American History X

1593 Words4 Pages

In the opening scene, we see Danny Vinyard, a young white supremacist, sitting in the principal's office, waiting to be summoned. As we move into the office, we hear and see Danny's history teacher (Elliot Gould) explaining to the principal, Dr. Sweeney (Avery Brooks), that Danny wrote a book report on Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf. The teacher tells Dr. Sweeney that he is offended by Danny's gesture and he wants to see him punished, declaring that Danny was pressured into writing the paper by his older brother Derek, although Sweeney assures him that Derek was not involved. Instead, Sweeney asks the teacher to leave and asks Danny to step in.Danny then puts an American flag toothpick in mouth, Danny steps into the office and sits down. Dr. Sweeney begins yelling at Danny, telling him that writing what he did is offensive. Sweeney tells him that he is now his new history teacher. The class is called American History X and the next assignment is due tomorrow morning; a paper on his brother, Derek (Edward Norton), analyzing all the events leading up to Derek's incarceration and the subsequent impact on Danny's life. After this, Danny walks out. The next scene opens with three black boys beating up a white boy in the men's bathroom for telling the teacher that one of them cheated. Suddenly, Danny appears out of one of the stalls and blows the smoke from his cigarette into one of the boys' face. As the black boys leave angry, Danny helps the white kid from the ground and tells him that he needs to learn to stand up for himself. Soon we see Danny walking home from school through a park where some black boys are playing basketball. One of the players is the boy from earlier in the bathroom. Danny's voice begins to narrate the scene. Danny says, "Before Derek went to jail, the white kids didn't have to be afraid of the black kids. Derek made it safe." [1]

The next scenes are flashbacks explaining Derek's journey from a suburban white teenager to a vengeance-seeking white supremacist. Derek had already been influenced by his father's critical views on African American culture and affirmative action (which his father refers to it as "affirmative black-tion"), and also how he doesn't trust two African-Americans on his squad who scored lower on a hiring test than two whites. He believes they were hired as a result of affirmative action in order to meet racial quotas.

