My students love how organized the handouts are and enjoy tracking the themes as a class., Part 1: Gender, Sex, Sexuality, Romance: Some Terms, Part 3: Under the Influence of Adolescence, Part 4: Some Gender-Neutrality Milestones. They play sports on the same team, or work in the same building. Even though this book falls into the YA genre, this book packs a punch,,, There is much to ponder and contemplate. The book traces the life stories of both teenagers up until this moment and then follows the repercussions of the attack for them, their families, and their communities. The way the content is organized, LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in, Compare and contrast themes from other texts to this theme, The ThemeTracker below shows where, and to what degree, the theme of Gender and Sexuality appears in each chapter of. And I do not want to have a baby out here without a dad. But as Sasha began exploring the topic online, they found that some people had developed language for combing the tangle into individual strands. What I want is for people to be confused about what gender I am, Sasha explained later. It was like a gigantic menu, with columns and columns of choices. This is so much more than that. This is also a story of a African-American, silly and also bright, but slightly more troubled boy named Richard. Read the chapter-by-chapter Summary & Analysis ora Full Book Summaryof The 57 Bus. Richard, Black, attended a school with larger classes, more working class students, and more crime in the surrounding neighborhoods -- little time or quiet for dreams and aspirations there. Because I fall neatly within the binary, I feel comfortable right now, he explained. You know whats going to happen? In these online conversations, the word sex referred purely to biologythe chromosomes, organs, and anatomy that define male and female from the outside. I dont want for people to think of me as a he, and when they say he, not only does it reinforce in their brains that I am a he, it also reinforces in the brains of the people who are listening, Sasha explains. Youve successfully purchased a group discount. 1 to 4 of 4 items. A non fiction that reads like fiction (I had to remind myself a few times that this actually happened). I dont want for people to think of me as a he, and when they say he, not only does it reinforce in their brains that I am a he, it also reinforces in the brains of the people who are listening, Sasha explains. The 57 Bus is a monument to impulsive acts influenced by peers; it is also a testament to the power of forgiveness and how true justice may be best found outside of a courtroom. PART 1: SASHA Summary: Tumbling Answers to a survey adapted from Sasha's Tumblr page. Much like. The 57 Bus The 57 Bus. He goes to the door of the bus and calls to Sasha, who roams the sidewalk with a cell phone, charred legs. He pulled pranks like putting ketchup on peoples faces while they slept or ambushing them with water balloons when theyd just woken up. They had always loved the bus. By signing up you agree to our terms and privacy policy. The 57 Bus is about a transgender young adult named Sasha whose skirt is lit on fire by a young adult male. chapter, Fewer than one hundred graduated with the requirements needed to attend California state college or university. Your group members can use the joining link below to redeem their group membership. Gender was the word for what people felt about themselves, how they felt inside. If it weren't for the 57 bus, Sasha and Richard never would have met. Romantic was the category for who you felt romantic attraction to. One moment that changes both of their lives forever. The more time Sasha spent in the room, the more comfortable it felt. The tracks cross. Discount, Discount Code From the creators of SparkNotes, something better. We're sorry, SparkNotes Plus isn't available in your country. Sasha, a white middle-class youth, was diagnosed with Asperger's at age eight and identified as agender- neither male nor female. His actions appear to have been impulsive, immature, and unpremeditated. SparkNotes Plus subscription is $4.99/month or $24.99/year as selected above. This is definitely a must read for any middle school - high school child. to start your free trial of SparkNotes Plus. RJ isnt a guarantee of leniency, Baliga cautioned. As bathrooms rely on the gender binarymost public spaces have only a men's restroom and a women's restroomSasha isn't entirely comfortable using either one. In the end, three eighteen-year-old white students were expelled for what they did to Williams, and a seventeen-year-old was suspended. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. Are there any more books similar to this? He asked for our forgiveness. Karls voice broke. Apart from some scars, Im all healed, basically, Sasha said. 47 terms. By entering your email address you agree to receive emails from SparkNotes and verify that you are over the age of 13. {var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; But then again, hes a sixteen-year-old kid and sixteen-year-old kids are kind of dumb. Arguing that submission to that one act of degradation prepares many a young man for a career of crime, he took the reader through the experience of a youthful offenderwhich began with the accused, usually arrested for vagrancy or disorderly conduct, spending the night in the police station among older, more vicious criminals. Although not the root cause, the two teenagers involved in this situation were on different sides of a sharp class divide. However, it was just an okay read for me. Sexuality was the category for who you were physically attracted to. "I am not a thug, gangster, hoodlum, nor monster. So it was a nice change to be seen as female. They play sports on the same team, or work in the same building. Staff Library Staff. In their spare time, they