Note #18
Paper I Commentary
Word Count: 1724
The Ballot or The Bullet - Malcolm X
This text is an invigorating political speech by Malcolm X, an African American Muslim minister and a political and human rights activist. The speech addresses the themes of racism and political segregation in context of the plight of African Americans in the 1960's. These explicitly depicted motifs, in combination with the usage of memorable slogans and figurative language, throughout the entirety of the speech characterise it as a political speech. In this speech, Malcolm X calls on African Americans to seize being onlookers and actively partake in the struggle to obtain the rights they deserve. He appeals to them using various literary and rhetorical devices in order to stimulate action from them.
This speech, delivered at the height of institutional discrimination against African Americans, deals with themes of racism, nationalism and measures to usurp these governmental forces through the attainment of universal enfranchisement, or as a last resort, violence. The speech is multivocal as it targets both African Americans and the American government. This is evident when he says, "No, you're nothing but a 20th century slave" (an allusion to the historical context of slavery in America) and in his opening statement where he proclaims the self-sufficiency of black nationalism. He directly addresses African Americans by using second-person pronouns. This helps establish a direct connection with the audience and makes his arguments resonate more. A direct style of communication, combined with a semi-formal register serve to reinforce brotherhood within the community of African Americans. Au contraire, he addresses the American government passively by making snide and sarcastic remarks on the actions, or lack thereof, undertaken by the American government. The audience, although consisting of members of differing levels of societal hierarchy and varying social groups, is largely American as the issues addressed are based in a localized context. Also, various allusions to iconic historical American figures such as George Washington and Abraham Lincoln further serve as evidence to the aforementioned claim.
The primary aim of the text is to incite action from African Americans by informing and alerting them about the covert maltreatment of their brethren being carried out systematically by the state. He attempts to persuade the African American audience to recognize and embrace the cause of black nationalism. In trying to propagate this ideology that he wants all African Americans to embrace, he insinuates that the much maligned community of African Americans must take up arms in the event that the government fails to deliver on its promise of allowing the blacks to vote in the elections. Thus, he both persuades and cautions the varied audience throughout the course of his speech. He presents the issue with a sense of urgency, and warns the African American community to be prepared to take action. He depicts black nationalism as a self-help philosophy that can be adhered to by any African American, regardless of their religious or social affiliation. It can be inferred that by publicizing its universality, he seeks to expand his appeal to different social groups that African Americans congregate in. In the speech, those African-Americans who choose to remain on the sidelines of their own volition receive a scathing judgement. He denounces them and criticizes their inaction. In doing so, he marginalizes this section of African Americans as he essentially attaches the master identity to their propensity to take action. Thus, those who previously strayed away from projecting an active rather than passive voice were now impelled to join forces with the ideology that Malcolm X was propagating. This form of antipathetic pathos serves to compel African Americans to embrace his ideology as the sole harbinger of prosperity to the community. This is amplified further by the projection of black nationalism as absolute and concrete, and a mandatory requirement for all those who share the same master identity. He calls out the hypocrisy of the American government with regards to their clandestine discrimination of African Americans, which is evident by the lack of a formidable legal status for them and their exclusion from voting in elections.
The variety of literary devices present in the speech conform to the conventions of a political speech. The defining characteristics of a political speech, i.e. language reliant on an appeal to emotion, vigorous tone and mood of speech, its lucidity with respect to the audience and the aim to galvanize the masses by preemptive means. The opening line "Black nationalism is a self-help philosophy" is an adage. It's purpose is to make the salient quote, and the speech in general more memorable to the audience. A line that will capture their attention from the very beginning is crucial in order to let them subsume the ideology and stimulate the desired reaction from them. The utilization of anaphora is evident when he starts each sentence with "You can..." This affirms the sentimental value of the issue with African Americans and conveys that they are indeed capable of achieving change through their own means. This supports his previous claim of black nationalism being a self-help philosophy. There is another instance of anaphora when he invokes the imagery of different kinds of people sitting. This visual depiction serves as a method to induce in them a proclivity to embrace the ideology he is propagating and dissuade inaction. The repetition of the word sit denotes inaction, a state he wants all African Americans to stray farthest from.
