. Yes, you can imagine yourself being the I or he, but when it says you, it is automatic that you out yourself in the story. This style of writing is very beneficial to the audience. 1st and 3rd person writing has set characters that you follow along with which is a little harder to put yourself in their shoes. But with the 2nd person writing, it is all about “you” so seeing you makes the reader think the story is about them without them really having to think about what it would be like if it was them.
Hi Maddy, this was a great way to introduce the book “citizen” to the class! I really enjoyed how you portrayed the different stories we have seen from Claudia Rankine’s life so far and transitioned that into the point that you were trying to make. To answer your first question, i absolutely believe the title has something to do with that theme. The idea of a citizen, in our country, is suppose to be that as long as you are a recognized member of our nation then you will be treated equally under the law no matter your skin color, sexuality, religion, etc. But as we know throughout history and even still today that has almost never truly been the case. So, to me, Rankine’s title “Citizen” is almost an ironic statement, portraying herself as a citizen yet she is continuously treated as less than human. I believe Rankine used 2nd person to make it feel like we as the readers were directly involved in the problems that she has been portraying, rather than a normal 3rd person POV which would leave us more ambivalent to the issues in the story. Rankine uses images very well in the story, and in my opinion, paints these very vivid pictures to try and get each reader to truly understand the emotions behind feeling unseen and mistreated. Rankine specifically writes, “being a Black body in motion through space becomes an insistent state of hiding in plain sight.” (Citizen, Chapter 1) This, to me, points directly to your overall point to Rankine feeling unseen and mistreated so far in the story, and how that can point to low self esteem and overall bad mental health.
Hi Maddy! I really liked reading your blog post! It was very well written and you backed your claims very well with evidence from the book. I want to answer your second question. I think Rankine uses the 2nd person in this book to make the reader fell more because they will relate more to the use of “you.” For example, on page 13 she talks about lunch with someone who is upset her son did not get into a school. She blames affirmative action. Rankine writes “you are not sure if you are mean to apologize…”. This use of you really puts the reader in her shoes and helps them to understand her internal dilemma when faced with ignorant white people.
Hey Maddy! I really like the title of your blog post. It expresses how Claudia Rankine is truly feeling throughout the chapter. I also think you made a good point about how using second person makes the reader feel more involved in what’s happening and understand the emotions better. To answer your first question, yes I think the title “Citizen” does correlate with the idea of feeling invisible. If you look at it closely, the definition of a citizen is “a legally recognized subject or national of a state or commonwealth, either native or naturalized”. Notice a citizen is a “legally” recognized subject, but that doesn’t mean people actually look at you as an individual. For the most part, everyone in our country is a citizen. However, not every citizen is treated like a person. The definition of a person states, “a human being regarded as an individual”. As it becomes clear, Rankine is legally recognized and attends school just like the other children, but she is not seen as an individual person. Rankine quotes, “Do you feel hurt because it’s the “all black people look the same” moment” (7). She states this after telling the reader that her close friend has been calling her by her Black housekeeper’s name occasionally by accident. This example shows how Rankine feels hurt and invisible as a person because it seems like all her friend looks at her as is the second black person in her life.
Your blog post was truly interesting to read! In response to your second question, I do agree that she uses the second person to make us feel as though we are actually reading the book. Reading the book in the second person it helps us as readers to understand the way the story is being told. The power of the story being in the second person gives Rankine the opportunity for us to not realize if the stories are true about her or someone else. “Your friend is speaking to your neighbor when you arrive home. The four police cars are gone. Your neighbor has apologized to your friend and is now apologizing to you.” (Rankine 15) After reading this it makes the readers understand the power of the book being in the second person. You can imagine yourself being in this position in the book and the friend that is brought up could be about your friend, and it is easy to put yourself in this position. Overall your blog post was great and I enjoyed reading it!
Hey Maddy, I found your blog post to be very insightful. To answer the second question, I think Rankine has all of her stories in second person to make them feel like they are not just capable to of happening to only her, but it could happen anywhere. Not attaching a name to a specific person or character within one of these stories makes the situations Rankine’s been through much more real and personal to the audience. A story that stuck out to me the most was the one about the man who happened to be black, walking on the sidewalk back and forth, the neighbor looking out the window automatically conquers that since the man is black, he is doing something wrong or disturbed. “He is watching a menacing black guy casing both your homes” (Rankine 16). This story stuck out to me because people are so quick to judge and assume things based on someones appearance or what they look like, that it ties into your second question very well.
