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The Autobiography of Malcolm X: As Told to Alex Haley pdd
The Autobiography of Malcolm X: As Told to Alex Haley pdd
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Symbolism plays an important part in every piece of literature. Alex Haley’s The Autobiography of Malcolm X displays many different symbols that offer insight into his life. These symbols demonstrate the changes that he went through during his dramatic change from who the world viewed as a nobody to one of the most controversial and influential men during the civil rights movement. Alex Haley paints a vivid picture of how status became an important part of Malcolm X’s life. The author explores how the simple hair straightening process called conk tied him to the Caucasian world. Finally, Haley points out the significance of how eyeglasses, watches, and suitcases play a significant role in Malcolm X’s life, by being the only items that …show more content…
Going into confinement, he was a man without ambition, one all about status. In spite of his prison sentence he emerged a man with a determination, ready to take control of his life. Leaving prison Malcom purchased three things. First, he acquired eyeglasses. Recounting why they were suddenly a necessity Malcolm discloses, “I had come to prison with 20/20 vision. But when I got sent back to Charlestown, I had read so much by the lights-out glow in my room at the Norfolk Prison Colony that I had astigmatism and the first pair of the eyeglasses that I have worn ever since” (Haley 209). Malcolm’s astigmatism was a result of all the reading he did. While in prison, he found a hunger for reading, because he thirsted for knowledge. His eyeglasses epitomize his devotion to learning. Secondly, he procured a watch. Growing up owning a watch was never required. Malcolm did not have any reason to keep track of time. Whereas, when he left prison and joined the Nation of Islam, he established a direction for his life, and found himself beginning to live by his watch. He mentions, “You won’t find anybody more time-conscious than I am. I live by my watch, keeping appointments. Even when I’m using my car, I drive by my watch, not my speedometer. Time is more important to me than distance” (Placeholder1). Time in Malcolm’s life symbolize the new found purpose he discovered in his life. Lastly, he purchased two …show more content…
Throughout each stage of his existence there are a multitude of symbols that are made evident. Haley shows how status played a major role in developing Malcolm’s self-worth. The author explains how a “conk” hairstyle tied him to the white world and showed him his own internalized racism. The writer also demonstrates how eyeglasses, a watch, and suitcases played a major role in his final transformation to the great leader that he made himself into. All of these symbols work together through the captivating tale of his life, and illustrates the many things that helped to shape him as a man. All things considered, Haley reveals just how critical symbols are in not only Malcolm X’s lives, but in everyone’s lives. Ultimately challenging his readers to look at their own lives in an attempt to discover what their personal symbols are. Malcolm X’s life had many challenges and setbacks, nevertheless, he discovered who he wanted to be and rose to the challenge, proving himself an important and influential
The chapter seventeen, of the autobiography of Malcolm X, is about Malcolm X’s experiences during his visit to Mecca to perform hajj He was a Muslim minister, a leader in Elijah Muhammad’s Nation of Islam. In the beginning of this chapter, Malcolm X starts off by telling the readers that all Muslims must attempt the pilgrimage, or hajj, to Mecca at least once, "if humanly able".
This paper is written to give my personal reflection on a book entitled The Autobiography of Malcolm X. It is one of the assignments for EDC3360 Course, Social Work for Community Service. We were asked to read this book because the content of this book has relation with the course we are taken for the current semester.
Alex Haley’s, Autobiography of Malcolm X, continues to teach us of the prominent African American leader in the Nation of Islam. He starts off before Malcolm Little was even born, talking of his father and mother and how white members of the KKK drove his family out of their home and into Lansing, Michigan. In Lansing, their family was harassed once again by a white racist group, the Black Legion. Malcolm’s father died when he was six, and his mother was placed in a mental hospital seven years after this incident.
Malcolm believed that the underlying purpose for his incarceration was not to punish him for robbery, but to give him the opportunity to discover Allah and to educate himself. Before he was arrested, Malcolm chose to live a wild life in the slums of Harlem, New York. His various "hustles" included number running, "steering", gambling, drug dealing, and robbery, which would later lead to being forever removed from the immorality of Harlem ghettoes. Since all of the occupations Malcolm chose were potentially hazardous, Malcolm believed it to be so wondrous that he had survived that it had to be destiny that landed him in jail. He knew that he had lived evilly in the ghetto, and...