Racism in Black Boy, Black Caesar and Malcolm X
636 Words | 2 Pages
The aspect of racism in their lives, is especially important because it causes these men to become filled with hate and drive them to lives of crime. For example in Black Boy, Richard and his friends have a gang fight against white kids. Another aspect of racism for him was the Ku Klux Klan, this can be seen when a man tells Richard after seeing a white propaganda sign that "Do you know what the Ku Kluxers do to colored people?" Then Richard responded "They kill us. They keep us from voting and getting good jobs." Racism also plays an important role in shaping Tommy's life. Although it is apparent throughout the film, the best example is when he meets McKinney, and he beats Tommy while shouting racist comments. Also, in Malcolm X, Malcolm grows up in a very racist environment and he experiences his dad, a Baptist preacher, being murdered. This can be seen when "My father's skull, on one side, was crushed in, I was told later. Negroes in Lansing have always whispered that he was attacked, and then laid across some tracks for streetcar to run over him. His body was almost cut in half."
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Examples Of Prejudice In The Movie American X
1180 Words | 3 Pages
Derek Vinyard and Danny Vinyard was associated with the Nazi praising group. They were prejudicial to everyone and gain hatred for colored people. Even though Derek and Danny were cleansed of their mistakes by going through redemption and changed, Danny was killed by a colored teenager because that colored person was also prejudicial. As we can observe in this movie, prejudice is an unbreakable chain that transmit through generation to generation. Prejudice will never cease until the human race is completely
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US History
1090 Words | 3 Pages
Even before the eve of the Revolution, the colonists constantly had the image of independence lingering in the back of their heads. The colonists felt that they were first on a loose leash, and as that leash tightened over the years, the colonists began to understand their true culture and identity. As time passed, the colonists developed a greater sense of their identity and unity as Americans and by the eve of the Revolution, even though at first the colonists were unorganized and had problems with being united, they remained determined to gain their identity and unity as Americans.
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Rereading America
878 Words | 2 Pages
Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing written by; Gary Colombo, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle, Eighth Edition, published April, 2007 by Bedford/St. Martin’s, is a textbook about writing and critical thinking. In the first chapter of Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing, “Thinking Critically, Challenging Cultural Myths”, the Authors begin by setting a relatable scene of what it’s like for a college student. How a new found independence can be overwhelming, especially with regards to critical thinking, showing that what we have learned, needs to be re-evaluated and that an open mind in essential. "What Is Critical Thinking" In this section of the chapter the editors explain what it means to be a critical thinker. They explain that critical thinking is not just studying dates and facts, but rather taking those facts and examining them. The editors then proceed by explaining how having an open mind, and taking others' perspectives into account when formulating our own opinions on what the author is trying to say to us is important. A critical thinker takes all aspects into account and reflects on personal experience as well. The editors also point out that different cultural experiences bring different opinions. They suggest that we need to become active learners, continuously questioning the meaning behind everything, testing not only the theories of others but also our own experiences and analyzing the text rather than going for the obvious. They show that thinking outside the box is the epitome of critical thinking. Basically, we need to step outside our comfort zones and what we have always been taught. The editors also suggest that we need to re-evaluate our per...
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Analysis Of Black Boy By Martin Luther King
1056 Words | 3 Pages
In Black Boy, Richard can no longer sit back and allow the injustices. He like Luther is a go getter; he takes action and doesn’t just wait. When it comes time for Richard to read his Valedictorian speech the principal demands him to read the one she wrote. She wants him to read hers because there were going to be whites in the audience. Richard refuses, and the principal threatens to not allow him to graduate. To Richard the principal is shallow for trying to make him read a different speech just because a white would be in the audience. Richard is not the kind to sit back and allow his life to be affected just because a white person is in the room. Richard decides he must leave. Richard cannot stand to live in the south where he is constantly looking behind his back for problems. He doesn’t respect his family who continues to allow segregation to happen to them and they do nothing about it. His Uncle Tom scolds his cousin to stay away from Richard because he is “no good.” Uncle Tom is shallow because he just accepts the white man’s opinion of blackness and lives up to it, nothing else. Richard, like king, is going to act like himself, not what others believe he should be. This is a main contributor to why Richard is fired from so many jobs. He continually opens his mouth and spouts off to bosses. When told by Griggs he must “think before he acts, think before he speaks,” he attempts to do this
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American History X
1127 Words | 3 Pages
was fighting a fire on duty as a firefighter, Derek blamed “blacks, brown, yellows, its all their fault” and that lead him down a dark path. Disgruntled and confused, Derek became a leading member in a Neo-Nazi group, which he called the D.O.C. Danny, his young brother, watched, listened, and breathed every word Derek spoke. He too bought into the world of hatred. During the time Derek spent in jail for killing three black burglars, Danny tried to do everything possible so his brother would respect him when he got out. But the time in jail transformed Derek. He rethought his whole life when his former black principal visited him in jail to ask, “Has anything you’ve done made your life better?” (Kaye).
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US History
1462 Words | 3 Pages
Turner set up an evolutionary model (he had studied evolution with a leading geologist), using the time dimension of American history, and the geographical space of the land that became the United States. The first settlers who arrived on the east coast in the 17th century acted and thought like Europeans. They encountered a new environmental challenge that was quite different from what they had known. The most important difference was vast amounts of unused high quality farmland (some of which was used by a few thousand Indians for hunting grounds.) They adapted to the new environment in certain ways — the sum of all the adaptations over the years would make them Americans.
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An American Tragedy
538 Words | 2 Pages
There are many aspects of Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy that involve the moral decision versus the immoral decision and God. The main theme that Dreiser maintains throughout the novel is Immorality. Each character in the novel possesses one or more characteristics that show that he or she is partially immoral. When combined, all these elements have a strong message, that there is consequence to straying from God's path.Clyde Griffiths is the perfect example of how a person is led from God's light. At the beginning of the novel, his character is the son of poor missionary parents.
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American History: America Now and Then
2178 Words | 5 Pages
