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problems with racism in literature
literature social racism
black like me book review essay
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Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin and A Place Called Heaven by Cecil Foster
Racism cruelly and completely corrupts the heart, body and
intelligence not only of the oppressed, but it dehumanizes and
brutalizes even the oppressors. In the autobiographical diaries, Black
Like Me, written by John Howard Griffin, and A Place Called Heaven,
written by Cecil Foster, both main characters alter their lifestyles,
one in America, one in Canada, only to suffer raw hate, violence,
crudity and inhumanity from white racists. Through these experiences,
both men encounter many racial barriers that exist between whites and
blacks, which entirely destroys the dignity and self worth of the
blacks. However, the cruelty towards the blacks was not their most
intriguing conclusion. Through observation, communication and personal
experiences, both men came to realize that racism is not a part of
human nature, but rather a by-product of the human nature of the fear
of the unknown.
John Howard Griffen was a white journalist who truly wanted to
understand racism and how it affected the blacks. Griffen began to
research the rise of suicide tendencies in Southern blacks. However,
he realizes that it is very difficult to collect useful information
because "the Southern Negro will not tell the white man the truth",
(Griffen, pg.12). The reason the blacks would not speak to him is
because he is white and whites were ultimately the driving force
behind the suicide of many blacks. The blacks feared the white man,
even Griffen, who disagreed with racism. He observed the situation,
saw the fear and the hurt in the eyes of the Blacks when he came to
speak to them, and decided that "the only way to observe what it was
like to be black, was to become black", (Griffen, pg.21). Griffen, now
disguised convincingly as a black man, was able to observe racism from
a different perspective. Griffen observed how he was treated among his
"fellow" blacks in order to attain his examination of racism. "A
pleasant young Negro woman took my order and fixed my breakfast…The
man at the counter turned toward me and smiled, as though he wanted to
talk", (Griffen, pg.23). This proves that it is the white's and the
black's implanted and prohibiting fear that ultimately makes their
minds up about the opposite race. If Griffen were still white, there
is no doubt that the woman and the man would not have been so pleasant
and open towards him. He observed the fact that just because he was
black, like them, that they felt content and safe speaking and
interacting with him. Griffen then continues to board a bus.
Flannery O’Connor and Raymond Carver wrote the short stories, “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and “The Cathedral,” which both showcase personas of conflictedness in two different time frames. Although one can draw many interpretations from these two stories, written in 1953 and 1983, respectively, one might refute many impracticalities associated with the nostalgic state of many of these characters, who possess characteristics that would be considered archaic and imbecilic. Racists and discriminatory viewpoints circumnavigate the minds of several characters, who can’t seem to come to terms with modern ideologues. The prevailing tendencies of these characters could very possibly cause some anguish to the readers, who would struggle to make sense of the ignorance displayed in these two stories. Many critics have suggested their own interpretations of the stories, and what they reveal to us about human nature.
Aminata Diallo is an eleven years old African girl, when her life changes completely, as she goes from a beloved daughter to an orphan that is captured and enslaved. Aminata is shown in the novel Someone Knows My Name by Lawrence Hill as a strong young protagonist that is able to survive the odyssey around the world first as a slave and later as a free activist agent of the British. In the book, her various stages of her life are always connected with the clothes that she is wearing or the lack of clothes and show the degree of dehumanization that accompanies slavery.
Black Like Me by John Howard Griffin is a Multicultural story set in the south
The chaos and destruction that the Nazi’s are causing are not changing the lives of only Jews, but also the lives of citizens in other countries. Between Night by Elie Wiesel and The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom, comradeship, faith, strength, and people of visions are crucial to the survival of principle characters. Ironically, in both stories there is a foreseen future, that both seemed to be ignored.
Imagine for a moment it is your big sister's 17th birthday. She is out with her friends celebrating, and your parents are at the mall with your little brother doing some last minute birthday shopping, leaving you home alone. You then hear a knock on the front door. When you getthere, nobody is there, just an anonymous note taped to the door that says Happy Birthday, along with a hundred dollar bill. You've been dying to get that new video game, and your sister will never know. You are faced with a tough decision, but not a very uncommon one. In both Fences, by August Wilson, and A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansbury, tough decisions have to be made about getting money from someone else's misfortune. But money's that important right?
