Chapter 12

“She emphasized over and over the fact that she was part Cherokee Indian, educated in a private school, and in no way related to the blacks who inhabited Yamacraw Island.” I thought this was a very powerful sentence because it showed to me how ashamed Mrs. Brown was of being a black woman. No one should be ashamed of their cultural and ethnic background. It’s sad to know that people were treated so unfairly due to their skin color that some, like Mrs. Brown, wanted to become someone different.  

In chapter 12 Conroy explains why he decided to write his book, and why he thinks he ultimately lost his job teaching the students on Yamacraw Island. Conroy writes that in order to continue teaching children in the future he would need to become a bona fide butt kisser. Conroy also goes to explain how integration was changing the world around him. Conroy says “I wanted to tell Piedmont and Bennington that what was happening between us was not confined to Beaufort”. I really liked this sentence because it showed that change was finally beginning to happen all over the South; people were beginning to experience equality all over the south.

Overall I really liked the book, more than I thought I would, but the ending was really disappointing. I was hoping for Conroy to teach on Yamacraw Island for years and ultimately make a dramatic impact on the lives of his students. Unfortunately things don’t always work out, especially when you have someone trying desperately to ruin your career, but at least Conroy changed the lives of his student’s during the short time he spent with them.