In the stories, both children are from minority backgrounds. The young boy in "The Circuit" is a member of a migrant family and is forced to change schools and move often while Sue, the little girl in "Doby's Gone," is African American and is ridiculed because of her race. This causes them to feel like outsiders, making it difficult for them to form concrete relationships. Judging from the way her classmates hurl insults such as "nigger girl," "her legs are black," and "how do you comb that kind of hair?"(401), it is obvious that it is a struggle for Sue to fit in and form friendships. Sue has a stronger

Part of the reason Sue forms the friendships with the two other children is that she begins to fight back against her tormenters. She lashes out against the children who are yelling and teasing her. By "slapping and kicking", "tearing at clothing", and "scratching, biting, and kicking-with such passion and energy that the space around her cleared,"(402) she overcomes the feelings of inferiority and inadequacy brought on by the mocking. In "The Circuit", the boy has to overcome the conflict between his family's lifestyle and his desire for an education. His parents fulfill this desire, but only when they don't need him to work. The boy does not want to keep moving, continuing the cycle of "starting the sixth grade for the first time that year,"(261) implying that it was not the first time he had been forced to cut his education short because of the need to relocate. Both children are forced to rise above difficulties when trying to receive their education.

By dealing with the trials involved in forming relati

Some common words found in the essay are:
Gone Sue, Throughout Circuit, African American, Ann Petry, Race Education, doby's gone, education children, circuit boy, Doby's Gone, race education children, difficult form, children forced, inner strength, race education,
Approximate Word count = 689
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)