Richard Rodriguez in “The Achievement of Desire” by Richard Rodriguez, displayed his early thoughts on education, how he learned from them as he grew older and how he ultimately alienated his parents do-to the way he went about getting his education. Malcolm X’s path toward education is explained in “Learning to Read” by Malcolm X. His influences, his beliefs and the actual process of what it actually took for X to become educated is explained in great detail. Malcolm X’s reasoning for wanting to be educated was to be able to reach out to Elijah Muhammad, -leader of The Nation of Islam and present himself as an educated person so Muhammad would be able to take notice. Moreover, Richard Rodríguez wanted to become more educated was due to his parent’s lack of education. In addition, education was Rodriguez’s way of distancing himself from his parents and isolating himself into the world of books. There are some similarities between Malcolm X and Richard Rodriguez, like the fact that they both wanted to overcome their past and make something better of their respective situations through education. For example Rodriguez clearly states that when he was younger and would need help with his homework his parent’s absence of an education limited their abilities to help him and he had to find a way to do it himself. Moreover Rodriguez’s parent’s inability to help him was something that he learned from and later indicated that he changed his process of dealing with his schoolwork and his parents. X similarly to Rodriguez had an experience in his past that he worked to change. The work of X reveals that when X attempted to write a letter to Elijah Muhammad, he could not find the words to write that would accurately express his thoughts witho... ... middle of paper ... ... educated so he decided to bury himself into his studies and leave his family life as an afterthought. Rodríguezes parents were always supportive of him and his academic success but he did not embrace them as he should have. Next, Rodriguez rightly points out that at his graduation ceremonies throughout life his parents would attend and someone would always say that “your parents must be proud.” and those words always registered with him. Rodriguez’s influences were his teachers during his school years. Rodriguez wanted to obtain the same knowledge that his teachers possessed so he would be able to concentrate on the benefits his education could bring him. Later he realized that he alienated himself from his parents. Rodriguez indicates the time he was in the closet reading a book and his Mother finding him was something he looked back on as one of his regrets.
However, it was what happened in his life that made Malcolm X the man who people remember today. From a very early age, Little lived in fear of racism and hate groups, much of it rooting from his father’s murder by white supremacists. He was effectively orphaned by 13, as his mother was placed in a mental institution, and lived until he was 20 in several different foster homes. He was arrested for a crime and once released, went on to commit several crimes, including using and distributing drugs, etc. It was when he was imprisoned that he found the Nation of Islam, who helped him when he was released from prison to find a new life. From them, he was able to attain great oratory skills and create an environment when he spoke in which the people around him, white and black alike, felt empowered and equal. Once he discovered corruption and began to disdain the Nation of Islam, he became independent and was later assassinated. However, he along with MLK, were empowered by their stories, Malcolm’s being one of hatred, poverty, hope, and truth, that changed him to become a stimulus for African American equality in
Malcolm X was often encountered by Muslims from other countries who wished to “enlighten” him with what they felt was true Islam. He was initially very skeptical towards these claims but eventually his curiosity got the better of him. To get to know the religion better, Malcolm was directed by his friends to an Egyptian professor in New York, Dr. Mahmoud Youssef
In conclusion, I would like to say that this book is worthwhile reading although it is a quite thick and might take longer time to finish reading it. I might not good in reviewing a book or giving criticism for something. Reading this autobiography can benefit people in many fields. Different people will see things differently. So does when reading this book, certain people might take the lessons differently and it might benefit differently. For example, as a sociological study, it could provide fascinating insights into ghetto life and the ways which an individual learned to survive in the ghetto. Meanwhile as a religious work, it does tell about how an individual is struggling in order to find his God. And it cannot be denied as it is clear that in political work is the book has had its strongest impact.
In Malcolm X’s autobiography written in 1965, X illustrates his “Learning to Read” and the pursuit of knowledge. As a Muslim African American Civil Rights leader, the author articulates his illiteracy that later transforms into the motivation of learning how to read and write. Throughout persistent discovery of knowledge, X has explored a great number of inequalities and contradictions existing in contemporary society. X uses a lucid and detailed description of his early days and numerous facts to achieve his thesis of the pursuit of knowledge. X’s irate tone aims at the discriminated African American community and “White” people who are ignorant about their own history; additionally, “Learning to Read” inspires colored people who are being
Malcolm X who was born in the 1900s received an education up until eighth grade, unlike Frederick Douglass. Malcolm X describes how his passion for reading started due to the inability to write formal letters to his mentor, Elijah Muhammad. Unlike Douglass, Malcolm X did not have any consequences or restrictions when it came to learning. The setting of “Learning How to Read and Write” refers back to when Douglass was at the age of twelve while Malcolm X was in his early twenties during “A Homemade Education.” Both Douglass and Malcolm X became lead figures of their time through the mastery of English: after escaping to the North, Douglass became an abolitionist and Malcolm X became a political activist during the Civil Rights Era after being released from prison. Douglass and Malcolm X serve as role models to both, present and future students for their determination and perseverance to learn, regardless of any consequences that may come of it. Of these two authors, their reasoning for empowerment through language varied with time, purpose, and resolve upon acquiring the knowledge of the English
Malcolm X’s personality. In my paper I hope to research why Malcolm X was heavily influenced
“I don’t even call it violence when it’s in self defense; I call it intelligence.” were once words spoken from a man greatly known in the African American community. This man was Malcolm X. An expressive public speaker, with a charismatic personality, and an untiring organizer, Malcolm X expressed the pent up anger, frustration, and bitterness of African Americans during the major phase of the civil rights movement from 1955 to 1965. Malcolm X spoke of a violent revolution, which would bring about radical change for the black race, while a man with the name of Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out to all people. Martin Luther King Jr. promoted non-violence, civil rights, and the end to racial segregation, while Malcolm X dreamed of a separate nation for African Americans. Malcolm’s keen intellect, sharp wit, and passionate radicalism are clear in The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley. However Things such as his personality, his career and the impact that he’s had on history may have changed if certain key events in his life had been different.
