Harlem, New York City, is known for the renaissance movement of art and music that emerged during the early 20th century. The “New Negro Movement” embraced African American culture and pride in opposition to the institutionalized and popular racism that followed many black people from the south. Extremely high rents kept tenants in Harlem poor and in this atmosphere, the cycle of oppression and violence was nearly impossible to escape. In the novel The Street, author Ann Petry illuminates the effects of consistent poverty and crime on a young boy named Bub. Petry demonstrates how the cyclical patterns of oppression and violence in impoverished communities desensitizes children as their innocence makes them fall victim of the cycle. The street
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Adolescents become part of the cycle because as they are conditioned to believe the behaviors on the street are normal as children. Bub lacks perspective and experience, which Petry conveys by writing, “Bub would never understand why she had disappeared. He was expecting to see her tomorrow” (434-435). The sense of wonder and sadness Bub experiences when he is abandoned leads to further struggle and frustration towards society. For children, lack of experience will likely lead them down a path of violence and crime at this is the lifestyle they have come to believe is the norm. The awareness Lutie has of the cyclical patterns of oppression on the street are contrasted by Bub’s innocence and lack of understanding. All across the neighborhood are kids like Bub who will become desensitized as a result of the living conditions they are stuck in. Petry displays the extent of the cyclical pattern when she writes, “It wasn’t just this one block, this particular street. It was like this all over Harlem wherever the rents were low” (230). The cycle that is demonstrated in The Street continued by each generation since children all over the neighborhood witness and accept violence and crime as regular behavior. Their innocence is exploited and they fall victim of the cycle before they realize the source of their oppression. The
Adolescents become part of the cycle because as they are conditioned to believe the behaviors on the street are normal as children. Bub lacks perspective and experience, which Petry conveys by writing, “Bub would never understand why she had disappeared. He was expecting to see her tomorrow” (434-435). The sense of wonder and sadness Bub experiences when he is abandoned leads to further struggle and frustration towards society. For children, lack of experience will likely lead them down a path of violence and crime at this is the lifestyle they have come to believe is the norm. The awareness Lutie has of the cyclical patterns of oppression on the street are contrasted by Bub’s innocence and lack of understanding. All across the neighborhood are kids like Bub who will become desensitized as a result of the living conditions they are stuck in. Petry displays the extent of the cyclical pattern when she writes, “It wasn’t just this one block, this particular street. It was like this all over Harlem wherever the rents were low” (230). The cycle that is demonstrated in The Street continued by each generation since children all over the neighborhood witness and accept violence and crime as regular behavior. Their innocence is exploited and they fall victim of the cycle before they realize the source of their oppression. The