drew maps of new bus, subway, and streetcar lines, or read up on historical public transit systems. Author's NoteHow Do You Know What Gender You Are? It was so heartbreaking. Let us know whats wrong with this preview of, Published The stories overlap. | You'll be billed after your free trial ends. Slater shows that most prison sentences do not reform juveniles; instead, they turn juveniles into hardened criminals, providing endless fodder for the criminal justice system. This was an amazingly written work of nonfiction for a teen (or older) audience. Both Sasha and Richard lived in Oakland, California, one of the US's most diverse and unequal cities. Most of us see gender and sexuality and romance as one big interconnected tangle of feelingsthis is who I am, this is who Im attracted to, this is who I love. Sasha had recently come to realize their agender identity and usually wore a. This quote illustrates one of the books main themes: a single, quick moment can change peoples lives forever. "his chest a megaphone"- this is a metaphor in page 46 of the book 'The 57 Bus'. It has an impact on you. It was tough sometimes, watching Sasha navigate a world that didnt even have a category for them. GradeSaver "The 57 Bus Metaphors and Similes". Each afternoon, Sasha and Richard spent eight minutes together on the bus, and if not for the 57 bus, they might never have met one another. Purchasing Gender was the word for what people felt about themselves, how they felt inside. SparkNotes PLUS Sasha, who has Asperger's Syndrome, is interested in languages. The 57 Bus won the Stonewall Book Award and was listed as one of the best books of 2017 by the School Library Journal, the Washington Post, and the Chicago Public Library. The dress is pretty and, up and down. He pitches Jasmine something called restorative justice. Darris thinks perhaps Richard and, hopeful that Richard will be offered restorative justice given the severity of the harm to, doesnt understand why he did it, but she believes hatred only leads to more hatred., agree, however, to let Karl address the court. In this passage, Slater is describing the violence that has pervaded Richard's childhood. Its about dispensing with punitiveness for its own sake and trying to produce an outcome that will be more healing for everyone involved.. While on a trip to Yosemite in early 2013, gender fluid means I have the potential to be anything, any gender at any time., they find their friend Jamal, who is just a few feet away from a sleeping, cant be heard on the video, he takes out his phone and points it at, Immediately after Richard jumps off the bus and sees, of her students somehow. Free trial is available to new customers only. It doesnt really directly affect me, at least to hear itits more like, Huh, thats not right. He attended an alternative high school in Berkley. Apart from some scars, Im all healed, basically, Sasha said. But if anyone seemed right for restorative justice, it was these two families, who had already expressed compassion for one another. They were perfect candidates for this dialogue, she said. By the second half of sophomore year, that name clearly no longer fit. Divert Richard. And there was a whole array of distinctions within each category as well. In the novel itself, Slater (the author) stays in that moment preceding the attack. The way the content is organized. "For users, crack meant povertywhole lives stripped down like a stolen car, the parts sold off to pay for their next hit" (69). Wed love to have you back! This quote attaches figurative language to Sasha's journey and search for a fitting gender identity. Knowing how shy Sasha was, he admired Sashas newfound willingness to speak up, to stand out, to be seen. LGBT non-fiction, but geared towards young adults? 20 terms. While other people seem to inherently know their gender identity, Sasha ransacks their own brain looking for the file [marked Gender], but it doesnt seem to be there. Deep down, Sasha feels neither masculine nor feminine. Discount, Discount Code Save over 50% with a SparkNotes PLUS Annual Plan! 3 pages at 400 words per page) They play sports on the same team, or work in the same building. He compared the criminal justice system to a great mill which, somehow or other, supplies its own grist, a maelstrom with draws from the outside, and then keeps its victims moving in a circle until swallowed in the vortex., A super-predator is a young juvenile criminal who is so impulsive, so remorseless, that he can kill, rape, maim without giving it a second thought, he explained. Many characters within The 57 Bus are discriminated against and victimized because of their gender or sexuality. You can take those ones in. [CDATA[ After Richard repeatedly flicks a cigarette lighter near the gauzy fabric of Sashas skirt (thinking it will just smoke and smolder as a joke) and Sasha bursts into flames, Sasha is severely burned and Richard is charged with two hate crimes. Of course, Sashas unique gender and sexual identity does not mean that they do not also experience meaningful relationships. Its really hard to know what I want for him. But if anyone seemed right for restorative justice, it was these two families, who had already expressed compassion for one another. Although very successful, Lil Jerry is very aware of what will happen to him eventually as a result of his affiliation with gangs. The 57 Bus tells the true story of two teenagers living in Oakland, California. "Discovering the existence of genderqueer identity felt like discovering a secret room" (37). On November 4, 2013, Richard Thomas, age 16, set 18-year-old Sasha Fleishman's clothing on fire during his ride home from school on the 57 bus. But as Sasha began exploring the topic online, they found that some people had developed language for combing the tangle into individual strands. Divert Richard. on 50-99 