Treatment of Blacks in Maya Angelo's "Finishing School"

Finishing School BY Maya Angelou


Principal Characters

* Mrs. Viola Cullinan: the owner
*Miss Glory: a cook who works in Cullinan’s kitchen whose original name was
Hallelujah
*Margaret: (Angelou) brought into Cullinan’s kitchen to learn proper conduct who
later happens to lose the original name which gets substituted by Mary.


Critical Analysis:


In this memoir, Angelou remembers the event when she was sent to Mrs. Cullinan’s Kitchen to learn proper conduct. Obviously, then the mode of presentation is narration. At the heart of this memoir lies the moment when the writer Maya Angelou deliberately breaks some dishes. But before she narrates that specific afternoon in an Alabama Kitchen. She builds up to it by providing readers with necessary background information.
The writer begins her memoir with the memory of a recent conversation that leads her back to the past memory that is the central focal point of the essay. The background information, that she provides, includes: at ten years old age she happened to be a servant in Viola Cullinan’s home which she calls “a white woman’s kitchen became my finishing school.” She, then, began to learn the names of every kitchen item that was really a difficult task for her. She came to know many things about Mrs. Cullinan from Glory, a cook in her kitchen, including barrenness of conceiving. Later Mrs. Cullinan replaced her name by ‘Mary’. Because of this, she took revenge by breaking Cullinan’s the loveliest dishes. Just after the event Cullinan called he by original name ‘Margaret’. This is the memory that she records in the memoir that is related to the issue of identity in African American literature.
The writer uses narrative technique to expose the above mentioned memory. While narrating the very event, she uses the techniques like descriptive details, irony, humor, dialogue, with sarcastic and bitter tone that, along with others, contribute to make the memoir effective and interesting.
Angelou builds up the whole narrative in a conflict mode - conflict between her world (world of black people) and employer’s one (world of white people). She uses irony while doing so. The irony lies in her use of the kitchen as “a school”. It suggests that for every black child, white people’s house becomes a school. At another time, she says that it took her one week to learn the difference between salad plate, bread plate, and a dessert plate. On the one hand, her world is a poor one where without labor no day runs with food, on the other hand, Cullinan’s world is a world of richness and prosperity where there are enormous kitchen items that trouble one for recognizing their names and purposes. While doing so, she gives a very long list of glass items that include: ice-cream glasses, wine glasses, green glasses, coffee glasses, etc.
Another ironical remark that she uses is in the narration of Mrs. Cullinan’s ability. Mrs. Cullinan is incapable of giving birth so her husband uses a black woman to fulfill that purpose. When Mrs. Cullinan plans to call her Mary then she ironizes by saying that the woman has no organ so she cannot pronounce her name correctly. In this very statement, humor also lies hidden.
Angelou’s use of dialogues, by quoting them directly, makes the narrative very lively and effective. The most effective stance is, when she breaks the dishes Cullinan abuses her by using her original name: “Her name’s Margaret godamn it her name’s Margaret.” This is the turning point of the memoir too where she feels happy for being called by original name.
The use of tone is very significant in this memoir. Angelou (Margaret) is very angry towards Cullinan so she says, “I wouldn’t pee on her if her heart was on fire.” At another moment, she wants to write a poem on “white, fat, old and childless woman,” then ultimately the poem turned to a tragic ballad. Another memorable event through tone is- when Margaret tells with Glory about the saddest moment of being called by ‘Mary’ then Glory says, ‘Sticks and stones may break your bones but words…” It implies that those servants also bear any punishment given by their masters because they have no way of liberation. All these memories are expressed through bitter tone. The use of tone also helps to heighten the effectiveness of the memoir.
To sum up, Angelou’s “Finishing School” is presented through bitter, sarcastic, and sometimes humorous tone. The use of turning point (breaking of the dishes) and irony help us to visualize the events. Background information and development of the memoir are in the mode of conflict. Because of all these features, “Finishing School” turns out to be a perfect example of a memoir. The use of dialogue and narration are notable features on the part of other techniques.