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20. Research. Sánchez gives credit to her “feminist godmothers” bell hooks and Naomi Wolf 5
for her intellectual growth on issues of gender. Research these two scholars and explain
how they may have influenced Sánchez’s development. How is their work relevant to your
own life?
21. Creative Writing. Look at yourself in a mirror like Sánchez did at the beginning of this section two
narrative and write down all the words and phrases you can think of. Then, arrange those
words and phrases into a poem that reflects some aspect of your own self-identity. /
22. Multimodal. Make a collage of images and words representing the media that you are
exposed to regularly that might have some influence on your self-image. David Sedaris

Us and Them

David Sedaris
David Sedaris (b. 1956) is an American humorist and essayist whose
work regularly appears in the New Yorker and on National Public
Radio’s This American Life. He has published several collections
of his work. One of his essays, “The Santaland Diaries,” about Jenny Lewis/Contour by Getty Images
his experiences working as an elf in a department store during
Christmas, is often performed in theaters around the country during
the holiday season. “Us and Them” appeared in his collection called
Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim, published in 2004.

hen my family first moved to North other houses, and people inside those houses. I
W Carolina, we lived in a rented house three hoped that in walking around after dark I might
blocks from the school where I would begin the witness a murder, but for the most part our
third grade. My mother made friends with one of neighbors just sat in their living rooms, watching
the neighbors, but one seemed enough for her. TV. The only place that seemed truly different
Within a year we would move again and, as she was owned by a man named Mr. Tomkey, who
explained, there wasn’t much point in getting too did not believe in television. This was told to
close to people we would have to say good-bye us by our mother’s friend, who dropped by one
to. Our next house was less than a mile away, afternoon with a basketful of okra. The woman
and the short journey would hardly merit tears did not editorialize — rather, she just presented
or even good-byes, for that matter. It was more her information, leaving her listener to make of
of a “see you later” situation, but still I adopted it what she might. Had my mother said, “That’s
my mother’s attitude, as it allowed me to pretend the craziest thing I’ve ever heard in my life,” I
that not making friends was a conscious choice. assume that the friend would have agreed, and
I could if I wanted to. It just wasn’t the right time. had she said, “Three cheers for Mr. Tomkey,” the
Back in New York State, we had lived in the friend likely would have agreed as well. It was a
country, with no sidewalks or streetlights; you kind of test, as was the okra.
could leave the house and still be alone. But To say that you did not believe in televi-
here, when you looked out the window, you saw sion was different from saying that you did not

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