Analysis of Caucasia by Danzy Senna

A detailed Summary of Analysis of Caucasia by Danzy Senna

Caucasia by Danzy Senna is a book mainly about the story of Birdie and Cole, daughters of a black father and a white mother who are intellectuals and activists in the Civil Rights movement in 1970's Boston. The sisters are so close that they have created a private language, yet to the outside world they can't be sisters: Birdie appears to be white, while Cole is dark enough to fit in with the other kids at the afro centric school they attend. For Birdie, Cole is the mirror in which she can see her own blackness.

There are many passages that illustrate the theme of the book but the one that stands out the most is on page ninety three. The passage is "Carmen turned to me and frowned. Then, looking back at the man, she said, "Yeah, that's Cole's little sister, even if she doesn't look like a sister." She giggled at her pun rather unhappily, with an anxious expression, and touched my hair as if to show she was just kidding around. James turned away, seeming embarrassed. Before starting on Cole's hair, he handed me a Tootsie Pop out of the drawer at his side and winked at me, saying, "See how long you can suck it before you have a bite." . . ."

Although this passage shows only one side of the book it still embodies the the

James giving Birdie a tootsie pop and telling her to see how long she can suck before she takes a bite also relates to the book as a whole. It relates to the book as a whole because if you look deeper, James is really telling Birdie to take as much ignorance she can. He is basically telling her to not let things like that get to her because if she does let her cup fill with this it will overflow and then she will not be able to handle it.

I can fit in so many groups because I know how so many groups feel about so many things. This is a great thing because I never have that feeling that I am left out of something because of the way I think. Therefore I am very seldom discriminated on because of my views of the world and life because my view is a mixture of many different views. I cannot say that I am never discriminated against because you can't stop others' feelings and I have not yet heard the views of every single person in the whole world.

Asking all these questions and listening to the many answers that were given to me have helped me see how the world is. I am very grateful for my inquiring attitude toward life. This attitude has helped me throughout my life because I can never be out of the loop because I am so many things.

The best quality I believe I possess is my ability to listen and observe. I talk a lot but not so much that I cannot listen. I probably listen way more that I talk because I want to know things. This quality is a great one because I gain knowledge of the views of many others. I don't just take into account my side; I use others' sides because I can get a better picture if I use more elements.

This has made me into a very worldly person and has altered my view on many things. It has molded me into a very wide spread man. I think this is a great quality because it feeds my need for knowledge and it also gives me many view

Some common words found in the essay are:
Cole Birdie, Birdie Cole, Civil Rights, Tootsie Pop, Danzy Senna, relates book, entire book, self understanding race, race class gender, gender sexuality intersections, sexuality intersections categories, understanding race class, understanding race, race class, class gender, theme book, cole happens, current self, gender sexuality, self understanding,

Approximate Word count = 1268
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English