Analysis Of A Day With My Father By Danzy Senna

In an excerpt titled “A Day with My Father” from the novel Caucasia by Danzy Senna, Birdie and her father spent a day in the park together. Her father is black and she’s white, which caused some problems during their visit. The author used person v. person conflict to convey the problem of racism in the excerpt.

Racism has existed almost since the beginning of time, with all kinds of people. Birdie’s father was black and went to a predominantly white college and had to deal with the consequences of racism over the years. The text explains how his classmates saw him, when he was around “Listening to those sweatered tow-haired preppies talk about the Negro Problem, nursing their vermouth, glancing at him with so much pleased incredulity in their eyes.” His peers knew he was black and

used that to make fun of him indirectly while he was standing with them.

Birdie’s father was black and they were white, and they treated him differently because of their views on white superiority. While Birdie and her father were relaxing in the Public Gardens, Birdie saw an older couple looking at them funnily. The story says, “When I was done with the funnies, I watched the sky--the shapes of animals made out of clouds. And when I tilted my head slightly to the side, I saw again that strange couple with their grey terrier, pointing at me… They were talking to two men in uniform, the police on their beat, and then the four of them were trudging across the grass in our direction.” Birdie and her father weren’t doing anything wrong. Her father was sleeping and she was reading the funnies and watching the clouds. The couple only went to the police because they saw a black man with a white girl and thought the worst. They didn’t consider that they were related, they just thought that he had kidnapped Birdie.

If Birdie was black, or if her father was white, the reaction would have been different. When the police got over to Birdie and her dad, they questioned both profusely. “All right, brotherman,’ the younger one said to my father with a smirk. ‘Who’s the little girl?’ My father looked down at me and laughed slightly. ‘She’s my daughter. Is there a problem?’ … He said in a whisper, ‘ You can tell us, kiddie. He can’t hurt you here. You’re safe now. Did the man touch you funny?’... ‘No he didn’t. He’s my father.” Here, the author used conflict between Birdie and her father and the police to show the problems caused by racism. Birdie and her father tried to explain to the police that they were father and daughter, but the cops didn’t believe them because they were of different races. The police jumped to the conclusion that Birdie’s father was a pedophile, because he was black and she wasn’t. Racism caused the cops to falsely accuse Birdie’s dad of a crime punishable by a sentence in jail. Racism was apparent in this novel.
In the novel, the author used person v. person conflict to show the problems surrounding racism. Birdie’s father was indirectly made fun of by his white classmates while at college. A couple in the park along with Birdie called the police because they saw a white girl,Birdie, with a black man, her father. The police tried to get Birdie to admit her father had sexually assaulted her because he was black and she wasn’t. Racism played a large part in this excerpt, and is also a major problem in real life. It isn’t right to base someone’s actions on their skin color, which happens often. The world needs to work on eliminating racism from everyday life.