Olds’ “On the Subway” accurately depicts the progression of a rich white woman’s understanding of white privilege and the institutional racism that is built into the very inner workings of society. The clash of a woman of high social class and white skin with another man of colored descent and relative poverty brings about a drastic change in this woman’s acceptance of the degradation and condescension with which blacks were treated—the encounter enables this woman to question the dominant discourse of society regarding African Americans. Written during the Civil Rights Movement, this poem’s use of imagery and the contrasts of power not only serve to underscore the great differences in the backgrounds of these two passengers, but also to depict …show more content…
Olds’ begins with stereotypical observations of the other passenger, allowing for the audience to realize their own institutional racism, when she mentions he has “the casual cold look of a mugger, alert under hooded eyes”. Here Olds seemingly falls into the trap of her own subconscious racism, yet the stereotypes intent is actually used to draw the audience into the reality of institutional racism. This stereotype also causes the author to fear for her own life, a fear that indicates her own apparent vulnerability in comparison to the strength of the passenger sitting opposite to her. However, several other interesting observations allow us to consider that even the opposing man, despite his impressive strength, is still vulnerable to the most unlikely predator—the female narrator of the story. The author observes that this passenger has feet that are “huge, in black sneakers laced with white in a complex pattern like a set of intentional scars”. This use of imagery automatically indicates that this man, despite his own apparent power, is actually …show more content…
During the period before the Civil Rights Movement, people of color were still undermined because of the dominance of white supremacy; as the Klu Klux Klan began to emerge, the initially low social, economic and political status of the African Americans became lower than before. We can clearly see this degradation of people of color in the poem, when the author immediately begins the poem by contrasting the backgrounds of the two protagonists when she begins with “the boy and I face one another”. This statement sets up the differences which highlight the two contrasting worlds of the passenger by juxtaposing them. This statement also can play into the stereotypical condescension with which the general white population treated colored people—Olds’ use of “boy” could either be a subtle reference to slavery and white supremacy, or it could refer to a young child, bearing the burden of his race. Similarly, several references to this man’s brute strength and the narrator’s confusion as to whether she is “in his power-he could take my coat so easily, my briefcase, my life” or whether he is under the power of her own economic status, wealth and the established system of white supremacy. We are able to substantiate the narrator’s apparent wealth by using her fur coat and the steak