Grace Essay

Submitted By JoeJames1
Words: 454
Pages: 2

Grace James
February 20, 2015
Freire Charter School
A character exhibiting traits I admire is Grace from the book
Amazing Grace by Mary
Hoffman.

Amazing Grace is about a young afrocentric girl who overcomes boundaries, constructed by society, of her gender and race. She is often pushed in the domain of her born demographic, however, she is determined not to play the role society has made for her. I relate to the character Grace because of her attributes of being imaginative and strong willed, which allowed her to ignore her critics and follow her admirations.
Grace loved stories, which may have contributed to her ability to transcend the norms of her immediate surroundings. She enjoyed acting out the stories that she heard or read, so she jumped at the chance to pursue the role of Peter Pan in her school’s play. Her mom also encouraged her to develop her imagination by reading to her. This nurtured her creativity and awareness, through which she could see the potential outcome of her decisions in regards to acceptance or rejection. For example, she could see herself playing the role of Peter Pan, and being applauded for her performance. Her sociological imagination allowed her to see how society’s view of her could change, so she auditioned to play the role of a white male. I admire
Grace because she stays strong to who she is, which allows her to gain a better perspective of her immediate environment.
I admire Grace because she was strong willed and a catalyst for change because she addressed groups not used to the abnormal. For example, some of Grace’s classmates tried to discourage her by saying that she could not play the role because she was female and because

she was black. However, she remained strong willed. She practiced