Title Significance

The title “Warriors Don’t Cry” is very significant because during the novel melba faces a lot of difficulties such as people she thought were her friends want nothing to do with her, and segregationist calling her house all day threatening her family, but no matter what happened she never let it ruin her because she had her family to help and support her through it all. The title’s literal meaning is that people who are fighting for something don’t cry. Melba’s grandmother explains to her that she is fighting a battle and she can’t be worried about what people say about her because at the end of the day she is fighting for something bigger than any of the people that are talking about her. This title relates to the plot because the book is about an African-American teenage girl who is trying to integrate an All-white high school and that’s a battle for her and it is a lot to handle and her grandmother is trying to her that you can’t cry for everything and sometimes you have to push things aside and do what you have to do.  An example of this in chapter six when Melba wanted to go to the community center to visit her friends but her grandmother said no and Melba ran in her room and started to cry and this is what Grandmother India said “You’re a warrior on the battlefield for your Lord. God’s warriors don’t cry, ‘cause they trust that he’s always by their side” (57). After she said that Melba never acted that way again because she knew that, that type of behavior was not tolerated and that what her grandmother said was true she is God’s warrior and he will always be there by her side.