The Black Sheep

I’m sure many of us have a fairytale that we hold very close to our hearts. Growing up many of us have read fairytales and in our childlike minds, we found them pretty entertaining. We never understood the actual meaning/message the author was trying to convey. However, when we get older and reread these stories, we ask ourselves why we didn’t understand these things or catch on to these things earlier. We may also realize how much these fairytales resonate with us. There is even a possibility that rereading them and understanding them can help develop our literacy skills.  One fairytale that significantly impacted my life was “The Ugly Duckling.” 

Initially, when I first read this fairytale I was in sitting in the back of my second-grade classroom next to my 3 peers. I remember laughing at the story while the teacher read it to us. My first reaction to it was being amused, I found it entertaining. I believe my second-grade teacher didn’t like me and there were times when she’d single me out from the whole class because I looked different in a sense. Meaning since she introduced me to the story and how she acted toward me helped me relate and understand the story on a deeper level. Nevertheless, my feelings towards the tale changed over time to be more sympathetic and understanding. I feel like I understand the fairytale at a much deeper level. As I continued my literacy journey in high school, my comprehension skills developed helping me comprehend things better. This fairytale is a prime example of the development of my comprehension skills given the fact that I was able to reread it and understand the message that the author was trying to convey.  This fairytale emotionally impacted me because I related to it so much. The specific scene that impacted me emotionally was when the duck was constantly getting left behind. The family of the duck would go out and leave the little duck behind because they felt embarrassed by the duck. They felt like the duck didn’t belong with them due to his physical appearance.  This specific scene was sad to me because his family singled him out for looking different from them. It was kind of like the duck brought shame to the family. After all of this, the duck decided to leave the family as it thought it was the reason the mother was embarrassed since she kept on hiding him. These were people he thought were his family. This part also relates to me because I feel like at one point in my life during high school, I went through the feeling of being left out and feeling like “the black sheep.” I felt left out in places that I thought I belonged in. There would be days that I went to school looking forward to being with my friends and they would completely ignore my presence and laugh off with my other classmates. It felt like a stab in my heart, I felt so much betrayal at that time sitting in my college counselor’s office alone doing my work.

My second-grade teacher was the one to share this with me. Her involvement influenced my perception & understanding of the fairytale by about 65% because of my experience when I fist read this story. The remaining 35% that influenced my perception was my own experience in high school. As I grew up and experienced this feeling of being left out, it helped shape my view of many things. I came to realize that we only really have ourselves. We cannot keep depending on others to feel like we belong somewhere. Constantly depending on others will lead to disappointments.  Once I was able to convince myself and adapt to this way of thinking, it saved me the disappointment.

Briefly, this has impacted my overall literacy development. It helped me start searching for the deeper message of the things that I read. I learned to start reading with purpose. I try to understand and comprehend what the author is trying to convey. It helped introduce me to different literary devices. One really important one that I was introduced to was analysis. I feel like analysis is important for not only readers but writers too because it allows you to break down a subject into its elements, evaluate its relationships, and interpret its meaning, eventually providing a greater grasp of the topic and allowing you to deliver a well-supported argument or viewpoint. 

The moral lesson that I drew from this fairytale was that no one should be/feel singled out. People should be accepted for their qualities, their morals, and their humility. We should get to know people before placing them where we think they belong. Everyone has their own life story which may or may not shape them into who they are. Since we may not know everyone’s life story we should treat them with respect, and welcome them with open arms as we would like to be treated the same. Another moral lesson that I drew from this is to learn to consider other people’s feelings. These lessons impacted my values and perspectives by making me more open-minded and considerate. I listen to people and try to understand them. I accept people for who they are without judging them. However, if I feel like that is not what or who I want to be around, I try my hardest to not make them feel left out and respectfully remove myself.