Comparing Chamberlain And Kilrain's Opinion Essay

Even if slavery is not the presiding rule of the land on this planet any longer, segregation based on appearance still exists, just as the "social construction of ‘whiteness’ historically has implied the racial superiority of whites", and prompted the "separate but equal" doctrines of the late nineteenth century (Rundblad & Kivisto xxxi).

During Tom Robinson’s trial, the strong prejudice of Maycomb County and the negative effects of its social stratification were clearly demonstrated. Whilst Tom Robinson is innocent of the crime of rape, he gave the Caucasians more reason to convict him on the basis of daring to feel sorry for a Caucasian - it is not expected that a negro (considered as being a part of the lowest class of society, event lower than the ‘white trash’) could feel sorry for a Caucasian and the Caucasians could not accept such a presumption.

In every culture, there are the strong and there are the weak, the oppressor and the oppressed. Sometimes they are of the same race and sometimes not, but they all rely on a difference in power. Socrates, Frederick Douglass, and WEB Du Bois each experience this power differential through the course of their lives. Socrates experiences this through his experience with the jury of Athens and his trial; Douglass through his life as a slave and his eventual escape. Du Bois experiences it through being a black man in the time of Reconstruction and being well of in comparison to other African-Americans at the time. Each man’s unique perspective on equality can illuminate why authority is so instrumental in the development of equality.

The black race has faced many hardships throughout American history. The harsh treatment is apparent through the brutal slavery era, the Civil Rights movement, or even now where sparks of racial separation emerge in urbanized areas of Baltimore, Chicago, and Detroit. Black Americans must do something to defend their right as an equal American. “I Am Not Your Negro” argues that the black race will not thrive unless society stands up against the conventional racism that still appears in modern America. “The Other Wes Moore” argues an inspiring message that proves success is a product of one’s choices instead of one’s environment or expectations.

In the midst of a long passage on black people in his Notes on the State of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson (who sniffed that [Phyllis] Wheatley’s poetry was “below the dignity of criticism”) proposed that black inferiority- “in the endowment of both body and mind”- might be an unchangeable law of nature. (181)

“I will say, then, that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races; that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of making voters or jurors of negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people. And while they do remain together there must be the position of superior and

In the short story “The Scarlet Ibis” James Hurst views difference as a reason why people can’t see the good and equal opportunity among all people through Brother’s view of Doodle as a burden, and through Doodle’s family view of him as

The book captures the influential upbringing William “Bill” Felton Russell had and how the philosophies and culture he was immersed in shaped who he was. He grew up during the 1930s-1940s in West Monroe, Louisiana - a town that, at the time, had minimal blacks living there. While the town itself was relatively peaceful in terms of racial tension, surrounding areas did not adopt the same views. One day when Bill and his older brother Chuck were tossing pebbles at one another, a stray stone hit a passing car being driven by a white man. The man called Bill a “nigger” and threatened to hang him. As Bill recalls, “I ran off, half angry, half laughing.” This shows the almost humorous perspective some blacks during this time had about the “white power.” Often, there is a notion that blacks during the Jim Crow era were in constant fear of whites. While this was true, some blacks, such as the Russell family, opposed, laughed, and scoffed at this idea.

Col. Chamberlain talks about his view on the war, and what it meant to him as he was trying to convince the imprisoned troops from the 2nd Maine Division to fight with him. He believed that this war was far different than any other war ever waged in the history of mankind. He believed that what we were fighting for was the value of man, that they were fighting for each other. “This is free ground. All the way from here to the Pacific Ocean . . . . Here we judge you by what you do, not by what your father was . . . . .What we’re all fighting for, in the end, is each other.” (Pg. 32 / 33 - Killer Angels, Michael Shaara) However, there were still men in the Union who were fighting for themselves rather than the idea of a free nation. In personal discussion, Kilrain says that the reason he, personally, is fighting is "to prove I'm a better man than many" (Pg. 188). He says, "It's the aristocracy I'm after" (Pg. 189). He wants to be treated fairly, as he deserves, no matter what his father deserved.

Discrimination has afflicted the American society since its inception in 1776. The inferiority of the African American race – a notion embedded within the mindset of the white populace has difficult to eradicate – despite the efforts of civil rights activists and lawmakers alike. Many individuals are of the opinion that discrimination and racism no longer exist and that these issues have long since been resolved during the Civil War and the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. However such is not the case. Discrimination is a complex issue – one that encompasses many aspects of society. The impact of discrimination of the African American race is addressed from two diverse perspectives in the essays: “Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin and “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King .

-Old Negro" as "more myth than a man" and the blind acceptance of this "formula" against ideas of "the thinking Negro" and the true diversity of actual human beings

“The Negro, too, for his part, has idols of the tribe to smash. If on the one hand the white man has erred in making the Negro appear to be that which would excuse or extenuate his treatment of him, the Negro, in turn, has too often unnecessarily excused himself because of the way he has been treated. The

The “new” negro no longer embodied “old” characteristics that defined a black man. Society had always taught a black man how to act; however, now he was adapting to the world. Locke declared that ‘the Old Negro’ had long become more of a myth than a man” (Locke, 1). A furthered and detailed definition of an “Old Negro” was that he “was a creature of moral debating historical controversy” (Locke, 1). The four

"If a white man defaulted, it was an individual defection; if a colored man failed, the whole race was at fault." (p. 138) Robert was shot in the head during the war and the injury contributed to his blindness later in life. Even so, he was denied his request for a pension because of race. Robert was very focused on educating his children into becoming outstanding members of both the black and white communities to promote a positive reflection on the black community. Robert’s struggle to secure an identity for himself and his children underlines the social discrepancies that define this

The black freedom struggle has not yet come to an end – there are still prejudiced and racist radicals that try to negotiate white supremacy and dominance in order to prevent the blacks from their long wait for equality. Consequently, the movement has progressed very sluggishly in the past few centuries. Nevertheless, the campaign for equal rights has led to the triumph over slavery and has led to the accrual of suffrage rights. However, this is still not enough, not after centuries of enslavement, lynching, segregation, and discrimination. Oftentimes, there is still no justice in court houses, especially when black people are accused and convicted, even for the simplest of crimes – as compared to the white and powerful who are charged for heinous misconducts and get away scratch free. Hence, throughout the period of the Blacks’ long fight for freedom and equality, several Black intellectuals have come front with ideas that could administer better treatment for their people. A good strategy to encourage the black populace to fight for their freedom and their rights is by inverting popular ideas so that there is a clear distinction between the reasonable and unreasonable notions of equality and justice. Thus, it was not uncommon for these literati to undermine dominant discourses in order to bolster their own analyses. Among the discussed black intellectuals who inverted prevailing dissertations, three that stood out the most are Frederick Douglass, Anna Julia Cooper, and