The Importance And Value Of Education In 'The Library Card' By Richard Wright

“Whenever my environment had failed to support or nourish me, I had clutched at books...” Richard Wright surmises that people that read books gain knowledge. Books can have an impact on person’s life, as demonstrated in “The Library Card.” He also established the importance or value of education and his wish to read. Richard Wright’s life changed when he began to read. He realized that he was converting into another person, mentally. Wright understood why African Americans were discriminated against. African Americans didn’t get the same opportunities as white people, such as not being able to go to the library and read a book. This reading, “The Library Card”, has a huge impact on society because it shows that anyone is capable of accomplishing

He gained a lot of knowledge while reading numerous books. For example, throughout reading A Book of Prefaces, he constantly had to look up words that he didn’t know the meaning to, or he would use context clues to come up with the definition. How does this improve Wright’s knowledge? When Wright looked up words or used context clues, little did he know that he was ameliorating his vocabulary. After reading A Book of Prefaces, he wanted to read more books. In “The Library Card” he said, “…I hungered for books…” (Wright 6). The implication for this is that Wright was desperate. As Wright began to read more and more, he changed into a very open- mined person, who began to understand the world or society that he lived in. In “The Library Card” he says, “I now felt that I knew what the white men were feeling” (Wright 6). Wright changed his point of view about the white men because he now had an understanding of how the white people see the world. What does this mean? It means that Wright understood and was aware of the injustice and prejudices of the world or society. For instance, he said “…I had always felt a vast distance separating me from the boss, and I now felt closer to him…” (Wright 6) . Wright felt like he and his boss had some kind of connection because he had a better understanding of who his boss was. Another factor that also created Wright into a better person, was the discrimination of the people. Discrimination inspired him to face

Reading was his hobby because after reading, the first book, he wanted to continue to read. Wright wrote, “Reading was like a drug, a dope” (Wright 6). He was passionate about reading that he had to discover a way to check out books a the library, so he borrowed Mr.Falk’s library card. He began to identify himself and the people that he lived around him with some of the characters from the books. For example, Wright wrote, “…I had read a book that had spoken of how they lived and thought, I identified myself with that book” (Wright 6). He had this ideology that reading can enhance a person’s education. Knowledge is a major key for many opportunities. Education is an important necessity in life. He then gained enough knowledge to empower him to write. He began to understand the English language better. His strong to read is the reason of his