By using the colonisation of African and Asia as an example, he invokes the imagery of colourism to appeal to humanism. He places the struggles of African Americans in parallel to the struggle for independence in these countries. In an instance of ethos, he claims that as evident from the past success of nationalism in these countries, African Americans should follow the same module. In order to do so, he amplifies the sentence by embellishing it more information about the philosophy of nationalism and its success at bringing about independence. This strengthens the cause he is propagating and is a crucial instrument to propel his argument. He also uses statistics when he says that 22 million African Americans have suffered colonialism for 400 years. This is done in order to confound the audience by commenting on the severity of the issue and thus motivating them further to take action to repeal it. A simile can be observed when he says that America is as much of a colonial power as England was. This serves to liken the American government to English colonisers, who were notorious for pillaging territories and enslaving millions. He uses the subordinate status of the Black community as a bait to invoke anger and persuade them to embrace his methodology, thus facilitating the propagation of his ideology.
The dichotomy is evident when he says it "might be the year of the ballot or the bullet". The alliteration adds to the effectiveness of the resonating quality. The duality of his statement juxtaposes two contrasting ideas. This is helpful in stressing upon the extremity of the conflict African Americans are facing and informs them about possible paths of action. An instance of hyperphora can be observed when he questions the audience about why 1964 might look like the year of the ballot or the bullet. Along with providing rhetorical effect, he provides an answer to the question he raises by listing the reasons African Americans are discontent with their treatment by the American government. He projects second-class citizenship as a metaphor for colonisation. This strong comparison serves to augment the aversion of African Americans for the American government and motivate them to take part actively in the struggle for emancipation and liberty. The further comparison with slavery serves the same purpose, along with pathos. By capitalizing on the inferior status of African Americans as viewed by America and its demeaning nature towards them, he seeks to incite in them a passion for active participation in their battle, a passion to be sentinels of their own cause and achieve their much deserved freedom. The presence of pathos is abundant as another instance of it can be found when he says, "No you're nothing but a 20th century slave." Thus he establishes black nationalism as the only way to attain liberty. He initiates a hyperbolic comparison when he claims that the "racial powder keg" is more explosive than all the atomic bombs the Russians can ever make. In doing so, he asserts the perceived power of black nationalism, thus indirectly declaring to the American government the consequences of not granting the Black community with the right of enfranchisement. The allusions to George Washington and Abraham Lincoln exemplify the ineffectiveness of peaceful protests and further motivate the Black community to incite violence. The concluding line "What do we care about odds?" aims to persuade them to subsume his ideology by reaffirming the strength of the community.
Throughout the course of the speech, his tone is aggressive and imposing. Through his acerbic language, he seeks to provoke the Black community and stimulate vigilantism. The mood created is one of urgency, frustration and is expressive of his disgruntled attitude towards the treatment of African Americans by the American government. In the entirety of the speech, he seeks to arouse and capitalize on the collective anger and frustration of the Black community against the American government.
In terms of style and structure, the figurative language and rhetorical devices used serve to propel his argument. The speech encompasses inclusive language and employs the usage of African American Vernacular English (AAVE), a common dialect of English spoken by the African American community. This is evident when he says, "Cause if you are black..." and "How you gonna tell me..." This is immensely significant in the context of the speech, as it strengthens the nexus between Malcolm X and his target audience, thus contributing to pathos as African Americans are more likely to be provoked to action that is elicited from a brethren, from one of their own. The rhetorical devices employed augment the overall vehement quality of the speech. The backbone of the speech is the proclaimed superiority of nationalism in opposition to passive peaceful protests and pitting the rest of America, especially the white community as malefactors of African Americans. The overall effectiveness of the speech can be judged from the degree of intensity resonated through the usage of multiple literary devices and an overarching appeal to pathos.
