Describe Epithetical Books Notes of a Native Son
| Title | : | Notes of a Native Son |
| Author | : | James Baldwin |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | US Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 192 pages |
| Published | : | 1984 by Beacon Press (first published 1955) |
| Categories | : | Nonfiction. Writing. Essays. Classics. Race. Autobiography. Memoir. History |
James Baldwin
Paperback | Pages: 192 pages Rating: 4.36 | 12415 Users | 673 Reviews
Commentary Conducive To Books Notes of a Native Son
“Any writer, I suppose, feels that the world into which he was born is nothing less than a conspiracy against the cultivation of his talent.” - James Baldwin, Notes of a Native SonJames Baldwin was a fascinating and eloquent man, one who I would have loved to have had a conversation with. His insights into racial issues are truly phenomenal.
This is a collection of short essays about Baldwin's experience with race. In the first three essays Baldwin critiques various books and movies on black culture that he believes do the race a disservice. In the 1950s when black representation was relatively low in both literature and film, I would assume that most black people would have been glad just to see themselves in print and on film;however, Baldwin talks about how misrepresentation is just as damaging as non-representation. I admire him a lot for that.
The other essays go into the black experience in the States and in Europe. One thing he said about his experiences in a small village in Switzerland was truly profound:
“I thought of white men arriving for the first time in an African village, strangers there, as I am a stranger here, and tried to imagine the astounded populace touching their hair and marveling at the color of their skin. But there is a great difference between being the first white man to be seen by Africans and being the first black man to be seen by whites. The white man takes the astonishment as tribute, for he arrives to conquer and to convert the natives, whose inferiority in relation to himself is not even to be questioned; whereas I, without a thought of conquest, find myself among a people whose culture controls me, has even, in a sense, created me, people who have cost me more in anguish and rage than they will ever know”
My favourite essay in this book was probably the titular one, Notes of a Native Son. It was heartbreaking and touching. I've read "Go Tell it on the Mountain" and I detested Baldwin's father. However, after reading this essay, my perception has changed a little. I still found the father unlikeable but now I'm appreciating how difficult it must have been for a black man, an authoritative one trying to raise his family in a society in which all his hard work accounts for next to nothing, a society in which he is the king at home and is considered a "boy" in the white world. I could tell that Baldwin was trying to understand and forgive his father, and let go of his anger; it was truly touching:
“… I did not want to see him because I hated him. But this was not true. It was only that I had hated him and I wanted to hold on to this hatred… one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, that they will be forced to deal with pain.”
Very powerful essays.
Identify Books To Notes of a Native Son
| Original Title: | Notes of a Native Son |
| ISBN: | 0807064319 (ISBN13: 9780807064313) |
| Edition Language: | English |
Rating Epithetical Books Notes of a Native Son
Ratings: 4.36 From 12415 Users | 673 ReviewsEvaluation Epithetical Books Notes of a Native Son
The titular essay in this collection is phenomenal, one of the best I've ever read. It deals with race (as nearly everything from Baldwin does), but also the severely personal and complicated relationship that Baldwin has with both his father and his own identity. Everything is stirred into this smoking wok of anger and regret that is unlike anything I've ever read. It is amazing. The rest of the pieces fail to reach the height of "Notes of a Native Son." Many of them are cultural criticism thatI am what time, circumstance, history, have made of me, certainly, but I am, also, much more than that. So are we all.Better known for works such as Go Tell It on the Mountain, James Baldwin's Notes of a Native Son (published 2 years later in 1955) is an important collection of essays which highlights issues Baldwin would continue to address. Subjects of his essays include his own home life, life in Harlem, the inequities of separate but equal treatment of blacks in 1940s and 50s America as well
I'm not a very good book reviewer and could do James Baldwin's essays no justice by attempting one here. I will say that I'm of the opinion that this book should be required reading for every American high school student. If you haven't read it, please do as soon as possible.
4.5 stars -- Mind blown. What an intellect! Baldwin lit my brain, and these essays are STILL powerfully relevant. He defined things I've struggled to understand since attending a "desegregated" high school decades ago. Boy, did I appreciate this read. And what an appropriate preamble to America's upcoming MLK Day and Black History Month.
I'm not a very good book reviewer and could do James Baldwin's essays no justice by attempting one here. I will say that I'm of the opinion that this book should be required reading for every American high school student. If you haven't read it, please do as soon as possible.
Read with a group of friends in conjunction with a viewing of the Oscar-nominated documentary I Am Not Your Negro . Experiencing both film and essay collection in tandem, what kept coming to mind over and over was Jan Kotts influential phrase Shakespeare, our contemporary, which forwards the idea that every generation discovers some aspect of the Bard that seems to speak specifically and almost peculiarly to them, making him feel continuously contemporaneous. Well, I couldnt get the revised
Any writer, I suppose, feels that the world into which he was born is nothing less than a conspiracy against the cultivation of his talent. - James Baldwin, Notes of a Native Son James Baldwin was a fascinating and eloquent man, one who I would have loved to have had a conversation with. His insights into racial issues are truly phenomenal.This is a collection of short essays about Baldwin's experience with race. In the first three essays Baldwin critiques various books and movies on black
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