Childhood and Racism: An Analytical Study of Selected Texts from the Perspective of Critical Racism Theory

Abstract

This study uses the concept of racial criticism to analyze some chosen literary poems in order to investigate how racism affects children. It focuses on showing how racism affects children psychologically and socially, especially through discrimination and social exclusion. In order to illustrate the profound effects that racism has on a child's development and his relationship with the world around him, the study looks at how poetic writings depict childhood events like losing one's innocence and struggling with one's identity. By examining the texts, the study demonstrates how racism shapes reality and developmental trajectories and emphasizes the function of literature in offering firsthand accounts of this enduring influence. The poets "Countee Cullen" and "Nikki Giovanni" examine racism's effects on childhood and how these experiences impact children's growth and identity building in their selected poems.