“On the subway” through the lens of Readers-response criticism

Sharon Olds' poem "On the Subway" is about a privileged white woman and a young
African American boy riding the subway together. The poem begins by describing the woman's
prejudices and misconceptions about the boy. The phrase "in black sneakers laced with white in
a complex pattern like a collection of intentional scars" represents how white people's dirty
hands scarred the souls of Blacks, and the result is still fresh and evident today. They are sitting
on the opposite side of the vehicle, just as they are on the opposite side of society, where whites
are at the top and blacks are still at the bottom. The boy was wearing red to symbolize how the
blood of black Americans gushed when they were slaves, and the woman was wearing a fur coat
to symbolize her wealth and position at the top of the food chain. The next lines demonstrated
how terrible this white woman's prejudice towards the black boy, but she soon understood how
she was the one who had power because she was the one who had the privilege, yet she still
managed to express her worry that this person of color would take her life.

At first glance, the poem appears to be simply discussing an encounter between a wealthy
person and a poor bad guy, but as I read further, I realize that the scenario was much deeper than
that, that it was about color and races, that it reflected the history between whites and black
communities, it is an evidence how deep racism truly is, and that discrimination is still prevalent
in today's society. The poem opened a new perspective in my view of history; initially, I thought
that history was only there to respect those who suffered from it, but now I believe that history is
here to be an experience that we should never repeat, because the woman in the poem was a
reflection of people who don't learn from history; she knew what happened in the past, but she
still has this racist view, and this reflects how people failed to learn from their mistakes, racism
and colorism were not eradicated

After reading the poem and relating it to recent issues about racism such as the fight
about black lives matter, it made me feel that we still have a long way to go, because even the
government specifically in America still has racial issues, it was disheartening because this is not
only a fight for black Americans but also for all people of color, including Filipinos, we are all
affected by this, there are many layers of discrimination that we have to eliminate, it is indeed a
long journey, but I believe that we will get there.