Exemplification Essay: What Is A Nigger?

I then described my life and who I was. After describing this, I explained my experiences in confronting racism. The point of the essay was to state that racism is still alive and can be present anywhere. After writing this essay, I learned that my mechanics and style was not where it should be. Even with the revisions Mr. Heldenfels made in the draft, I still made mistakes with mechanics and tense shits. I had written comma splice and has several spelling mistakes. I looked to improve my mechanics after writing this essay.

Reading the content in this book made me get a picture of what it was like to be a colored person in this time. My eyes were opened to the meaning of the word “nigga”. Nigga is such a derogatory term, yet now-a-days it is used by people so much. Kids in this generation use it as a term of endearment when they see their friends, or they say it when they are shocked by something. Frankly, I don’t believe they know how serious it really is. The fact that white people could look at a person and see less than a human being when they did nothing wrong distresses me. They (white people) treated them as if they were property and below them. Even though we don’t have racism to this extent

Nigger: The Challenges of Educating Black Males Within American Society,” Jenkins’, in focusing on social disadvantages of Black males, credits “a history of oppression” for the social and academic challenges Black males are faced with (p. 144). Jenkins often speaks of the unequal and unjust treatment by the educational system; explaining that Black males are not receiving and adequate education in American society. Though he has provided several historical facts, there seemed to be a lack of information relating to Black males in today’s society. Jenkins points out, “With regard to the student, he brings with him to the class room… a history of oppression that has affected his family unit, a life of poverty or some form of economic struggle…racial frustration…inadequately educated parents… and esteem issues…with his first engagement in society (p.144). It seems as though Jenkins over uses the term “oppression”, when “racism” would be a more accurate fit. I do not completely agree with Jenkins’ outlook stating oppression is a factor in the social or educational challenges Black males face. Cruel or unjust treatment by the government, educational system, or American society as a whole is not legally or socially acceptable and does not exist in today’s society; although, I can understand how a parent or elder who did in fact experience oppression of Black males in their lifetime could pass on negative experiences and beliefs to the younger

But you've got to be realistic about being a nigger. A lawyer-that's no realistic goal for a nigger” (X, 52). Malcolm X was accustomed to being put down by white people, but in his own words, it was then that he “began to change-inside” (X,

“The Word “Nigga” Is Only for Slaves and Sambos” was written by Rob Nelson and first published in a university newspaper in North Carolina. Later on, the article was so meaningful that it was re-published in the academic journal, the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. In the article “The Word “Nigga” is only for Slaves and Sambos”, Rob Nelson uses ethos, logos, and especially skillful pathos appeals based on the history of slavery and the illustration about the future of African American, to prove why he thinks the “N-word” is not acceptable. By using ethical argument and those clever appeals, Rob Nelson definitely persuades his young African American audience.

However, the historical significance of the word nigger is deeply rooted in American History. For example, Kennedy’s book presents historical examples of nigger in its most pejorative context: “Michael Jordan was suspended from school for hitting a white girl who called him a nigger” and “Tiger Woods was tied up in kindergarten by his older schoolmates who called him nigger” (Kennedy 22). It is precisely because of this history that many African Americans are in favor of banning the word from the English language. Although the historical significance of the word nigger often triggers deep-rooted hostility in the African Americans, it has also progressively evolved into a term of endearment in the modern day African American culture. Consequently, a fine line exists between past and present definitions of the word nigger that opens up the possibility of misinterpretation and the potential of further damage.

The use of the term nigger can be used as a amicable greeting between two blacks, or as a “hideous pejorative” (Marriott 94) towards blacks. Marriott notes that the use of nigger is usually condoned and used by younger blacks as a “term of endearment” (98), in hopes to gradually alter the meaning of the word. Their goal is to normalize the usage of nigger between blacks to “dull its edge whenever whites use it” (Marriott 95). This has been proved somewhat efficient, as most whites dread the word and express feelings of disgust whenever it is heard from the mouth of whites. Many younger blacks believe their efforts are stimulating a progression in society, but older blacks and the majority of whites assert just the opposite- it illustrates “anything