Paper I Commentary
Word Count: 1724
The Ballot or The Bullet - Malcolm X
This text is an invigorating political speech by Malcolm X, an African American Muslim minister and a political and human rights activist. The speech addresses the themes of racism and political segregation in context of the plight of African Americans in the 1960's. These explicitly depicted motifs, in combination with the usage of memorable slogans and figurative language, throughout the entirety of the speech characterise it as a political speech. In this speech, Malcolm X calls on African Americans to seize being onlookers and actively partake in the struggle to obtain the rights they deserve. He appeals to them using various literary and rhetorical devices in order to stimulate action from them.
This speech, delivered at the height of institutional discrimination against African Americans, deals with themes of racism, nationalism and measures to usurp these governmental forces through the attainment of universal enfranchisement, or as a last resort, violence. The speech is multivocal as it targets both African Americans and the American government. This is evident when he says, "No, you're nothing but a 20th century slave" (an allusion to the historical context of slavery in America) and in his opening statement where he proclaims the self-sufficiency of black nationalism. He directly addresses African Americans by using second-person pronouns. This helps establish a direct connection with the audience and makes his arguments resonate more. A direct style of communication, combined with a semi-formal register serve to reinforce brotherhood within the community of African Americans. Au contraire, he addresses the American government passively by making snide and sarcastic remarks on the actions, or lack thereof, undertaken by the American government. The audience, although consisting of members of differing levels of societal hierarchy and varying social groups, is largely American as the issues addressed are based in a localized context. Also, various allusions to iconic historical American figures such as George Washington and Abraham Lincoln further serve as evidence to the aforementioned claim.
The primary aim of the text is to incite action from African Americans by informing and alerting them about the covert maltreatment of their brethren being carried out systematically by the state. He attempts to persuade the African American audience to recognize and embrace the cause of black nationalism. In trying to propagate this ideology that he wants all African Americans to embrace, he insinuates that the much maligned community of African Americans must take up arms in the event that the government fails to deliver on its promise of allowing the blacks to vote in the elections. Thus, he both persuades and cautions the varied audience throughout the course of his speech. He presents the issue with a sense of urgency, and warns the African American community to be prepared to take action. He depicts black nationalism as a self-help philosophy that can be adhered to by any African American, regardless of their religious or social affiliation. It can be inferred that by publicizing its universality, he seeks to expand his appeal to different social groups that African Americans congregate in. In the speech, those African-Americans who choose to remain on the sidelines of their own volition receive a scathing judgement. He denounces them and criticizes their inaction. In doing so, he marginalizes this section of African Americans as he essentially attaches the master identity to their propensity to take action. Thus, those who previously strayed away from projecting an active rather than passive voice were now impelled to join forces with the ideology that Malcolm X was propagating. This form of antipathetic pathos serves to compel African Americans to embrace his ideology as the sole harbinger of prosperity to the community. This is amplified further by the projection of black nationalism as absolute and concrete, and a mandatory requirement for all those who share the same master identity. He calls out the hypocrisy of the American government with regards to their clandestine discrimination of African Americans, which is evident by the lack of a formidable legal status for them and their exclusion from voting in elections.
The variety of literary devices present in the speech conform to the conventions of a political speech. The defining characteristics of a political speech, i.e. language reliant on an appeal to emotion, vigorous tone and mood of speech, its lucidity with respect to the audience and the aim to galvanize the masses by preemptive means. The opening line "Black nationalism is a self-help philosophy" is an adage. It's purpose is to make the salient quote, and the speech in general more memorable to the audience. A line that will capture their attention from the very beginning is crucial in order to let them subsume the ideology and stimulate the desired reaction from them. The utilization of anaphora is evident when he starts each sentence with "You can..." This affirms the sentimental value of the issue with African Americans and conveys that they are indeed capable of achieving change through their own means. This supports his previous claim of black nationalism being a self-help philosophy. There is another instance of anaphora when he invokes the imagery of different kinds of people sitting. This visual depiction serves as a method to induce in them a proclivity to embrace the ideology he is propagating and dissuade inaction. The repetition of the word sit denotes inaction, a state he wants all African Americans to stray farthest from.
