Similarities Between Sherman Alexie, Malcolm X And Frederick Douglass

Frederick Douglass was born a slave in 1818 and grew up in Master Hugh’s family for just about seven years. After learning to read and write, he escaped slavery and became a leader in the abolitionist movement. Growing up he was segregated from reading and writing and instead of receiving an education, Douglas fulfilled the duties of his slave master. Malcolm X, born in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1925, was imprisoned at the age of 21 and sentenced to 10 years for burglary, however, he was granted parole after serving seven years. While imprisoned, Malcolm Little taught himself how to read and write by surrounding himself with a paper, pencil, and a dictionary. After years of constant reading and writing,

In Malcolm X's Article, "Learning to Read", he explains how he was self-instructed and how literacy affected his life starting with his time in prison and ending with his part in the civils rights movement. Malcolm X learned to read in prison because of all the time he had, if it were not for this he would probably continue using slang, and not be able to read or write. When entering prison Malcolm had education up to 8th grade, which he says would be hard to believe hearing how advanced he is now, but this did not stop him from copying the whole dictionary and learning every word possible. All this learning truly changed Malcolm's life, he was now able to read and could understand everything that he could not before. Malcolm began reading

From my experiences, I have learned that effort and dedication are the key factors needed to gain magnificent literacy skills. Even though, I had to start from the bottom all over again, I was able to succeed in a new language.That’s why, I feel that it is extremely important to keep expanding our knowledge in order to develop our understanding, imagination and language. Although, I feel that I have improved my literacy throughout my 19 years, I know there is much more to learn.

Frederick Douglass and Malcolm X each were told their education was unimportant, but later both learned from and taught others. Frederick Douglass’ mistress, Mrs. Auld, taught him the basics of reading before her husband learned of it and forbade her from continuing his education because “It would forever unfit him to be a slave.” (Douglass 31) Instead of giving up on reading, he befriended many of the white boys who lived near him and learned to read from them. (Douglass 34) Similarly, Malcolm X did well in school and dreamed of becoming a lawyer before his teacher told him that he should have less high aspirations. Douglass then went on to secretly run a school where he taught other slaves how to read, while Malcolm X went on to become

Knowledge is power. Many know this but few use it. Malcolm X and Frederick Douglass are two great examples of the potential energy of knowledge. Just as a ball at the top of the hill has energy which cascades forth into speed, so does reading and writing. Malcolm and Douglass both had the mental strength to get their “ball” rolling, smashing their way into history. One of the reasons that we admire and learn about these two influential figures was the struggles they overcame in their pursuit of knowledge. While born a century apart in vastly different conditions, we can still draw numerous

Malcolm X also risked his life when wanting to read. As referred in the essay as “lights out,” this represented the time when inmates were required to go to sleep. Malcolm X would still be in the middle of reading while this happen. He was able to find very dim light and continue reading his book. Nothing, not even the risk of being caught by guards was going to stop him from reading. When Malcolm X realized he wanted to further his education, he obtained a dictionary. It took him days to actually take action and start. “I spent two days just riffling through the dictionary's pages.” This is an obstacle in itself because he had to start what he said he was going to do. It is easy for many to set a plan, but it is harder to go through with it. If you wait for the right moment to start something, it will never

How does Douglass being a slave and Malcolm X being a prisoner result in their substandard educations? How do both of them relate education to freedom? First off Douglass having a substandard education is directly related to him being a slave, since at the time teaching a slave how to read or write was a punishable crime in some areas. Whereas Malcolm X being a prisoner was not the cause of his substandard education but rather the solution to it. The real cause for Malcolm X substandard education was due to him dropping out of school at a young age. It was not until he was arrested and sent to prison that he found the desire to educate himself. So back to the question of how both men relate education to freedom. Douglass related education

Malcolm X’s piece focused during a time where many African American’s did not receive a quality education, if any at all. While Malcolm is tellsing the readers about how an English writer from London asked him where he went to school and Malcolm replied “‘Books’”(X 643). Malcolm also tells how you will never see him “not studying something I feel might be able to help the black man…”(X 643). Malcolm’s article takes place in a time where black men and women were very limited as to what was available to them. In this time period, African Americans were fighting the problem of segregation.

In the the short story “ The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me”, written by Sherman Alexie, he goes to explain how he taught himself how to read by looking at comic book pictures. He would create the story by looking at the pictures and assuming that’s what it said. Alexie was a young boy living on an Indian reservation in Washington State with his family who were not as fortunate as others. His father had a desire for books, but soon Alexie had then gained a desire for books too. School on the Reservation was not as easy for him, he had to use whatever he could find in order to reach an education. He was motivated during the time of life when he was looked down on, and expected to fail. Alexie was smart, and did not want to live

Self-determination is the process by which a person controls their own life. Being determined is having a firm decision and being resolved not to change it. Malcom X, Jimmy Santiago Baca, and Amy Tan were self-determined. They did not like the direction of their life, and decided that they wanted a change. Being determined in ones’ self after life has thrown you lemons is hard to reverse.

In “Coming to an Awareness of Language”, Malcolm X describes a man who is eager to learn while in prison, he finds any available resources to teach himself how to read, write and pronounce difficult words in the dictionary he never have heard in his life. He finds reading books an inspiration thing to do. His passionate and eager to learn which leads to do to a new open world for him. Books, reading was the only way out to a bright open mind while in prison. Getting himself an education by finding only a dictionary in prison. The man in prison tells how one man inspire him to get an education and to learn how to read and write by using his quotes Mr. Elijah Muhammad who inspire him there’s always a way out to a new bright world by not being

Malcolm X life started difficult, at the point to convert him in a prisoner for burglary. His conversion to Islam was a motivation to write to his minister, Elijah Muhammad, but, his writing was so poor that it was a shame for him, so he found in jail a huge motivation to learn how read and write, he started writing by hand the entire English dictionary, then, his vocabulary and knowledge started grow until the point that he was a high self-educated person, eventually he when through numerous books, he was very into variety of books like, education, anatomy, and some more, but, his favorites or more passionate books was over the history of black people, from the empires history of Africa to slave of white people, indeed it was a shock for

The early years of his life were spent in the streets where he was the leader of an organized burglar ring which gave him the money he needed to support his cocaine habit. Malcolm was arrested and sentenced to eight to ten years at Charlestown. While in prison, Malcolm took the opportunity to improve his reading ability. He used a dictionary "as an encyclopedia as well as a vocabulary-building device,"6by copying the words down on sheets of paper. It was there in prison that Malcolm was introduced to the teachings of Elijah Muhammad.

What is literacy? What does it mean to be literate? And can anyone be a literate person? It can be hard to decide who is literate and who is not basing on today’s world standards of “Literacy”. Literacy might not be as simple as we think it is could be, because it’s "not very well understood" (Scribner, 1929, p.6). Scholars and researchers have been looking for the “umbrella definition” for literacy. A definition that explains the general idea of the concept. Moreover, it was hard to connect all the different concepts of literacy to be presented by one comprehensive definition. To illustrate it better, Sylvia Scribner (1984) the writer of the article “Literacy in Three Metaphors” split the “yet unfound” definition into three concepts. Literacy

Being literate in 2016 is a very complex concept because you can be literate in so many different topics ranging from reading and writing to computer software and games. Literacy comes when you are proficient in a specific topic and understand most of the small details that go along with it. Some people may want to be literate in computer games while others may think that this literacy is not important. Even though everyone has a certain basic level of literacies, each person will have a variety of unique literacies that not everyone else will have. Over the past couple of decades, what it meant to be literate has changed because of the expansion of technology.