Robert Sharenow's The Berlin Boxing Center

In Robert Sharenow’s The Berlin Boxing Center, the passage listed above describes the theme of being an outsider. The narrator is able to find many similarities between himself and his hero as both of them do not confirm to their worlds. Karl narrates that he lives in a world where his race is oppressed and deemed as useless and inferior. He matures into a strong and intelligent boxer after training with professionals at clubs to divert himself from the constant tension and struggle faced by his family. However, his talents and attempts to fit in are deemed useless and he is regarded as weak. Karl is excluded and treated as an alien and outcast by his classmates, teachers, and adults in the German city. Their actions and words show him that …show more content…
Karl realizing that he was an outsider in a city surrounded by racist Germans from reading about Superman facing the oppression for being an alien creates a strong feeling of loneliness and sadness in me. I was unable to put the book down as I yearned that Karl and the other Jewish citizens would be accepted into the city and conform to the same life as the Germans. I strongly desire for him to meet and converse with Superman to gain knowledge into becoming a hero in the segregated world that he struggles to live in. I feel anger and resentment toward the majority of the people in both worlds because they segregate Karl and Superman due to their different physical appearance. These strong emotional feelings causes me to make an important observation about segregation in the world, which is another important reason why I chose this quote. Many people around the world from minority ethnic groups are segregated due to their different racial or physical appearance. These people are refused chance to prove to others that they are just good or more talented than them and should not be deemed as unsophisticated and inferior. The stereotypes of their race are unable to be disproved nullifying their strengths and talents. The linguistic comparisons in the text are extremely graphic and descriptive as they portray Superman physical appearance to that of a Jew. This is powerful and meaningful as Superman was never respected even though he was talented, strong, and kind to those in need of help. Through this, my thinking is expanded from the strong emotions and connections incurred from reading this passage as expressed by the narrator Karl to show more racial acceptance and acts of kindness to help those who are oppressed even though others may not appreciate