Becoming: Chapter 6 Summary & Analysis

When Michelle arrives at Princeton, she is accompanied by her father and her boyfriend, David. She is excited and fully ready to leave her hometown behind, especially because she had been working in a factory over the summer to make money—a good reminder of why college was important. She is excited to start her life as an independent adult.

The one hitch in Michelle’s plan is David. The two of them have been dating for over a year (he is two years older than Michelle and already in college) but haven’t discussed how her departure for Princeton might change their relationship. She enjoys her time with David, but isn’t in love with him. She hopes that someday she will be swept off her feet by someone who will completely rearrange her life—but that person isn’t David. Michelle says a final goodbye to him the next evening, knowing that it is best to make a clean break.

Michelle describes the culture shock of Princeton, which is “extremely white and very male.” She describes feeling like a “glaring anomaly,” never having been a part of a predominantly white community before. But she quickly adapts—learning unfamiliar academic terms, the concept of extra-long bedsheets, and the jargon of new sports like lacrosse and crew. She also has an advantage in that, once again, she is known as Craig’s little sister, and she quickly fits into his communities.

One community becomes particularly important to Michelle: the Third World Center, which is a student center with a mission to support students of color. The TWC becomes a home base for Michelle, and she makes many “instant friends” there. One of them is Suzanne Alele, whom Michelle admires for her ease in social situations and her willingness to take risks simply because they make her happy. 

Michelle describes how her black friends are crucial to her success. Like her, many of them had arrived without even understanding their disadvantages—like going to her first piano recital and realizing that she’s never played on a perfect instrument. “You’re asked to adjust and overcome, to play your music the same as everyone else,” Michelle explains.

Michelle also details how it is challenging and energy draining to be the only nonwhite person in a class, or trying out for a play, or joining a team. It takes an extra level of confidence. This is why, she writes, it is a relief to hang out with friends who experience the same challenges.

Michelle also tells one additional story that surfaces years later about one of her white roommates (who is perfectly nice, she writes). Her roommate’s mother had grown up in an extremely racist home and was “horrified” that her daughter had been placed with a black roommate. Thus, she had asked the university to reassign her daughter. Michelle explains that she did not know at the time why her roommate moved out midway through the year, and is happy that she didn’t know the real reason.

Michelle gets a work-study job at the TWC, as the assistant to the director of the center, Czerny Brasuell. Czerny is a thirty-year-old black woman who grew up in New York, and Michelle describes her as an “über-mentor.” Czerny sees potential in Michelle and constantly expands Michelle’s horizons. She suggests new reading material, makes Michelle question some of her assumptions regarding Princeton’s policies, takes her on trips to New York, and always pushes her to think bigger.

Michelle is learning all the time: how to write efficiently, think critically, how to budget time and energy to get all of her work done. Still, she writes, it is “impossible to be a black kid at a mostly white school and not feel the shadow of affirmative action.” She feels some students and even some professors doubt that she has earned her place. But Michelle simply takes this as “a mandate to overperform” and proves them wrong by holding steady and getting good grades.

Michelle also learns a lot from her friend Suzanne, who often veers between many different activities and quickly changes direction when things aren’t fun. Suzanne is disorganized but passionate, while Michelle is fastidious and responsible—and they are able to coexist together in their sophomore dorm.

Michelle starts an after-school program for kids at the Third World Center. This is prompted by Czerny; Michelle has been babysitting Czerny’s son often, and Czerny suggests that she could look after other faculty members’ children at the same time to make extra money. Michelle quickly gains several children to look after. The hours with the kids fly by and are extremely gratifying for Michelle. 

About once a week, Michelle calls home and tells her mother and father every detail of what’s happening at school. They, in turn, talk about their own lives—that Michelle’s mother is taking care of Robbie, who is now widowed and has several health issues. He does not mention his own deterioration, however. But when Michelle’s parents visit Princeton for one of Craig’s basketball games, she sees the reality: her father in a wheelchair. He always insists, however, that he feels good.