accounts. Dashka Slater. She hid them under baggy T-shirts and sweatpants and watched the other girls come to school in tiny skirts and spaghetti straps, wondered why everything was so much hard for her than it was for them. Shasha, white, came from a middle-class background; at home, they had time to dream, read, and create other languages, worlds, and plans for their own future. But we also think that hatred only leads to more hatred and anger. The goals: go to class, get your grades up, graduate, stay out of jail, survive.". It was tough sometimes, watching Sasha navigate a world that didnt even have a category for them. The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater Buy Study Guide The 57 Bus Quotes and Analysis Oakland, California, is a city of more than 400,000 people, but it can still feel like a small town. Heartbreaking but infused with compassion, this true story is riveting. Available This is the "family motto" as described by Kaprice when she lets Richard into her counseling program. (one code per order). They each take the 57 bus, though their lives are vastly different and they live in different parts of Oakland. Forgiveness, when it. Sasha, however, is not gay, and this frequent misunderstanding is just one of many LGBTQ misconceptions dispelled within Slaters book. But if you grew up in a low-income area and all you see is crime and drugs? On the other hand, sexuality, according to Sasha, is the category for who you are physically attracted to, which is often experienced independent of gender within the LGBTQ community. This is also a story of a African-American, silly and also bright, but slightly more troubled boy named Richard. January 17, 2023, SNPLUSROCKS20 Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does. The story is important for young people (actually, all people) to read because of the real lessons it teaches - one bad decision can really impact the lives of many people and no one should be hurt because of who they are. Direct FilesUnder the Influence of Adolescence, BinaryThe People vs. Richard - - - - - - -, Risky ThinkingSome Numbers: US Juvenile Incarceration. He pulled pranks like putting ketchup on peoples faces while they slept or ambushing them with water balloons when theyd just woken up. LitCharts Teacher Editions. He attended an alternative high school in Berkley. They locked him in his room. Even in the bright sunshine, you knew it could roll in at any minute and chill you to the bone" (95). js.src='https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js'; This is where the bulk of the citys murders happentwo-thirds of them, in 2013. Struggling with distance learning? But the person who lived in this new room still had a boys nameLuke. RJ isnt a guarantee of leniency, Baliga cautioned. Instead of pronouns that disguised between male and female, Sashas language had pronouns that distinguished between animate and inanimate objects. //]]>. The example of Lil Jerry also serves to illustrate the far-reaching consequences of violence. This book surprised me more than I thought it would. Sasha wants to raise awareness and acknowledgment . Judging from the information. Lays the situation bare in front of the reader. The young adult male lives in poverty in a neighborhood where he is doomed to fail. The narrator speaks these words at the end of the second introductory chapter, Monday, November 4, 2013, in which she explains what occurs to Sasha and Richard together in a collision. I enjoyed this book. In these online conversations, the word sex referred purely to biologythe chromosomes, organs, and anatomy that define male and female from the outside. Copyright 1999 - 2023 GradeSaver LLC. It was hard for people to believe it, but Sasha didnt feel traumatized by what had happened. Here the author uses the second-person pronoun you, thereby drawing the audience into that moment on the bus and into the overall story, affording them the illusion of a certain degree of agency, as if they have the power to change things. Surely its not too late to stop things from going wrong. And I do not want to have a baby out here without a dad. Hailing from the "middle-class foothills" (7) of Oakland, they are described as an incessantly curious person, intelligent, passionate, and source of strength and validation to their closest friends. 10 terms. The 57 bus travels eleven miles from one end of the city to the other, through all kinds of neighborhoods. Renews January 24, 2023 Part 1: Gender, Sex, Sexuality, Romance: Some Terms, Part 3: Under the Influence of Adolescence, Part 3: Lets All Take Care of Each Other, Part 4: Some Gender-Neutrality Milestones. $24.99 (including. Loved the intersecting lines of transit routes on the map, the crisp procession of times on the schedule. Thats how everyone knew Richardas the funny one, the one who made people smile. I loved this book and have been looking for ages. Might I also add this is also very much a true story? If youre around it a lot, its hard to do good.. They dont understand. But we also think that hatred only leads to more hatred and anger. The way the content is organized, Accountability, Redemption, and Forgiveness, LitCharts makes it easy to find quotes by All of them were such gorgeously enlightened, beautiful people.. Sort of. by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (Byr). They go to school together, or worship together. There must be some way to wake Sasha. Welcome back. This author does not mince words. By the second half of sophomore year, that name clearly no longer fit. Not only did I hurt you but I hurt your family & friends and also my family & friends for I have brought shame to them and our country and I shall be punished which is going to be hard for me because Im not made to be incarcerated.". Romantic was the category for who you felt romantic attraction to. You may cancel your