I agree with Baldwin in that when you begin forming opinions on what you believe is morally correct you begin to become aware of the injustices that are all around. In elementary school, attending private catholic school it was easy to see who the poorer children were but when going to public high school I became fully aware of how different other peoples living situations could be. This helped broaden my perspective on life. I believe that in order to understand the world better you must be aware of the world around you.

While Baldwin writes specifically about the experience of Black Americans I do not believe that the experiences of other marginalized groups are much different. Baldwin writes about how at a young age children of other marginalized groups notice that there is a difference in the way that they live. When the neighborhood that these children are from are impoverished they become exposed to more like prostitution or drug dealing. While they do not understand what is going on exactly and they aren’t sure why they are aware that something is occurring. Impoverished and marginalized groups live above the law but they also feel uncomfortable calling the police, even today for fear for their lives.

In the text there are many examples of Baldwin’s use of different rhetorical situations. The first example is when Baldwin uses Pathos, or an appeal to the emotions to express his rhetorical situation. He explains how well meaning individuals can actually come off as patronizing and lead to more silence on the part of all African Americans. They are not allowed to truly express who they are, for fear of not fitting into the  “It means that well-meaning white liberals place themselves in great danger when they try to deal with Negroes as though they were missionaries. It means, in brief, that a great price is demanded to liberate all those silent people so that they can breathe for the first time and tell you what they think of you. And a price is demanded to liberate all those white children – some of them near forty – who have never grown up, and who never will grow up, because they have no sense of their identity.”(Pg 4 Paragraph 1)
In the second example from “A Talk To Teachers”, Baldwin again uses pathos and logos to express how despite not knowing exactly why there is a weight on the people around the child’s shoulders. There is a different atmosphere at school, which makes it more obvious to the child who is struggling that others have a very different home life.  “But a black child, looking at the world around him, though he cannot know quite what to make of it, is aware that there is a reason why his mother works so hard, why his father is always on edge. He is aware that there is some reason why, if he sits down in the front of the bus, his father or mother slaps him and drags him to the back of the bus. He is aware that there is some terrible weight on his parents’ shoulders which menaces him. And it isn’t long – in fact it begins when he is in school – before he discovers the shape of his oppression.” (Page 2, Paragraph 1)

I agree with Baldwin that teachers have a powerful impact on their students. They have the ability to shape kinds into eager learners and inspire them to enjoy school. They also have the ability to leave a lasting negative impact on the children they teach. There have been many teachers in my schooling that have left a positive impact on me, they helped me want to learn and grow. I believe that it is incredibly important to have a positive impact on students as an educator.