Code Switching & Double Consciousness are One in the Same

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     Code switching refers to the act of changing the way one presents themselves in a particular environment or different surroundings. In the works of Angie Thomas' The Hate U Give, Starr Carter and her family demonstrates code switching by altering their tone of voice, vocabulary and attire depending on who's conversing and/or where they are located at the time. They are always considering their surroundings, whether it's around their residents off Garden Heights, white people or even law enforcement. Starr expresses, "my voice is changing already. It always happens around "other" people, whether I'm at Williamson or not. I don't talk like me or sound like me. I choose every word carefully and make sure I pronounce them well. I can never, ever let anyone think I'm ghetto." (Thomas, 95) 

    Starr feels as if she needs to maintain "two selves" in order to protect herself from the typical stereotypes and frustrations that are inevitably attached to the backs of black people. She is woke and aware of the oppressive, judgmental and racist encounters that black people experience daily in her community. Thus, ever since she was enrolled in Williamson Prep, she intentionally puts a mask over her real face. The Williamson Starr "holds her tongue when people piss her off so nobody will think she's the 'angry black girl'... is approachable... is nonconfrontational." (Thomas, 71) The code switching technique is such a commonly used invisible tool, but especially for black people. Respectfully, I personally think that black people have to code switch while in front of white people more than white people have to code switch in front of black people. Thomas does an extraordinary job of highlighting this commonly practiced technique throughout the entire novel. Although Starr has mastered her code switching skills at Williamson, it is a lot to carry on her shoulders every day. The audience notices that when she says, "I just wish I could be myself at Williamson like Will was himself in Bel-Air." (Thomas, 35) 

    Starr 2.0 represents the version of herself that code switches the blackness in her mannerisms and speech. Thomas evokes civil rights activist W.E.B Du Bois's famous notion of double consciousness. Double consciousness is a black person's awareness of how society views them. It can be used as a tool to help black people seem and appear less threatening to others, especially in the eyes of white people and law enforcement. Starr's dad addresses this idea of double consciousness when he teaches his daughter what to do if a cop stops her: "Starr-Starr, you do whatever they tell you to do [...] keep your hands visible. Don't make any sudden moves. Only speak when they speak to you." (Thomas, 20) This double consciousness is also a measure of self-protection in a society that dismisses and criminalizes blackness. Ultimately, Thomas examines the fact that black identity is split between the way black individuals perceive themselves and the way they know the white world will view.


Comments

  1. Mikayla TaylorSeptember 15, 2020 at 2:50 PM

    Aniya, this is really interesting. I really like how you brought in the ideas of W.E.B Du Bois and his ideas of double consciousness. I think that idea is very prevalent throughout the novel. I really think that your last sentence is something that is an especially prominent theme throughout the novel. The idea that Thomas splits the way that black individuals perceive themselves and the way that they are perceived, is something that I think is important to recognize in the novel because it is part of the pool of injustices against African Americans that Thomas wants us to realize.

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  2. Candace BeebeSeptember 15, 2020 at 9:59 PM

    Aniya, I agree with Mikayla that it is very interesting how you connected ideas of W.E.B. Du Bois and his theory of double consciousness to this novel. I think it shows that it code switching has been around for a long time. I also want to say that I like that you view code switching as more than just changing ones vernacular but also their actions, likes/dislikes, and even sometimes ones personality. It shows the gravity of code switching and what it can do to a person, especially an adolescent. When you put it that way, I realize that I did a lot of code switching when I was in high school, trying to fit in. It is one thing that I regret most about my high school career. As a teacher, I hope to encourage my students to always be the best version of themselves.

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