This paper will discuss the different stages of thought processes the former Nation of Islam minister, Malcolm X went through during his lifetime in terms of how he viewed white people, but more specifically “the white man” in America. The reason the focus is on White Americans is because these were the people outside of the Nation of Islam that shaped his life good or bad and put him on the path where he eventually transformed from Malcolm Little to Malcolm X who was one of the most polarizing and controversial figures during his lifetime and even nearly 50 years after his death the name Malcolm X causes certain people to shudder. Malcolm X became a well-known figure during the 50’s and 60’s during the civil rights movement which involved figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. This was a pivotal era in American history because for the first time that there was major push towards full rights for African Americans. When Malcolm X came on the scene he put fear into White people because they weren’t used to hearing the truth about race relations in America and many of them felt that things were just fine because they themselves were living life high on the hog while at the same time exploiting Blacks. Because this type of talk from a black person was new to them they misinterpreted his views as “hate speech” and accused him of trying to incite violence when he was simply trying wake his people up to properly deal with what was happening to them.
Malcolm’s views on life a shaped during his years known as “Malcolm Little” An incident in spring of 1939 shows how his hope for a good life was shattered by racism. Malcolm was alone with his eighth grade teacher, when he was asked what he aspired to have as a career. Malcolm had not given a lot of thought to the topic but said a lawyer. His teacher replied with a half-smile “A lawyer- that’s no realistic goal for a nigger.” (studyguide brothermalcolm.net) To Malcolm that was the first time he truly felt the effects of racism in his life, he described the aftermath of the conversation as “The more I thought afterwards about what he said, the more uneasy it made me...It was then that I began to change-inside.” (Malcolm Little brothermalcolm.net) After the eighth grade Malcolm Little became Detriot Red. Detroit Red was a criminal drug dealer who was a danger to himself and his community. Red was “a true hustler- uneducated, unskilled at anything honorable, and I considered myself nervy and cunning enough to live by my wits, exploiting any prey that presented itself.” (Detroit Red brothermalcolm.net) The winter of 1946 is when Detroit Red went to jail for burglary with his friend Malcolm “shorty” Jarvis for seven
After Malcolm and his siblings were split up by the state, he soon began learning the horrible injustice African Americans were experiencing by the others. X recalls a memory of his history teacher, Mr. Williams, from Junior High who deemed African Americans as “lazy”, “dumb”, and “shiftless” (X and Haley,30) The overwhelming amount of harassment X would experience because of his “pink poodle” (X and Haley,31) appearance caused him to move in with his half-sister, Ella. With the newly found freedom X gains; he begins to search for a job and eventually gets the position of a “shoe boy” (X and Haley,37) at the “Roseland State Ballroom.” X begins to get his first taste of the illegal life; eventually at the age of twenty X gets sentenced to “ten years” (X and Haley,101) for burglary. X and Haley characterize X’s behavior in prison as “Satan” (X and Haley,100); the withdrawal he was experiencing led X to being “miserable” (X and Haley,101) and “evil-tempered.” The seven years X served allowed for major “intellectual” (X and Hayley,104) and “religious” (X and Hayley,111) growth to occur; he was introduced to Elijah Muhammed and his teachings. X was introduced to the teaching of “the Honorable Elijah Muhammed” (X and Haley,107) through his brother Reginald. Through his fascination to learn more about the Islam, X’s personality begins to transform he no longer consumes “pork” (X and Haley,112) and has begun to utilize the prisons library. X’s introduction to Elijah Muhammed is detrimental because he is introduced to his purpose on Earth.
The Autobiography of Malcolm X is a book that illustrate the philosophical concepts of Malcolm that promotes the uprise of anybody that is black. An inside look of the the Autobiography, Describes the path Malcolm X had to endure to create a plan to stop oppression of Black people in America and also other races non-white. He understood that power relies in numbers, so for him, it is not logical to limit his battle for justice to black individuals while there are millions of people that stand to gain from struggling in the battle of racial oppression. He also understood to end racial oppression in the world he must elevate the minds of his race first.
