010. Staying Afloat

  The worst of the worst has happened to Claireece "Precious" Jones. She's undergone years of rape and incest through her father, Carl - all while her mom watched in the background. Precious gives birth to two children, both of whom have been conceived by her father. Her first, Mongo - short for "mongoloid", has down's syndrome and is shunned by everyone, including Precious' mom. After the birth of her second child, the healthy Abdul, Precious is notified that she has contracted the AIDS virus through her father, but her two children do not have it. Concluding a few years that are arguably the worst years one human has to endure, Precious struggles with her own literacy and weight. With every outside factor working against her, Precious Jones avoids attempting suicide through the friendships and bonds she makes with her schoolmates, and falls in love with reading and writing.

    Throughout the novel, Precious contemplates suicide multiple times. Thankfully, it never becomes more than a passing thought. The future of her children are always at the forefront of her mind and her drive and motivation to continue her schoolwork end up becoming the defining factors in keeping Precious alive and away from suicide. Through her multiple fantasies, involving a "dream boyfriend", food supplies that flow for days, and freedom from her overbearing and abusive mother, Precious finds solace in making these fantasies a reality - thanks to her school teacher "Miz Rain" and her social worker that takes up her case. 

    Reading "Push" and engrossing yourself in Precious' problems really make your every day problems seem minimal in retrospect. The author, Sapphire, has gone to state that this character is not a true story, but is merely based on a true story of a young woman she met while teaching in Harlem. To try to understand and comprehend that something of this magnitude has actually happened to someone, as well as continues to happen in our country today, is a travesty. How do these women stay alive? What is stopping them from committing suicide in hopes of ending the every day pain and suffering? In Precious' case, her friendships are so powerful that they literally keep her alive. The love of reading and writing ultimately consumes Precious and takes over her every emotion once she realizes the power of creativity.