Humans have a tendency to to change with time. Human are the most intelligent creatures and can adapt and survive in any environment. People evolve as time changes. It is human nature to want for new things and new change. United States changed a lot since the mid-1400s till today. Some are good, some are bad. But even though change is inevitable, there are lot things that are still common. Some things never change. From the time Columbus discovered America till today, a lot of things have changed. He is known as the father of this country. Even though he didn’t have the end that he deserved, he is the reason for this great country to bloom out of sheer darkness. Great leaders like Thomas Jefferson have played an important role to shape America to what it is right now. John Winthrop was the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the chief figure among the Puritan founders of New England. He was the one to establish a civilized society in the middle of nowhere and help United States bloom. Thomas Jefferson- author of the Declaration of Independence, third president of United States and the founder of the University of Virginia- crafted the freedom of the United States from the brutal British regime. Jefferson was an exceptionally vivid man, and very politically motivated. He helped found our country, nurturing it along in its youthful, tempestuous beginnings, and he struggled to improve upon it in many ways. As time passes, we see a lot of differences and somewhat similarities in racism, gender equality, freedom, religion, slavery, and standard of life and these factors are responsible for the America we stand upon today.
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American History
434 Words | 1 Pages
United States (History), story of how the republic developed from colonial beginnings in the 16th century, when the first European explorers arrived, until modern times. As the nation developed, it expanded westward from small settlements along the Atlantic Coast, eventually including all the territory between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans across the middle of the North American continent, as well as two noncontiguous states and a number of territories. At the same time, the population and the economy of the United States grew and changed dramatically. The population diversified as immigrants arrived from all countries of the world. From its beginnings as a remote English colony, the United States has developed the largest economy in the world. Throughout its history, the United States has faced struggles, both within the country—between various ethnic, religious, political, and economic groups—and with other nations. The efforts to deal with and resolve these struggles have shaped the United States of America into the 21st century.
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Discrimination In The Watsons Go To Birmingham
813 Words | 2 Pages
His cousins decided to join the fight to end segregation by marching down the streets of Birmingham to allow integrated schools in the city. The police fighting back with violence and the message of Martin Luther King Jr. are fueling the people who are fighting with determination in their hearts to be treated as equal. Bryon is eager to help by marching with them and if I can recall, he marches with them once. He sees that the black people in Birmingham are treated differently. They are downgraded and treated like dirty people. When Kenny and he go into the restaurant, the waitress treats them like they are horrible, disgusting people. Another scene in the movie is when the kids and the guy who lives with their grandma go to the movies but they cannot go in the same entrance as the white people. They have to go into the back and can only sit in the balcony
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American History
1024 Words | 3 Pages
It is important to be proud of who you are and where you have come from. After watching the film American History X, whites are far from proud. We are ashamed to admit that people just like us can act in such a horrible and disillusioned way toward those that are different. As you watch, you see scenes of brutal violence, hear songs of hate and feel the pain of all involved. These acts show the viewers how easily young minds can be influenced to believe anything. Teachers, parents, siblings or any person of authority in a child's life can have this deep of an impact on them. American History X is the story of how powerful an influence people of importance can have upon youth. Adults can be the enemy of many teenagers. Yet when a kid is vulnerable and looking for adoration and love, they can latch onto any adult that makes them feel important or special. Cameron is the first example of the adult filling an empty space. Both Derek and Danny Vinyard, the neo-Nazi brothers of the film, fall for every word Cameron says to them. At one point in the film, Cam makes a comment to Danny about his black school principal Dr. Sweeney. To him, Sweeny is a "manipulative, self-righteous Uncle Tom" for making Dan re- write a civil rights paper because it was about Mein Kampf. Sweeney has his own opinions about Cameron stating that he preys on "insecure, frustrated, and impressionable kids. This assumption is dead on. As the organizer and unofficial leader of the Venice Beach white gang, what the middle-aged Cameron has to say about being a patriot and a proud "white Protestant" fills a void for the kids. Many, as seen most apparently in Seth, the overweight, clumsy, and dim-witted teen, have low self-esteem and lacking hom...
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Movie Analysis: American History X
1365 Words | 3 Pages
One of the more prevalent themes of this movie is racism, and how prejudicial mindsets ultimately lead to one’s own demise. The movie outlines how racism, among other things, can adversely affect someone’s judgment. After the father died, we see how the family gradually deteriorates financially as well as emotionally after Derek (the older brother played by Edward Norton) turns to a neo Nazi gang for an outlet, which eventually influences his younger brother Danny (played by Edward Furlong) to follow down ...
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African American History
2126 Words | 5 Pages
During my early years of school, I remember being taught white accomplishments and wondering if blacks and other people of color had made any significant contributions to today's world. I noticed that television consist of all white people. Throughout my research paper I hope to cover certain aspects of African American heritage. Aspects such as blacks making up the largest minority group in the United States, although Mexican-Americans are rapidly changing that. The contributions blacks have provided to our country are immeasurable. Unfortunately though rather than recognizing these contributions, white America would rather focus on oppressing and degrading these people. As a consequence American society instinctively associated white with light and all good things; while black is associated with darkness or evil.
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Modern American History
633 Words | 2 Pages
American history, though nowhere near as epic as the history of Europe, is wrought with its own heroes and legendary personalities. The three most important span political, economic, and social borders. In its 300 years, the United States has not seen finer heroes than Benjamin Franklin, Alan Greenspan, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Their contributions in politics, regulation of the US economy, and roles in racial diversity, these legends have no precedent. Benjamin Franklin contributed to the culture of the US through his literature and his political presence. Franklin was born in the early 18th century, when England still had a grip on the politics of the colonies. Following the revolutionary war, in which he had important diplomatic duties, Franklin was one of the key framers of the Constitution. By then, Franklin was a ripe 81 years old, in the twilight years of his life. During his youth, he was an important author, contributing to one of the first papers, and also writing the Poor Richard’s Alamack. His autobiography is also a very important work to this day. Franklin was also an important scientist of his time. His personality influenced many of the leaders of the baby American government. This coupled with his exceptional achievement made Franklin a great inspiration to the people of his time that lasts to this day. Alan Greenspan is a recent figure in history, but his impact on the present and future economics of America is incalculable. The chairman of the...
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American History X

Racism in Black Boy, Black Caesar and Malcolm X

Examples Of Prejudice In The Movie American X

US History

Rereading America

Analysis Of Black Boy By Martin Luther King