The Meaning to the Title of Brown Girl Dreaming

 

What does the title tell you about the book? Does it tell the truth? 

     Jacqueline Woodson had a meaning behind naming her book Brown Girl Dreaming. I did some further research and this is what I found. Jacqueline Woodson mentioned, "My grandmother would always say to me, 'You're a pretty brown girl,'" she says. "There was something about 'brown' that felt more universal, and it was speaking to more people than myself."' Although it still mentions brown it's not necessarily drawn to one skin tone or one ethnicity. It's a broad area and like she said felt more universal. Here is the link to the article if you want to read it. 

     Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson lives to its title. Jacqueline Woodson tells her story and experiences through the form of poetry (memoir). All her stories are different and add something new to the novel. Before reading the novel I thought the book was going to be about Jacqueline Woodson and the dreams she is wanting to fulfill and be apart of. Although there were times where that was mentioned it was mainly told through her life story and personal experiences growing up as a black individual during events such as The Civil Rights and Black Power Movement. So based on that information the title of the book does tell the truth. 

     However, think about this... changing the name of the book. Changing the name of the book can add a new meaning. What if it was named the impacts of movements, black girl dreaming, or even white girl dreaming. The title wouldn't necessarily tell the truth and some titles may come off as harsh or racist. Although Jacqueline Woodson mentions different movements and races as a part of her experiences and stories it doesn't describe the main theme and overall message of the book, such as Brown Girl Dreaming does. Everyone has the right to dream, everyone has the right to have power and have their own thoughts and that's all Jacqueline Woodson wanted in the end. Brown girl is universal like she mentioned, fitting the criteria. Everyone can dream and everyone can have a voice and can speak. 

     So overall, the title does tell the truth and does fit the meaning when it comes to the overall message and concept of the book. In fact, thinking deeper it adds more to the book. I hope when someone picks up the book they can see that meaning and message and connect and learn something through the hidden message that is clear as day in the title. Also, I hope some readers can connect to the book itself and make connections to their own lives or learn more about an event Woodson went through more deeply. It's always nice to have more than one perspective. We get the perspective of someone who went through it and learn about those events through school.