Straving Blackman Analysis

In the present scenario, the main challenge of our society is the stereotype that exists. One of the common stereotypes is that we deem black men as dangerous. Most people grow up with such a perception and feel it be true. In ‘Just Walk on by: Black Men and Public Space’ Brent Staples describes the way black men are perceived as dangerous individuals to society by his own experiences. He rightly acknowledges the occasional hatred that black men are subjected to in everyday social situations. Staples begins his writing with an anecdote using an ironic tone, describing the concerns successfully with emotional and logical appeals in chronological order. He aims to see the problems from the white American perspective and he makes efforts so as to clear their concerns with ease through the use of diction, ironic tone, ethos & pathos.

“Battle Royal” provides a realistic portrait of the difficulty of being a black person in a

1. In chapter eleven of his book How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Thomas Foster examines violence in literature, and particularly the way violence functions on multiple levels. Foster identifies two different kinds of violence in literature, and discusses how those two different kinds create different literal and literary meanings. By examining Foster's categories of violence in more detail, one can see how violence in literature serves as an important link between the internal events of a story and the story itself.

By concentrating on an ethological approach, Dickerson also makes her family disconnect from stereotypes. In first person point of view, she is able to describe her situation through her knowledge and background. For example, Dickerson describes Johnny with a settled and calm tone of voice. She writes, “Johnny speaks little, never cries, never complains, works diligently to become independent” (225). Because he is black, most people would associate Johnny with violence and gangs. In Black Men and Public Space by Brent Staples, a black men strolling down the avenue was assumed to be a criminal. The color of his skin, in correlation to his environment, evoked a sense of danger. However, through an educated voice, Johnny is not that dangerous black kid who got shot. Johnny is a sensitive victim of an unfortunate shooting. It is very easy to label an individual according to racial status. For this reason, Dickerson is required to inform the reader of elements that do not support these stereotypes. The disconnection from stereotypes satisfies her objection, and broadens the perspective of society.

Ultimately, the narrator realizes because of racial stereotypes, people see him for how they want to see him; he decides to be invisible. During the battle royal scene, the black men, including the narrator, transform into the racial stereotype of a violent animal, “The boys groped about like blind cautious crabs crouching to protect their mid-sections, their heads pulled in short against their shoulders…” (23). The men don’t realize they are acting like servile savages because they are wearing blindfolds; they are blinded by the truth. In addition, when the African-Americans try to collect the fake coins on the electrified ground, again they

Even in modern society, the simplest of things can shift the delicate atmosphere. A black man entering a room, or any space, full of white people, can automatically transform the ambiance. This ‘ability’ may not be a desired effect, but in certain situations, it becomes inevitable. Through the use of different rhetorical devices, Brent Staples is able to demonstrate his realization of his “ability to alter public space in ugly ways” simply because of his race and stature in his essay, “Black Men and Public Space.” Staples uses the rhetorical techniques ethos, logos, and pathos in order to get on the “same side” as the reader while still presenting the essence of his argument. The author is able to sympathize with his “victims” and justify their feelings, appealing to ethos. He also analogies and details about his background, such as his doctorate in psychology, and the fact that he was a reporter to appeal to logos. Additionally, by using vivid imagery and creative diction, he engages the reader by use of pathos, evoking the emotions of the reader. With the use of rhetorical devices, Staples is able to effectively describe his experiences of being perceived as a criminal, solely based on his “unwieldy inheritance” (205), while, additionally, extending this concept to be true throughout society.

The treatment of blacks is frightening. The white society really believes that blacks deserve no better. In his article “Imagery in the ‘Battle Royal’ Chapter of Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man,” Norman German states, “the animal imagery graphically highlights Ellison’s theme that when one sex or race treats another as an object or animal, both become dehumanized or bestial” (1). Ellison stated, “Much of the rhetorical and political energy of white society went toward proving to itself that we were not human” (German 2). The white men in “Battle Royal” not only treat the young black men as animals, or objects, but also the stripper. Therefore, they become animals themselves.

