QUOTATIONS - IMPORTANT QUOTES AND THEIR MEANING

(Continued)

Other figures also provide advice, some more vehemently than Barbara Jennings. When Cedric goes to meet Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas in the Spring of his senior year, he has the following reaction as Thomas speaks:

Cedric nods, but his lips are pursed. Thomas's enthusiasm suddenly seems to be gleaming with fury. It unsettles Cedric, makes him feel like he's going off, barely armed, into some sort of battle with white kids. He doesn't want to fight them, he thinks. He just wants to be part of something bigger, with kids - black kids, Hispanics, whatever. With everyone being a top achiever, just like him. (122)

Here, the change in attitude is complete, perhaps even affirmed by its opposition to what Thomas is warning Cedric about. Cedric does not want the "other kids" from the beginning of the book to be his enemies any more, he wants to "be part of something bigger". His experience at MIT was positive in that sense, and he ..........

The complete study guide is currently available as a downloadable PDF, RTF, or MS Word DOC file from the PinkMonkey MonkeyNotes download store. The complete study guide contains summaries and notes for all of the chapters; detailed analysis of the themes, plot structure, and characters; author biography, setting, mood, and plot stucture analysis; important quotes - quotations and analysis; detailed analysis of symbolism, motifs, metaphors and imagery; a key facts summary; a multiple choice quiz, and suggested book report ideas and essay topics.