Mind Like Matilda

Remember the movie Matilda? Yes, the one about the young girl born into a family who barely notices her. She is a girl with magical powers which help her get by in her hectic lifestyle. Her family consists of a father who sells cars illegally, a Mom who is constantly getting her hair and nails done, and a brother who sits in front of the T.V. all day. Matilda distances herself from her family. Instead of obtaining their bad and unintelligent habits, Matilda finds comfort in books. She goes to the library as soon as she could walk. Matilda reads everyday at a young age, and enters into school smarter than the rest of the class. As Bauerlein comments in his book, The Dumbest Generation, by reading young Americans (or Matilda) gain “more civic and historical knowledge, familiarly with current events and government actions, a larger vocabulary, better writing skills, eloquence, inexpensive recreation, and contact with great thoughts and expressions of the past” (56). Reading is making us smarter. Because reading for fun is not the norm these days, I think people who are reading on their own time are smart and different individuals. They are set apart from those who are consumed by technological advances.

Sure, Matilda is just a movie about a little girl who has magical powers allowing her to move things with her eyes, but I believe she has another great “power”. Matilda is reading books for fun. This allows her to have a power over the other kids in her class and her family. She creates an intellectual gap between her peers and her family because she is reading, therefore absorbing more information than them. Matilda is reading for fun and reaping the benefits. The younger you start off reading, the easier and better you get at it. Students dislike spending their leisure time reading because they do not see the instant benefits. In reality, reading is beneficial in the long run, so you might as well start somewhere.