The Barbershop "She says she "felt triumphant and sad"---- triumphat because, although the men "had read the education in her language as proof of her "imitation whiteness," she was able "to shed her academic self consciousness" and belong, to be seen as "part of the group, as authentic." She was sad because, "when she arrived on campus," her performance of black authenticity lost its cachet; she realized that the benefits she garnered in the shop were now distinct disadvantages."