subscription on your Subscription and Billing page or contact Customer Support at custserv@bn.com. Instead of pronouns that disguised between male and female, Sashas language had pronouns that distinguished between animate and inanimate objects. And when people use the right pronoun, it feels validating.. The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives, I rarely read YA non-fiction, but I made an exception for Dashka Slaters. So it was a nice change to be seen as female. The white kids, also freshmen, had insisted on calling Williams three-fifths, a reference to the clause in the original US Constitution that counted slaves as three-fifths of a person when determining population for representation in Congress. Teachers and parents! Please wait while we process your payment. Sasha lives in the middle-class foothills whilst Richard's family is poor and lives in the inner city. Dilulio's statement is characteristic of a reactionary period in the '80s and '90s where a surge of violent and drug-related crimes in cities resulted in a wave of conservative policies that allow District Attorneys to charge minors as adults at their own discretion. Actions for OPL_MichelleC's Quotation . Get the driver to stop the bus. She writes, "Surely its not too late to stop things from going wrong. Sexuality was the category for who you were physically attracted to. Im not trying to defend his actions because it was very terrible. Even so, she said, Richard was a kid, a kid who was capable of making an exceedingly dumb mistake, but one who was also capable of learning from it. Its about dispensing with punitiveness for its own sake and trying to produce an outcome that will be more healing for everyone involved.. If you don't see it, please check your spam folder. Part 1: How Do You Know What Gender You Are? I learned so much. "Sooo much more helpful than SparkNotes. Our, "Sooo much more helpful thanSparkNotes. Samantha knew it was important to be pretty and cute, but she had no idea how to be those things, or even why she was supposed to want to be. Renew your subscription to regain access to all of our exclusive, ad-free study tools. The difference was that sun was considered animate, a being, and day was considered inanimate, a thing. 20% Part 1: Gender, Sex, Sexuality, Romance: Some Terms, Part 3: Under the Influence of Adolescence, Part 3: Lets All Take Care of Each Other, Part 4: Some Gender-Neutrality Milestones. Part 1 focuses on Sasha, establishing their journey from early childhood through high school. However, paired with Nemos asexuality, Sasha and Nemo complement each other, becoming the others most important person. Sasha describes Nemo as a soul mate, maybe, but not in the romantic sense. While Sasha is also quick to point out that they are not with Nemo simply because they both identify as gender nonbinary (gender is simply another thing they have in common), Slaters close examination of LGBTQ identities highlights the diversity that exists within the gender spectrum and implicitly advocates for more thoughtful and nuanced consideration of these differences. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. When Richard, an African American junior from nearby Oakland High School, boards the bus and sees Sasha, a genderqueer kid in a skirt, Sasha quickly becomes the object of Richards misguided prank. js.id=id; Loved the intersecting lines of transit routes on the map, the crisp procession of times on the schedule. Never let your obstacles become more important than your goal., Because Im going to make you understand the family motto: Never let your obstacles become more important than your goal., Stonewall Book Award for Childrens & Young Adult Literature (2018), California Book Award for Young Adult (Gold) (2017), Los Angeles Times Book Prize Nominee for Young Adult Literature (2017), Rhode Island Teen Book Award Nominee (2019), Evergreen Teen Book Award Nominee for High School (2020), Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Nominee for Nonfiction (2018). GradeSaver "The 57 Bus Quotes and Analysis". One teenager with a lighter. Occasionally, Debbie wished Sasha would ease up a littleresist correcting well-meaning relatives who said he instead of they, for example. It was hard for people to believe it, but Sasha didnt feel traumatized by what had happened. In this case, yet another small moment alters the trajectory of Richards life, this time for the better as he is able to avoid adult prison in part because of Karls testimony. How can the author make the reader feel sorry for the victim, the culprit, and even the parents and bystanders. They were perfect candidates for this dialogue, she said. Fear. (including. We hope the state will focus more on preparing him for the world beyond incarceration than on punishing him., Actually, [Andrew] said, Im starting to identify a little bit asI dont even know the word I want to use yet. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. The median strips are ragged with weeds. This comment by Jasmine comes before Slater introduces the concept of restorative justice, but it operates on the same basis that Richard, the offender, could stand to actually learn something from his crime, and an understanding could be reached between him and the victim, Sasha. for a group? alex_ormond. I'm a young African American male whos made a terrible mistake. Divert Richard. In January, before heading back to college, Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. Renews January 24, 2023 "Violence was like the fog that swept in from San Francisco Bay on summer afternoons to cloak the city in damp shadow. if(!d.getElementById(id)) If you have family that does crime? She writes, "Surely its not too late to stop things from going wrong. The 57 Bus study guide contains a biography of Dashka Slater, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. //