Lesson video

"Sweetness," it's a story about race, a story about segregation and discrimination.

But at its heart, it's a story about motherhood and the complicated relationship between mother and daughter.

Today, we'll continue reading the story and think about Sweetness' role as a guide for Lula Ann.

Today's lesson may leave you with some questions about racism and racial inequality.

You may find, you want to learn more about the matters we're going to discuss today, once the lesson is over.

If you have any questions about what we cover, write them down and ask your parents, carers, or teachers.

If they don't know the answer themselves, they may be able to help you find the answer from a different source.

Hello everyone, my name is Mr. Pryke, and welcome to this lesson on motherhood in "Sweetness." For today's lesson, all you'll need is a pen and paper or something to write on and with.

If you can, try and move yourself away from any distractions, when you're ready, we'll begin the lesson.

We'll begin by reviewing the key terms we've been learning throughout this unit, matching words to their definitions.

Next, we'll read the next part of the story, where we learn more about Sweetness' feelings towards her daughter, and the role she feels she needs to play in Lula Ann's life.

After that, we'll be considering the question, what is Sweetness like as a mother, analysing small extracts so that we're ready to finish by writing a response to that question, at the end of the lesson.

Let's get started.

On the left side of your screen, you can see some key terms that we have discussed in previous lessons.

Let's see how much you can remember.

Pause the video here, write the terms down, and then copy the correct definition next to it.

When you're ready, we'll go through the answers.

If you need some help, it might be an idea to go back to the first lessons video, where we went through these terms. Don't worry if you can't answer all of them, but try your best to match as many terms as possible to their definitions.

Let me read the terms to you.

Prejudice, discrimination, segregation, colourism, and racism.

The first definition reads, the practise of discriminating against people based on their race or ethnic background.

The second definition reads, prejudice or discrimination against individuals who are dark-skinned typically, but not exclusively among people of the same ethnic or racial group.

The third definition reads, the action or state of setting someone or something apart from others.

The fourth definition reads, unjust or harmful treatment of other people primarily because of a perceived difference.

And the final definition reads, to have a preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience.

Pause the video here, and match the terms to the definitions.

When you're ready, click play to resume.

Excellent work, let's go through the answers.

Give yourself a tick, for each you got right.

The term prejudice means, to have a preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience.

The term discrimination means, unjust or harmful treatment of other people, primarily because of a perceived difference.

The term segregation means, the action or state of setting someone or something apart from others.

The term colourism means prejudice or discrimination against individuals who are dark-skinned typically, but not exclusively among people of the same ethnic or racial group.

The term racism means, the practise of discriminating against people based on their race or ethnic background.

Brilliant work, give yourself a tick for each of the terms that you matched with the definitions correctly.

Don't worry if you've got any wrong, but you may want to pause the video here, and make any corrections before moving on with the lesson.

Let's continue reading the story then.

Remember, the story is about a woman called Sweetness, who is a light-skinned black woman.

She gives birth to a dark-skinned black baby.

Because of the colourism present in Sweetness' community, she finds it extremely difficult to love her child.

She has always been told that to have lighter skin is better, has internalised those thoughts, and believes them herself.

As a result, her baby embarrasses her.

She is worried that to be seen with her baby will invite discrimination, even if she herself can pass as white.

Her baby, who she calls Lula Ann, causes the breakdown of Sweetness' marriage to her husband, Louie.

Because he is a light-skinned black man, he cannot understand why his daughter is different, and believes Sweetness has had an affair.

Sweetness tries to hide Lula Ann as much as she can, as she does not like to see other people's reactions to the fact that she has a daughter who is a dark-skinned black child.

She tries to distance herself from her daughter, telling Lula Ann, she cannot call her mother, but instead, must call her by the name Sweetness.

Sweetness admits she is strict on Lula Ann, but says it is necessary.

Lula Ann, she says, needs to learn how to behave and keep her head down.

Sweetness is preparing her, it seems for the discrimination she is likely to face throughout her life.

This is where our extract for today's lesson begins.

Let's read.

"Oh yeah, I feel bad sometimes about how I treated Lula Ann "when she was little, but you have to understand, "I had to protect her.

"She didn't know the world.

"With that skin, there was no point in being tough or sassy, "even when you were right.

"Not in a world where you could be sent to a juvenile "lockup for talking back or fighting in school.

"A world where you'd be the last one hired "and the first one fired.

