Do you think 'The Freeddom Writers' Diary' is authentic?

I am sceptical... Of course, I know that these people do exist and that their work is inspiring, but being a quarter of the way through the book, I have being having doubts for the following reasons:





1. The diaries start from the very first day Ms. Gruwell taught the class. In fact Diary 1 seems to be written as if they have not encountered the new teacher yet. 'She'll probably sit us in alphabetical order to try to stop any fights.' Perhaps the diaries are being written retrospectively, but shouldn't this be clarified?





2. In Ms. Gruwell's second entry of Freshman Year Spring 1995, she says 'They hate reading and getting them to write is out of the question.' Yet why have students been writing consistently since Fall 1994?





3. Also in reference to Gruwell’s statement that her pupils hate writing, the standard of their writing so is out of place. In Spring 1995, one student writes 'The more I thought about this, the more the concept overwhelmed me. I began to analyze and reflect on my life, my many encounters with injustice and discrimination. It sounds strange, somewhat on the line between irony and absurdity, to think that people would rather label and judge something as significant as each other, but completely bypass a peanut.’ This writing is very advanced and not fitting for a fifteen year old who Ms. Gruwell describes as not being ‘conventionally smart.’





4. The pupils seem to gain enlightenment very quickly for people who are portrayed as being stubborn and set in ‘their gangster ways.’ One student writes at the beginning of an entry ‘This game is stupid; I’m not a peanut! And what the hell does world peace have to do with peanuts?’ At the end of the entry, this very same student writes ‘We won’t allow the colour of a man’s heart to be the colour of his skin, the premise of his beliefs and self-worth.’





I am not doubting the existence of the ‘Freedom Writers’, but I do wonder if the a large fraction of the diaries were written some time after the events, with the knowledge that they would be read world-wide and the aim of raising sympathy and money.

Do you think 'The Freeddom Writers' Diary' is authentic?
Girleeny...





I think you may be onto something. You are obviously a very careful reader, and you are very good at noticing where some apparently insignificant detail simply does not jibe with other details, and it seems to happen repeatedly.





Although I did see the movie (which I thought was excellent), I have not read the book. As you noted, some of the apparently inconsistent journal entries could have been entered retrospectively. There is something to be said for editorial license, but in this particular case, I agree with you that it should have been clarified in the book.





The most persuasive point you made in your argument is the fact that the students, tough and street-wise all but not even remotely self-reflective when the story begins, somehow gain enlightenment very quickly. It is a rare individual indeed who transforms his life on the basis of a single experience. To have a whole classful of them do so more or less simultaneously pushes the limits of credibility.





Your observations are very astute, Girleeny. I'm just not sure what else to do with them...perhaps it is not necessary to do anything except just be aware of them. I commend you as well for the cogency of the case you have made, and especially for how articulately you expressed it. A rare thing indeed in this forum.





Thanks to you, I know a bit more than I did ten minutes ago. Thank you for raising the question.
Reply:Thank you for this honor! I would be very interested in the Foundation's response to your e-mail. Please e-mail me at hilljpd@yahoo.com. Thank you again for this honor, and for inviting the discussion. Report It

Reply:yes
Reply:yes, why not?

bleeding heart