Jeffrey Cohen, a monster studies scholar, notes that the “monster dwells at the gates of difference” (Cohen 7). This difference includes racial difference, and many racial minorities like Blacks are monsterized by Whites in the USA. Victor LaValle’s novel The Ballad of Black Tom explores Tommy’s acceptance of his monstrous identity as Black Tom. As a Black man, Tommy has no social or physical agency to fight back against the oppressive white structure, forcing him to ally with monstrosity (LaValle 130). However, as a monster, Tommy turns the oppressive system over by reversing the existing social order. LaValle’s use of repetitive actions of power suggests that Tommy’s monstrous identity empowers him by reducing the oppressive white supremacy

It is obvious from the story and the historical period in which the story takes place that Jesse had grown up in an extremely racist society and experienced prejudice on a daily basis from the attitude that his father expresses toward the black race. Here, Baldwin shows how any person in any situation can become the victim of twisted family values and societal expectations. Baldwin combines attacks on black people during the civil rights era and the period of history to this story to allow the reader to understand what Jesse feels on the day his innocence and perception of race was no more. “The black body was on the ground, the head was caved in, one eye was torn out one ear was hanging. But one had to look carefully to realize this, for it was, now, merely, a black charred object on the black, charred ground.”

James Baldwin’s short story gruesomely paints the picture of how racism and sexuality are linked. The story takes place during the civil rights movement in the United States (Gorman 119). During this time, African Americans were still being oppressed, and white people were angry that they were making progress in society. This often lead to brutal attacks and sometimes death. In the story, the narrator, Jesse, is having difficulty having sex with his wife and compares her to the black women that he has sex with. As the story progresses, the problem emerges with the killing of a black man who is dismembered by a white man right before young Jesse’s eyes. Instead of seeing this as a horrible experience, Jesse takes on the attitude of those around him. Through characterization, point of view, and symbolism, James Baldwin’s story, “Going to Meet the Man,” demonstrates the connection between sexuality, particularly masculinity, and racism.

The setting is essential in highlighting the severity of racism in the world Blackman has created. The reader realizes that racism is apparent in the society in which Callum and Sephy live but it is not until Callum is given the rare opportunity to attend a Cross school that we see the extent of discrimination and intolerance towards noughts which commonly occurs. The merging of noughts and Crosses changes the setting completely, throwing the reader directly into conflict. The racist values and attitudes of Crosses are clearly seen on Callum’s first day of school when Crosses are uncontrollably protesting, continually chanting ‘No blankers in our school’. This displays that the world Callum and Sephy live in is a drastic reversal of ours. Instead of the white race being dominant in society, power roles are radically reversed so blacks are the elite race. Underlying the issue of racism is the issue of relationships and that in this extreme world Callum and Sephy can never be together in a nought and Cross relationship. I think Blackman is trying to recreate a world using the same system as apartheid did in South Africa during the late 1940’s to early 1990’s. She is using the book as a way to impact the white population by informing them of the discrimination black people have suffered.

In the prologue the initial conflicts are established. The issues of relationships and racism are alluded to, "Meggie forced herself to believe that things would be better for the children, otherwise what was the point of it all". Blackman introduces the reader into the prejudiced world she has created. The alternating point of view in the structure then allows the reader to be presented with a number of issues coming from both sides of the completely different but exactly the same story. We are taken through a journey exploring the mutual conflicts between Sephy and Callum in their contrasting worlds. Through this technique Blackman has presented a non-bias account which further supports the theme of racism, impacting both the black and white readers to a fuller extent.

Blackman has created a world of her own to contrast the society we live in,

In the short story “Big Black Good Man” by Richard Wright there are few different themes that take place in the story. This story is about an old man, named Olaf Jenson, that was a night porter in a cheap hotel on the waterfront in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. On one night, Olaf talked to himself about how there were only three rooms left, and he was going to take a nap because it was midnight. Before Olaf could take a nap, a big black man came into his hotel looking for a room and a whore. Within this story, there are three themes that are important, and the themes are judgment, fear, and suspense.

In “Homeless”, Quindlen shows empathy toward homeless people. For example, throughout the story, Quindlen brings forth points pertaining to how having a home is “everything” (193). Homeless people don't experience little things that come with having a home such as having walls and painting them “a color of their own choosing” (193). On the other hand, in “Black Men & Public Space”, Staples makes the reader empathize with him and blacks in general and makes the reader see his perspective. Staples emphasizes his concern for being considered a threat in public spaces through the use of explicit language. Staples starts off by saying, “My first victim was a woman” (197). Using the word “victim”, he expresses explicit language and stresses his point-of-view. Additionally, using the word “victim” provides the reader with a different perspective on how the person who is being perceived as being a threat feels.