Hi Maddy,
Great blog post! To answer your first discussion question, I think I do not think that the title of Citizen has any correlation to being invisible. I think it has to do with citizens in our society because of all of the little scenarios that are mentioned. For example, the section about Sister Evelyn and it stating, “The girl is Catholic” (Rankine 5). This sort of seems to be invisible because of it being religious, but to me, it seems to be like a stereotype or discrimination. In our society today, we see a ton of discrimination and stereotypes and it is not invisible to us now and it is something we have to try and change. Rankine also includes a story based on racism and this is not invisible to us today; we see this every day in our lives. I think American Lyric is more about our society and true things that are happening.
Hi Maddie! Great blog post! I am going to be answering your second question. I also believe that Claudia Rankine wrote the book in the second person to allow the readers to imagine themselves in those situations. The area that best depicts that feeling is when Rankine states, “the rain this morning pours from the gutters and everywhere else it is lost in the trees. You need your glasses to single out what you know is there because doubt is inexorable..” (Rankine 9). This allows the reader to imagine the feelings of a rainy morning and allows them to create this image in their heads. Then Rankine asks, “what did he just say? Did she really just say that? Did I hear what I think I heard? Did that just come out of my mouth, his mouth, your mouth” (Rankine 9). Rankine describes the rainy morning first in order to allow the reader to put themselves in the position. She then brings in the questions that she asks herself when someone says something racist. The image allows the reader to feel the feelings that come along with racism. Writing in second person is deliberate in order to have every reader, no matter what race they are, feel what black people go through as if they are going through it themselves. The second person writing creates an emotion that is needed for the reader to fully understand the overall message of the book.
Hi Maddy, I really liked your blog post and it was intriguing. I’m going to answer the second question. I think she talks in the second person because of how the stories could happen to them and not just her. She is trying to teach the audience that stuff can happen to anyone. She has no names or people in the stories because she has been through many hardships throughout her life so far and is trying to teach lessons. The story that I like the most and is basically the talk in our class was when the black man walked down the block back and forth while the neighbors were looking out the window. This is how the white people didn’t like black people in their neighborhood because of how they look, they thought they will do something bad. The quote I like the most is ” When the stranger asks, Why do you care? You just stand there staring at him” (pg 16). Evan also said this in his comment but I think this one is impacted a lot because I think people just stare at black people because they are just trying to see if they’re going to do something wrong. So far I Like this book and cant wait to read more about it in class. Great job
Hey Maddie! I really enjoyed your blog post. I really agree with what you said about the author using second person. It really does add more emotion to the characters and interactions because it is as if you were watching from an outside perspective. But to answer your question of the title, I believe it has everything to do with the idea of being invisible. For what we have read, the author’s identity is heavily influenced by the idea of her being invisible to others around her. She feels as if it has to do with her race, but at certain points, like with her teacher, she just didn’t know. “ Sister Evelyn must think these two think a lot alike or she cares less about cheating and more about humiliation or she never actually saw you sitting there.” (Rankine, 1) Just in the first page alone, we already see many examples of micro aggressions towards the author. These micro aggressions made her feel invisible to the people around her, or maybe they were just choosing to not acknowledge her. But the bottom line is the title, Citizen, and the idea of her feeling invisible are heavily connected. Maybe she feels as if she is not even a citizen. Maybe she has been ostracized her whole life and made “invisible” that she doesn’t even consider herself a citizen. I guess we will find out. Great stuff Maddie!
Hi Maddy! I really enjoyed your blog post. I agree that when the author gives second person point of view as the reader you get a better understanding of the characters and their connections to one another as well as more emotion. To answer your first question I do believe that the title “citizen” has the relation of feeling invisible. When we think of the word citizen we think of a random person who lives among us. The word citizen is thrown around especially in the news and we are categorized into one group of people. There is nothing different between us as humans, we are all categorized as the same even though none of us know one another and our differences or features that make us unique aren’t recognized. Rankine quotes, “Do you feel hurt because it’s the “all black people look the same” moment” (7). In this quote we the readers see that the character is hurt because she is more than just another “citizen”. Her differences from other people in the world aren’t being recognized and she is being categorized into one group of people.