Malcolm X was a prominent African American civil rights leader and activist during the late 1900s. Prior to his role as a civil rights trailblazer, Malcolm X was an inarticulate hustler who was sentenced to ten years in prison on burglary charges. It was in prison that Malcolm X had acquired a taste for education and he could not stop yearning for more; as a result, he began to study tirelessly. Throughout “a Homemade Education”, Malcolm X appeals to one’s sense of ethics, logic, and emotion by utilizing his own personal experiences to stress that everyone should educate themselves and thus gather an understanding about the world.
When in prison Malcolm X had attempted to emulate a man named Bimbi, a fellow prison mate whom he had looked up
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His passion for education is overflowing throughout the excerpt and because of this he establishes pathos. From just reading alone one’s world is broadened. Malcolm X says so himself that through studying “ I [have] never.. Been so truly free in my life” (Malcolm X, 1956, p. 964). This shows his passion and demonstrates that once one takes the initiative to educated themselves it will be worth it in the end. Malcolm X realizes that in order to get by in the world one must become educated. By becoming a scholar one is provided with a plethora of more opportunities and they will not be that thwarted individual who, when they read, felt as if the words were all in Chinese. In this excerpt Malcolm X also seeks to arouse a sense of relatability within his audience. During the late 1900s, the United States was riddled with racism. Malcolm X (1956) recalls an experience that he had in 7th grade United States history class in which the teacher had made a quip regarding Negroes and the classroom resounded with laughter. This allegory would connect to the apparent audience is because many of them have had similar experiences with blatant racism and he evokes a call to action. A call to stand up against the white men who oppress African