Malcolm X's multiple points of view, organization, and diction in his powerful and passionate overview of his life give the reader a more diverse reading and learning experience that they can easily understand.
Of the people whose names are mentioned in history, some men like Thomas Edison are praised for their genius minds, while others such as Adolf Hitler are criticized for leaving a depressing legacy behind. While it is relative easy to notice the type of legacies these two men left, legacies of other men are often vague and they seem to be imbedded in gray shadows. This is how many people view the life of Malcolm X. Malcolm X during his lifetime had influenced many African Americans to step up for their rights against the injustices by the American government. One on hand, he has been criticized for his hard stances that resemble extremism, while on the other hand he has been praised him for his effort in raising the status for African Americans. The extremes in viewing his life from the modern day perspective have often come from reading his climatic speech The Ballot or the Bullet that he gave in many cities across America in 1964. When he was with the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X favored Blacks to be separated from the Whites, and during this time he strongly opposed White Supremacy. This also seems quite prevalent in his speech The Ballot or the Bullet. However, one events during the last year of his life reveal that he wanted the Blacks and the Whites to coexist as peaceful Americans.
The author shows good structure in this text by giving the reader a pre-life look, before Malcolm is even born. At a young age Malcolm already had a bad perspective on whites. He had to move to Michigan to get away from the white supremacists and even after moving his house was burnt down by Ku Klux Klan members. From watching the house burn he learned that being in Lansing, Michigan meant that the most success for a black is a waiter or a shoe shiner, not a respectable job that white people were able to have. In chapter one, as a shoe shiner, Malcolm gets cheated out of a dollar that he was going to earn from shining a white boys shoes. This shows Malcolm that everything is stacked against the black community and they don’t get respect such as the whites
Hoyt, Charles Alva. “The Five Faces of Malcolm X.” Negro American Literature Forum 4 (1970): 107-112.
James Cone’s Martin & Malcolm & America paints a distinctive portrait of the individual yet complementary lives of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X. Cone takes an introspective lens and casts imagery of the backgrounds of King and Malcolm; examining their childhood until the moment they reached monumental heights in the face in history. The story of these two heroic men is not a foreign tale, for all have heard of the works of each. Cone does not take this as an opportunity to provide a biography of their lives, he chooses to look deeper into their lives and reflect upon the development of their ideology. This in depth analysis shatters the preconceived notions many uphold regarding King and Malcolm. Both King and Malcolm looked for justice in an unfair and unjust society, but one looked through the eyes of optimism, the other looked through the eyes of an unrelenting truth. Those who have systematically suffered under the guise of others, such as African-Americans have; search for a new sense of reality. They adapt an attitude that yields a sense of well-being and self-worth. This new attitude shields one from fear and deception and gives them a collective voice. These two men, provided that voice. King advocated integration, while Malcolm focused on Black Nationalism. During an era in history that was marked with violence, inequality, hatred, hurt, and pain, an eruption of change was inevitably brewing. Cone shows how this manifested from a Southern as well as Northern perspective. There is often a false sense of equality for northern blacks, but Cone reveals how hatred and racism did not draw a boundary in the sand and say we are not crossing this line. Unfortunately, it existed everywhere. Cone successfully...
While Malcolm was in school he strived to be top of the class, he wanted to be looked up to by his classmates despite his skin color. He accomplishes this goal and the teacher, Mr. Ostrowski, is aware of it. He uses the tools around him: books, elders and anything he can get his hands on, to gain knowledge. However, Malcolm’s motivation ended there when Mr. Ostrowski tells him he will never amount to an upper-class profession, and should stick to lesser occupations like Carpentry. Another way Malcolm presents himself to others is by wearing a zoot suit and getting a conk. He decides to change his clothing because he wants to make the statement he can afford fancy clothing and look handsome if he wants to. He gets the conk to resemble a white man because the conk resembled acceptance; no longer be inferior to white