Notice Me

"Oh my God I didn't see you. You must be in a hurry, you offer. No, no, no, I really didn't see you" (77). Before this quote, the narrator was standing in line waiting to purchase her items when a man cuts her in line. The man did not notice the narrator until the cashier pointed her out. Out of the many beautiful quotes in this book, this is the one that struck me the most. It struck me because I could see this situation happening in 2 instances. The first is I can see this happening between two people. There are hundreds of people you walk by everyday that you don't really see. It's not until you encounter someone that you begin to notice him/her. Afterwards, you realize that you walk by that person everyday or they're in one of your classes or you both have common friends. But it's not until someone or something points out that person that you notice them.

The second situation that can fit with the quote is the role of racism in society. Society tends not to see or acknowledge the issue of racism. People walk around as if racism isn't real or affecting the majority of people in the world. Society doesn't see it until someone points it out or until something happens to shed light on it.

Overall, Claudia Rankine's novel Citizen is full of quotes that people can apply to society. Rankine sheds light on the real situations people find themselves in everyday. That is why her novel is so powerful.