▶▶▶ The Color of Water 10th Anniversary Edition

Thursday, September 23, 2010

The Color of Water 10th Anniversary Edition

The Color of Water 10th Anniversary Edition Review

This was a fascinating and well-written story about the identity of a "black" child growing up in Harlem with a white mother. It made me think about two issues:

1. The Recipe for Academic Achievement
All twelve children went to college and many went on to be doctors, lawyers, or professors. Clearly, the mother's emphasis on education and careful choice of magnet schools (with long bus rides outside of Harlem) were factors. The first 7 children achieved more than the last 5. Was this biological (the 1st father had a higher IQ than the 2nd father)? Birth order (older children received more parental attention)?

Just for fun, if I had to guess what factors influence academic achievement, I would guess:

Academic Achievement = f (parent participation and expectations; parent education level; quality of school - class size, teacher salary, teacher training, teacher reward system; bio-IQ; emotional stability?)

Did I miss something?

2. Racial Identity

Growing up in the "white" majority, my race has never been part of my identity nor something my family ever talked about. But this was a BIG emotional deal in the life of this child growing up in Harlem with a white ex-Jewish Mom in the 1960s. It took him years to integrate his white Jewish and black Christian sides. Is a positive racial identity a good thing? Only for minorities? Or, is the "we're all Americans" way of thinking better?

Other options:

Evangelical Christians - "Us" (evangelical Christians who are forgiven sinners) v "Them" (everyone else in the world who is not a forgiven sinner)

Hindu Priest who taught at our church - we (humans and animals) are all sentient beings created and loved by God, in various stages of spiritual development (a spiritual pecking order)