Naylor uses diction to compare the use of “nigger” to other equally derogatory words. “Had he called me a nymphomaniac or a necrophilliac, I couldn’t have been more puzzled” (3). The words nymphomaniac, necrophilliac, and nigger all have negative connotations. By using these words, Naylor reveals how hearing nigger was derogatory and demeaning. Naylor’s word choice gives a clear idea of the negative connotation “nigger” held in the classroom. Naylor elaborates on her view of the term in paragraph 5, “And so among the anecdotes of the triumphs and disappointments in the various workings of their lives, [..]”. Naylor uses “triumphs” and “disappointments” to show the contrast of meaning “nigger” had in her everyday life. The word choice shows flexibility in language and describes how terms have the capacity to change in meaning. Later in the paragraph, Naylor exhibits a positive depiction of “nigger” , “In the singular, the word was always applied to a man who had distinguished himself [...]” (5). Naylor uses uplifting diction by including “distinguished” in her description and it shines a positive light on the term “nigger”. As a whole, Naylor’s diction adds on to how broad language interpretations can

After all of the hardships the background of “nigger” has proven to have had on African-American ancestry, why would urban

When some think about the word nigger they immediately think about negativity and some might even venture to say that it is a "bad" word. It takes you back to a time when blacks were oppressed and demoralized. When blacks were looked at as inferior and not worthy to obtain equal rights in America. But that was decades ago and it is now the 21st century. Not only have we changed the spelling of the word, by dropping the er and adding a, but the definition has changed also. According to Gloria Naylor, we have took our "past history of struggle and present survival against the odds" and transcended the word nigger into a "victorious statement of being". So a word that was used to depict

In “Mommy, What Does Nigger Mean?”, author Gloria Naylor explains throughout her piece that reality shapes language and language can shape reality. Naylor explains this, “chicken or the egg dispute” (Naylor 1) through her experiences with the word nigger. Gloria explains how she starts on one side of reality and shaping her language, then comes to another understanding from the boy in her third grade class. Language can be how words are used, what their meaning is and the purpose behind that selection of words. Reality is everyday life and experiences. When in third grade Naylor encounters nigger as a racial derogatory when a boy said “nigger” to her while receiving graded tests back. To Gloria it was anything but a racial put down since

The n-word is considered one of the most vicious racial slurs in the English language today. True that the n-word is closely associated with slavery and the oppression of blacks. Even after the abolition of slavery the word still haunted African Americans, especially in more segregated areas; where blacks were viewed as inferior to whites. In recent years the n-word has become less of a malicious slur in parts of our country. Public figures who use the n-word run the risk of losing their jobs. However, since the 1960s African Americans have coined the term “nigga”, when addressing one another. The rise of hip hop culture also enhanced the use of the word-they felt as though they are using the word as a term of endearment. Critics of the

The word "nigger" has become a popular saying amongst our current population. The word appears to be used more each day by an assorted group of people. I've conducted a research in order to gather a better understanding as of to why the word "nigger" is so commonly used. I've collected responses from my fellow class mates and read a book called nigger to acquire addition information about the different opinions brought on by its usage. In these responses were patterns that helped me to get better acquainted with this idea. Most writes provided me with the same answer, that the reason why people call each other "nigger" is because it is used in a positive way. With this information given, the next question that came to mind was is it

In O'Connor's "The Artificial Nigger" the essences of prejudice and degradation are captured to a great extent. Reality shows us with needless consistency people in a need to feel better about themselves only achieve it by being better than someone else. Therefore every opportunity at hand, including racism, is taken advantage as a form of gratification. Mr. Head, the grandfather, is an example of one of these people. He is in competition with seemingly everyone he encounters while in a day trip to the City.

Out of the countless times people have pointed out that I looked different, from prior boyfriends family members whispering in front of me that their son was “dating a black girl”, to the swastikas drawn on my locker in high school, I still can clearly remember the very first time I got called the “N” word. I was just a young little girl in elementary school and didn’t even know what it meant. I went home and told my mother… “A boy at school called me a nigger today”. She said it