Born a Crime: A Mother's Choice for a Humble Upbringing

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Essay 2
Born a Crime is a 2016 autobiographical book by Trevor Noah that narrates his humble upbringing in South Africa through a collection of humorous personal stories. Born to an interracial union between his black Xhosa mother and a white Swiss man, Trevor reflects on his experiences as a colored but more importantly on his rebellious but loving relationship with his mother. Born a Crime is an ode to Patricia, Noah’s mother, who he describes as his teammate. This essay will discuss the most significant choices Noah’s mother made to give him the upbringing she wanted for him. It will use evidence from the autobiography as well as Bell Hook’s piece about critical thinking to argue that Patricia’s strictness, sacrifice, and constant inspiration saved the author from his hometown’s cycle of violence, poverty, and abuse.
Bell Hook, a radical feminist thinker, teacher, and critic argued that the aim of critical pedagogy should be to transform learners into political subjects who are aware of their racial, historical, gender, and class embeddedness. Hook observed that students in privileged schools have a sense of personal ownership of their future unlike learners in underprivileged schools who have other responsibilities that dictate their ownership of their future (Burke; Olson). She believed that children from disadvantaged backgrounds are only able to perceive the education system as a means to acquiring a job rather than as a way of improving their lives in a more meaningful way (Specia and Osman). Hooks argued that critical thinking can help students whose choices are limited by their backgrounds. Critical pedagogy is not just important to underprivileged students but also learners and people from middle- and upper-class backgrounds who may have the material resources but are experiencing a personal crisis. According to Hooks, having the languages and frames of locus to scrutinize one’s life thoroughly is important for everyone who wants to understand the world and take control of their lives.
Born a Crime is Noah’s attempt at critically reflecting on his early life experiences growing up in apartheid South Africa. The author’s reflection on his life is done in a non-linear form of storytelling. Trevor groups his personal stories by theme to describe his understanding of poverty, violence, and abuse, which murk his early life in South Africa. More importantly, the book focuses on Patricia, whom he credits for making several significant choices to give him a better upbringing. One of the most important things Noah’s mother did to give him a successful life is discipline. Trevor, a bi-racial, was treated differently from his peers on account of his light complexion: “My grandmother treated me like I was white. My grandfather did, too, only he was even more extreme. He called me “Mastah.” In the car, he insisted on driving me as if he were my chauffeur” (Noah, pg. 49). The author was never punished as severely as his cousins and the villagers treated him as an honored guest at family events. However, Trevor remarks that his mother was very hard on him and created an environment of genuine accountability. The aut...