What is the effect of having Laurel (nicknamed “Snot”) narrate the story?
What will be an ideal response?
- Brownies” could not be effectively narrated by any character other than Laurel. She listens, she observes, and she critiques the behavior of her own Brownie troop. Although she is not courageous enough to refuse to participate in her group’s victimization of Troop 909, she is critical of Arnetta’s choices.
However quietly she does so at first, Laurel is the only girl who verbally challenges Arnetta’s assertion that Troop 909 called “Daphne a nigger” by saying, “Maybe you didn’t hear them right” (par. 36). Later, during Arnetta’s secret meeting, Laurel says even more boldly, “but what if they say, ‘We didn’t say that? We didn’t call anyone an N-I-G-G-E-R’” (par. 62). Arnetta’s reply to Laurel’s reasonable objection is, “Snot, don’t think. Just fight. If you even know how” (par. 63). That brusque dismissal demonstrates Laurel’s outsider status even though she is also a part of this group. This perspective gives her some objectivity as she looks at the camping experience with a critical and observant eye. However, Laurel is not strong enough to fight against Arnetta and the group mentality that wants revenge. As the girls travel through the woods to find Troop 909, the narrator confesses, “I felt I was part of the rest of the troop; like I was defending something” (par. 62). Even though she has no idea what they are defending, she gives into a group mentality echoed in Shirley Jackson’s story “The Lottery.” Similarly, “Brownies” shows that people sometimes follow a vicious leader because of tradition, fear, and self-preservation.
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Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).
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a. It will be on the test b. It will help a reader make inferences. c. It will improve the reader's overall comprehension. d. It will make the passage more interesting
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Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).