By using the colonisation of African and Asia as an example, he invokes the imagery of colourism to appeal to humanism. He places the struggles of African Americans in parallel to the struggle for independence in these countries. In an instance of ethos, he claims that as evident from the past success of nationalism in these countries, African Americans should follow the same module. In order to do so, he amplifies the sentence by embellishing it more information about the philosophy of nationalism and its success at bringing about independence. This strengthens the cause he is propagating and is a crucial instrument to propel his argument. He also uses statistics when he says that 22 million African Americans have suffered colonialism for 400 years. This is done in order to confound the audience by commenting on the severity of the issue and thus motivating them further to take action to repeal it. A simile can be observed when he says that America is as much of a colonial power as England was. This serves to liken the American government to English colonisers, who were notorious for pillaging territories and enslaving millions. He uses the subordinate status of the Black community as a bait to invoke anger and persuade them to embrace his methodology, thus facilitating the propagation of his ideology.
The dichotomy is evident when he says it "might be the year of the ballot or the bullet". The alliteration adds to the effectiveness of the resonating quality. The duality of his statement juxtaposes two contrasting ideas. This is helpful in stressing upon the extremity of the conflict African Americans are facing and informs them about possible paths of action. An instance of hyperphora can be observed when he questions the audience about why 1964 might look like the year of the ballot or the bullet. Along with providing rhetorical effect, he provides an answer to the question he raises by listing the reasons African Americans are discontent with their treatment by the American government. He projects second-class citizenship as a metaphor for colonisation. This strong comparison serves to augment the aversion of African Americans for the American government and motivate them to take part actively in the struggle for emancipation and liberty. The further comparison with slavery serves the same purpose, along with pathos. By capitalizing on the inferior status of African Americans as viewed by America and its demeaning nature towards them, he seeks to incite in them a passion for active participation in their battle, a passion to be sentinels of their own cause and achieve their much deserved freedom. The presence of pathos is abundant as another instance of it can be found when he says, "No you're nothing but a 20th century slave." Thus he establishes black nationalism as the only way to attain liberty. He initiates a hyperbolic comparison when he claims that the "racial powder keg" is more explosive than all the atomic bombs the Russians can ever make. In doing so, he asserts the perceived power of black nationalism, thus indirectly declaring to the American government the consequences of not granting the Black community with the right of enfranchisement. The allusions to George Washington and Abraham Lincoln exemplify the ineffectiveness of peaceful protests and further motivate the Black community to incite violence. The concluding line "What do we care about odds?" aims to persuade them to subsume his ideology by reaffirming the strength of the community.
Throughout the course of the speech, his tone is aggressive and imposing. Through his acerbic language, he seeks to provoke the Black community and stimulate vigilantism. The mood created is one of urgency, frustration and is expressive of his disgruntled attitude towards the treatment of African Americans by the American government. In the entirety of the speech, he seeks to arouse and capitalize on the collective anger and frustration of the Black community against the American government.
In terms of style and structure, the figurative language and rhetorical devices used serve to propel his argument. The speech encompasses inclusive language and employs the usage of African American Vernacular English (AAVE), a common dialect of English spoken by the African American community. This is evident when he says, "Cause if you are black..." and "How you gonna tell me..." This is immensely significant in the context of the speech, as it strengthens the nexus between Malcolm X and his target audience, thus contributing to pathos as African Americans are more likely to be provoked to action that is elicited from a brethren, from one of their own. The rhetorical devices employed augment the overall vehement quality of the speech. The backbone of the speech is the proclaimed superiority of nationalism in opposition to passive peaceful protests and pitting the rest of America, especially the white community as malefactors of African Americans. The overall effectiveness of the speech can be judged from the degree of intensity resonated through the usage of multiple literary devices and an overarching appeal to pathos.
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