Required to remain quiet while his grandmother lies ill in bed, four-year-old richard wright becomes bored and begins playing with fire near the curtains, leading to his accidentally burning down the family home in Natchez, Mississippi. In fear, Richard hides under the burning house. His father, retrieves him from his hiding place. Then, his mother ella beats him so severely that he loses consciousness and falls ill.
He experienced the kind that the majority unintentionally masks their racism. They believe that their strategies are not racist, but their attempts to not be racist makes it worse. They try to control minorities instead of listening to their issues and using their privilege to actually help. The Brotherhood is a Marxist minded organization that is predominantly white. The Brotherhood recruits African-American men to hold certain positions in order to spread the word about an experiment and methodology they have developed to promote equality in the communities. However, all that their methods did was control the way African-Americans think, how they relay their ideals, and what jobs that they can have. They took what stereotypical view they had of African-Americans and designed a template for how they think African-Americans to act in order to form peace. African-Americans are not guinea pigs for social and environmental experiments. They are not a species that made their way to America, and now there needs to be a plan in order to control them. America is now a land where millions of people from different backgrounds can influence others from their cultural experiences. The Brotherhood’s use of the term “brother” is a way to include themselves in a culture they did not understand. The only reason that they cared about how African-Americans thrived in the North is because they noticed that a culture
In the short stories "The Story of an Hour," by Chopin and "A Rose for
Lynch is a writer and teacher in Northern New Mexico. In the following essay, she examines ways that the text of The Souls of Black Folk embodies Du Bois' experience of duality as well as his "people's."
Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe both encompass many different aspects of the effects political unrest conveys on society. An entire society does not change easily, and uprooting customs all at once, and replacing them with something unlike customs previously established, does not resonate well with the members of that society. Although an individual can willingly change with little hesitancy, that one person does not represent the whole. On the other hand, when others are introduced to new customs, the transition overwhelms them. The tensions of societal change that the characters of Cry, the Beloved Country and Things Fall Apart confront consist of so-called crimes committed, the environmental circumstances, and their willingness and unwillingness to abide by the new rules.
The poem, “My Great-Grandfather’s Slaves” by Wendell Berry, illustrates the guilt felt for the sins of a man’s ancestors. The poem details the horror for the speaker’s ancestors involvement in slavery and transitions from sympathy for the slaves to feeling enslaved by his guilt. Berry uses anaphora, motif, and irony, to express the speaker’s guilt and provide a powerful atmosphere to the poem.
The first unit on our textbook Interactions by Ann Moseley and Jeanette Harris talks about the self-concept. It is hard to find a definition for the self-concept because it is certain beliefs about ethnicity, religion, and personalities combined. This unit has a number of readings by various authors where it shows struggles with the self. Self-identity, ethnic backgrounds, and self-esteem are the major aspects of those readings. After reading their writings I found that I could relate to their experiences. The three readings that got my attention were “Zero” By Paul Logan, “I’m Just Me” by Lylah Alphonse, and “The Jacket” by Gary Soto.
Camus and Mulisch present that the past and present are interrelated. The authors do this through the two characters, Meursault and Anton. Through Meursault, we see that his past actions affect the outcome of his trial. Through Anton, we see that his present situation constantly brings him back to his past despite him trying to escape it. Thus the authors stylistically link the past and present to demonstrate that they are inevitably related, where certain events are unavoidable or the past is undeniable.
Zora Neale Hurston’s writing embodies the modernism themes of alienation and the reaffirmation of racial and social identity. She has a subjective style of writing in which comes from the inside of the character’s mind and heart, rather than from an external point of view. Hurston addresses the themes of race relations, discrimination, and racial and social identity. At a time when it is not considered beneficial to be “colored,” Hurston steps out of the norm and embraces her racial identity.
Short stories are temporary portals to another world; there is a plethora of knowledge to learn from the scenario, and lies on top of that knowledge are simple morals. Langston Hughes writes in “Thank You Ma’m” the timeline of a single night in a slum neighborhood of an anonymous city. This “timeline” tells of the unfolding generosities that begin when a teenage boy fails an attempted robbery of Mrs. Jones. An annoyed bachelor on a British train listens to three children their aunt converse rather obnoxiously in Saki’s tale, “The Storyteller”. After a failed story attempt, the bachelor tries his hand at storytelling and gives a wonderfully satisfying, inappropriate story. These stories are laden with humor, but have, like all other stories, an underlying theme. Both themes of these stories are “implied,” and provide an excellent stage to compare and contrast a story on.