"She didn't know any of that, "or how her black skin would scare white people "or make them laugh and try to trick her.

"I once saw a girl, nowhere near as dark as Lula Anne, "who couldn't have been more than 10 years old, "tripped by one of a group of white boys.

"And when she tried to scramble up, "another one put his foot on her behind, "and knocked her flat again.

"Those boys held their stomachs and bent over with laughter.

"Long after she got away, "they were still giggling so proud of themselves.

"If I hadn't been watching through the bus window, "I would have helped her, "pulled her away from that white trash.

"See if I hadn't trained Lula Ann properly, "she wouldn't have known to always cross the street "and avoid white boys.

"But the lessons I taught her paid off and in the end, "she made me proud as a peacock." Here, we see Sweetness admit that she feels bad about how she treated her daughter when she was little.

She also tries to justify her actions, saying they were necessary for Lula Ann's protection.

This begs the question, what is Sweetness like as a mother? Are her actions understandable or unforgivable? Smart and necessary, or dangerous and cruel? Let's take a closer look at the extract.

Here, we begin to understand a little more about why Sweetness acts the way she does.

Which sentence here tells us that Sweetness in a way, is fulfilling her role as a mother to Lula Ann.

Pause the video if you need to, in order to make your choice.

And press play, when you're ready.

Well done, I'm hoping you picked, "I had to protect her." This shows that Sweetness in a way is fulfilling her role as mother to Lula Ann.

As one usually sees that part of the role of a mother is to protect her children, here then, we see a slightly different side to Sweetness.

She's no longer the person who wants to give her daughter away to an orphanage, but instead sees it as her duty to protect her daughter.

In fact, she feels compelled to, "I had to protect her," she says, suggests, suggesting, sorry, she has no other option or alternative.

Let's take a closer look at Sweetness and her role as protector.

Pause the video here, copy the quotation, and answer the following questions as notes around the outside of the quotation.

Question one, what does this suggest about Sweetness' treatment of Lula Ann in the past? That question is referring to the part of the extract where it says, "I feel bad sometimes about how I treated Lula Ann." For this question, consider why Sweetness might feel bad.

How do you think she treated Lula Ann, if she feels bad about it now? Question two refers to, "she didn't know the world." What exactly does Lula Ann not know about the world? Think about everything we've discussed to do with segregation, discrimination, and colourism, to help you answer this question.

What will Lula Ann not know because of her age? The third question relates to, "I had to protect her." What are some other words for protect? What is Sweetness doing? For this question, think about the role Sweetness is now adopting.

She may not be motherly in the usual sense, but if she says she had to protect Lula Ann, what is Sweetness now doing? Pause the video here, and press play when you're ready to find out some answers.

Here then, are some potential answers.

Remember, if what you see on your screen is different to what you have at home, please don't worry.

There are lots of ideas one could put down here.

Have a look to see if there are any similarities, but don't worry if you can't find any.

Question one read, what does this suggest about Sweetness' treatment of Lula Ann in the past? "I feel bad sometimes about how I treated Lula Ann," could imply, that sweetness has not treated Lula Ann well in the past.

Sweetness may have been strict in preparing her daughter and teaching her about the cruel world they live in.

Question two asked, what exactly does Lula Ann not know about the world.

An answer could read, Lula Ann was naive when she was little.

She didn't understand or know how the world would treat her.

Question three asked, what are some other words for protect? What is Sweetness doing? Other words for protect include defend shield and shelter.

Sweetness is still looking after her daughter, even though she has tried to distance herself from her.

Well done for all your efforts on that task.

Let's have a look at another quotation to help us determine what Sweetness is like as a mother.

This quotation reads, "See, if I hadn't trained Lula Ann properly, "she wouldn't have known to always cross the street and avoid white boys." Pause the video here, copy the quotation, and answer the following questions as notes around the outside of the quotation.

Question one, what does the word trained suggest about the way Sweetness treats Lula Ann.

Question two, what is Sweetness scared will happen to Lula Ann? For question one, consider why Sweetness talks about training Lula Ann rather than teaching Lula Ann.

What's the difference? For question two, consider how black people are treated by white people in Sweetness' is community.

Press play when you're ready to resume.

Well done, let's have a look at some example answers.

Question one read, what does the word trained suggest about the way Sweetness treats Lula Ann? An answer to this question could read, Sweetness is telling Lula Ann how to try and avoid trouble.

Trained suggests hard work.

