Rose focuses on the many ways intelligence is gained. “Generalizations about intelligence, work, and social class deeply affect our assumptions about ourselves and each other (Rose 264)”. Rose’s mother, Rosie, faced many obstacles throughout her life as a waitress, in ways such as; managing many tables at once, judging the mood of the cook, or being extra nice to someone who really needed it. “Like anyone who is effective at physical work, my mother learned to work smart, as she put it, to make every move count. (Rose 263) It is difficult to understand the degree of hard work others put into their jobs if we have never experienced that level of work. Rose does a masterful job of depicting for the reader the blue-collar worker’s point of view
