Final Reflection - Biographical/Historical Lens

I think that from reading both The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Song of Solomon in the biographical/historical lens, I've really learned a lot. In reading the novels alone, it's very different to be focused on the historical aspects of the novel and the events taking place in the novels rather than just focusing on the plot and events unfolding themselves. It's one thing to read a novel for the storyline and information gained by what is told in the story, but it is a completely different sort of experience to be reading between the lines with a historical kind of focus.

In both of the novels, there was a lot of history and background about how African Americans have lived and how they have been treated in past and present years in relation to the time settings of the two novels. There was discussion of civil rights, liberties, and freedoms, and lots of talk about slavery and the direct and indirect segregation of white and black people. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, though, there was more of a focus on the relationships between black and white people I thought. Here Huck is in this generation of slavery and segregation, and he's best friends with a slave. In Song of Solomon, I believed there wasn't as big as a focus on the relationships as much as the events and issues surrounding the events within the novel.

I think that had I not read the two novels through the biographical/historical lens, I would not have made nearly as many, if any at all, parallels between the events of the novels and the events of today. It was a clear advantage of using a critical lens to me that I could gain this deeper insight on this one aspect of the novel, although I also definitely think there are multiple downsides to reading through a critical lens. I really enjoy reading for the stories and for the leisure, and reading through a critical lens takes a little bit away from that, just because it is so much hard work and effort to constantly and consistently be reading through a biographical/historical lens.

In conclusion, I really don't think my beliefs changed much if at all as a result of this project. I definitely though think that my ideas and beliefs have been reinforced and backed up. I think it's possible though that through the comparison between the events of the novels and the events of today that my beliefs were strengthened in many different ways.