It implies Sweetness sees herself more as an instructor than a mother.

Question two asked, what is Sweetness scared will happen to Lula Ann? An answer to this question could read, Sweetness is worried Lula Ann is a target.

She is worried she will be discriminated against.

Don't worry if your answers were different, but see if you can spot any similarities between the answers you see on your screen and your answers at home.

In our last answer, we said Sweetness is worried Lula Ann will become a target for discrimination.

Let's look closer at an example of discrimination in the story.

We've read this today already, but let's read it again.

"I once saw a girl, nowhere near as dark as Lula Ann, "who couldn't have been more than 10 years old "tripped by one of the group of white boys.

"And when she tried to scramble up "another one put his foot on her behind "and knocked her flat again.

"Those boys held their stomachs and bent over with laughter.

"Long after she got away, "they were still giggling so proud of themselves." It's not hard to see why Sweetness is worried about the discrimination and racism, Lula Ann will face, even though colourism has affected her own view of her daughter.

The image of a girl being bullied because she is black is an upsetting one, made all the more powerful by Toni Morrison's use of verbs.

The boys trip the girl, a purposeful act, which shows she has been targeted.

Morrison highlights the helplessness of the girl in this extract by saying she tried to scramble up.

Scramble, suggest the girl is in a hurry to get away, to escape.

It suggests she is doing so quite awkwardly, perhaps overwhelmed and distressed at how she has been treated.

Morrison then shows how the boys knocked her.

They are causing her physical pain too, not just emotional distress.

Perhaps what is most striking is the fact the boys keep on giggling afterwards.

They have hurt this girl for their own amusement and entertainment and are proud of themselves as if causing others pain is some sort of achievement.

With this in mind, readers can begin to see why Sweetness has been harsh on Lula Ann.

Even if we disagree with what she has done, this passage helps us to consider clearly her own perspective.

However, while Sweetness sees it as her role to protect her daughter, she still thinks of herself.

She says, "But the lessons I taught Lula Ann paid off.

"And in the end, she made me proud as a peacock." If one is proud as a peacock, it means they are proud of themselves.

Just like peacocks strut around and display their feathers.

Sweetness then is not proud of her daughter for taking on board the things she has taught her.

Sweetness is only proud of herself, thinking of her own achievements.

Sweetness herself, believe she is not a bad mother.

Let's read the next short extract.

"I wasn't a bad mother, you have to know that.

"But I may have done some hurtful things "to my only child because I had to protect her.

"Had to, all because of skin privileges.

"At first, I couldn't see past all that black to know "who she was and just plain love her.

"But I do, I really do.

"I think she understands now.

"I think so." With this in mind, let's remind ourselves of Sweetness' journey as a mother.

Listen carefully because in just a moment, you're going to answer the question.

What is Sweetness like as a mother? She begins the story feeling embarrassed by Lula Ann because Lula Ann is a dark-skinned black baby.

Sweetness has lived in a community where lighter skin is desired.

She worries her daughter's skin will invite discrimination and prejudice.

Not just for her daughter, but for her too.

She is adamant, however, that the fact her daughter is a dark-skinned black baby, is not her fault.

She considers giving the child away to an orphanage.

Sweetness does not want to bond with her.

Although as Lula Ann grows up, she realises she has to protect her.

She trains her daughter in how to behave, to try and avoid acts and words of discrimination.

And is proud of herself, when she realises her daughter has taken on board what she says.

Sweetness does not believe herself to be a bad mother, saying she had to do what she did for Lula Ann's benefits.

Sweetness proclaims, that she does love her daughter.

Yet, as we can see from this short summary, their relationship is very complicated.

I'd like you now to pause the video and answer the following question.

What is Sweetness like as a mother? In your answer, see if you can include quotations from the text.

See if you can use the key terms we've been learning through this unit.

See if you can discuss the complex relationships Sweetness has with her daughter, and explain why the relationship is complex.

And to consider how Sweetness sees herself as a mother and whether she loves her daughter.

If you think you can answer that question without any additional help, have a go now.

If however, you would like some more support, keep the video playing and we'll go through the answer bit by bit.

Okay, the question we're answering is what is Sweetness like as a mother? Here, we need to answer the question with a simple statement.

I've given you a sentence starter and three options for the first gap you need to fill in.

Let me read them to you.

Throughout the story, we understand that Sweetness thinks she is just doing what she needs to do to protect her daughter.