Despite that they all had the same experiences with education and the struggle of being different in their youth, Mark Mathabane, Richard Rodriguez, and Malcolm X all learned as adults that education isn't a chore but it's a doorway to success. Education can change people and the way they look at the world. Not only that but i can give you many opportunities.
Mohandas Gandhi and Malcolm X were both strong believers in a God in their lives. Gandhi believed in Brahman and Malcolm X believed in Allah. They were both strong leaders and strong speakers. Mahatma Gandhi used non violence methods to stop the British from invading their land and to make India an independent country. Malcolm X had helped stop racism when it was a big deal back then.
He wanted to be able to properly write his thoughts and opinions out to be understood. He wanted to leave an impression on people to give them a thought of him exceeding his education far beyond the eighth grade. That impression was credited to his “prison studies” (Malcolm X 1). He had a voice that needed to be heard all over to bring a change to society. He self educated himself day and night with the dictionary, teachings ,and books. Malcolm X considered that “three or four hours of sleep a night” was enough (Malcolm X 3). Malcolm X became interested in the “glorious history of the black man” (Malcolm X 3). “Book after book” showed him the “white man had brought upon the world’s black, brown,red,and yellow peoples every variety of the suffering of exploitation” (Malcolm X 4). Like Douglass, Malcolm found the “Faustian machinations” of the “white man” against the “non-white victims” (Malcolm X). Douglass states, “I feared they might be treacherous.” Unlike Douglass being social and receiving help from others around , Malcolm was to himself and seeked information on his own through books. Malcolm X had more pride in his education and wasn 't afraid to share his knowledge, “Mr. Muhammed, to whom I was writing daily, had no idea of what a new world had opened up to me through my efforts to document his teachings in books” (Malcolm X 6). Malcolm X had some basic education knowledge
Richard Rodriguez was born in Sacramento, California during the 1950’s. His mother and father had worked hard before he was born to secure their children’s futures in the richer part of America, rather than the border towns, like many Mexican immigrants. Richard’s primary language was Spanish, so when he walked into his first day of school at a Catholic academy, he only knew around fifty stray English words. When Richard talked, he often spoke English with a few Spanish words intertwined in the sentences. After his first three weeks at the academy, a brother from the academy came to the Rodríguezes’ home to ask them to use English more around their children in order to help them absorb the language more efficiently. Richard’s
Something that Rodriguez was acutely aware of since a young age was the separation between him and his family. When he is very young he comes home and scolds his parents about grammar. When he is a few years older he knows better than to pedantically correct his parents. At school, he is taught the virtues of reading and reason, while at home, there is no reading for pleasure and intimacy and closeness is values. This separation widens the further he progresses in his educational career. However, as a child, he has neither the words nor the capacity to truly understand the separation that is occurring. He idolizes his teachers and works to emulate them in his speech and values. As he grows to admire his instructors, his admiration for his parents wanes. His parents serve to remind him of who he was, who he can not be if he is to continue with his education. Therefore, he substitutes his teachers for his parents as the object of his admiration. His teachers have all of the answers and his
The Autobiography of Malcolm X as told by Alex Haley is about a man who changed the history of America. Malcolm (Little) X preached what he believed about racism, discrimination, and segregation. He went through many changes in his fight for equality. The three transformations that really changed the way Malcolm thought and preached where his transformation in prison, his transformation into the Islamic religion (following Elijah Muhammad), and the biggest transformation of all, his pilgrimage to Mecca. In all of Malcolm actions, teachings and transformations we learn different points of view and we get a good look at different aspects of events. The life of Malcolm (Little) X as told in his autobiography should be read by all.
His embarrassment and sense of shame for his apparent inadequacies, as well as those of his parents, provided the driving force to become educated. Rodriguez describes himself as “The boy who first entered a classroom barely able to speak English…” (195). Becoming educated changed Rodriguez, enabling him to move through academia without the cultural baggage of his past: Describing himself as the scholarship boy, Rodriguez outlines this progression in the following statement: “Advancing in his studies, the boy notices that his mother and father have not changed as much as he. Rather, when he sees them, they often remind him of the person he once was and the life he earlier shared with them” (198). This realization drove Rodriguez throughout his academic career as well as his life.
Experiences cultivate intelligence more than formal education. The Autobiography of Malcolm X, as told to Alex Haley, illustrates that one does not need formal education to become what society deems smart. In society's views, a person who goes to school, graduates, gets degrees and has a professional job is considered intelligent. But Malcolm X refutes this idea by demonstrating that intelligence is attainable through experiential education, individual lessons taught through real life experiences. Education is learning and everyone learns whether consciously or subconsciously. Malcolm X opens his eyes to various world problems, such as religious and racial persecution, and resolves to convert African Americans to Islam. He does not have the opportunities to get a formal academic education. He is deprived of such education because of the lack of opportunities for African Americans. Malcolm X develops an open mind about education, which allows him to discover the truths in