Throughout the story, we understand that Sweetness thinks she would be better off without her daughter.

Or throughout the story, we understand that Sweetness thinks she is a good mother, even though she has had to do some hurtful things.

All of these boxes could go in the gap fill.

There's no right answer.

You just need to decide what you want to write about.

The second gap fill, this would imply she as a something mother, does not have any options.

This is for you to think about.

Is she a good mother, a bad mother, a complicated mother, or maybe something else? It's for you to decide.

Be careful if you use the answer in purple for the first gap fill.

You cannot then use the adjective, good, for the second gap fill, because you will have already used that word in your answer.

Pause the video here to copy it and complete the gap fill, and press play, when you're ready to resume.

Well done, let's move on.

Here you need to think about why Sweetness is the type of mother you've said she is.

We're going to do that by using a quotation.

I've given you a selection of quotations on the screen to choose from, but feel free to use another if you wish.

Complete both gap fills.

The first reads, when Lula Ann his first born Sweetness reveals.

And the second reads, however, as Lula Ann grows up, Sweetness thinks.

We're showing what Sweetness is like when Lula Ann is first born.

And then again, when she's a small child.

For example, you might come out with something like this.

When Lula Ann is first born Sweetness reveals she felt embarrassed.

And even that she thought of giving her away to an orphanage.

Pause the video here and copy and complete the gap fills.

If you're really struggling, use my example for the first gap fill and just complete the second.

Remember the purpose of this part of the paragraph is to use a quotation.

Press play when you're ready to resume.

Well done, let's move on.

Now we need to think about what the quotation is telling us about Sweetness as a mother.

This slide is a little different.

The answers in the boxes won't fit in the gap.

Instead, they are they're simply as prompts to give you ideas, as to what you could put in the gap.

The sentence reads, this suggests that Sweetness is a, something mother because.

The first box reads, colourism has prevented Sweetness from loving Lula Ann fully.

The second box reads, Sweetness feels proud of herself as a teacher or trainer, rather than her achievements as a mother.

And the third box reads, Sweetness feels a duty to protect her daughter from discrimination, even though she has discriminated against her herself.

In your answer, see if you can expand on the ideas in the boxes, if you use them to get you going, but be careful, your answer has to follow what you've already written.

It has to make sense in relation to the previous two steps, and what's come before.

For example, you can't say how Sweetness has been a horrible mother at the beginning of your answer, only to talk about how she could be seen as a good mother here.

Think of another answer, if you don't want to use the ideas from the boxes.

Pause the video here, complete the task and press play when you're ready.

Well done.

Let's go through some example answers.

Remember, if what you have at home is different to what you see on your screen, don't worry.

Have a look to see if there are any similarities and give yourself a tick, If you find any.

The question I asked was, what is Sweetness like as a mother? An acceptable answer might read, throughout the story, we understand that Sweetness think she is a good mother, even though she has had to do hurtful things.

When Lula Ann his first born, Sweetness reveal she felt embarrassed.

And even that she thought of giving her away to an orphanage.

However, as Lula Ann grows up, Sweetness thinks she has to protect her.

This suggests she feels some responsibility to her child.

This is an acceptable answer because it provides a clear point.

Has used a quotation and explained clearly why that quotation is significant.

A good answer may read, Sweetness feels she has a good mother.

Although she admits she has done some hurtful things to her daughter, Lula Ann.

These have been done she says, to protect her daughter and to prepare her for the discrimination and prejudice, she will inevitably face in her life.

However, Sweetness' own experiences of colourism means that she is prejudiced against her daughter, by now accepting her as her own.

She does not allow Lula Ann to call her mother and even thought of giving her away to an orphanage.

This suggests, although Sweetness struggles to love her daughter, she still feels some sort of duty to help her.

This is a good answer because it shows the person who has written it really understands the complicated relationship between Sweetness and her daughter.

It uses key terms we've discussed throughout the unit, like discrimination, prejudice, and colourism, and used more than one quotation.

Well done for all of your efforts with this activity.

That brings us to the end of today's lesson.

You may still have lots of questions about the issues we've covered today.

That's absolutely fine and perfectly natural.

If you need to, ask your parents, carers, or teachers, some of your questions.

If they don't know the answer, they may be able to help you find sources that can provide you with that answer.

Well done for working so hard today.

I'm really impressed with all of your efforts.

All you need to do now is ensure you complete the exit quiz, when you click off the video.

Take care, and I look forward to seeing you next time.