Rhetorical Analysis Of Malcolm X's 'Ballot Or The Bullet'

“Afro-American History” was a speech that Malcolm X gave one month before he was assassinated. His main focal points were the ideology of Blacks not being able to comprehend their present or future without comprehension of of their past and moreover become helpless and eventually ruled while being viewed as to a lesser degree of society and progress. The sources that Malcolm uses to bolster these cases is Eastern history of exceptionally taught dark developments preceding the establishment of America. Malcolm contends that the term Negro which is utilized to under mind blacks, was made by white America keeping in mind the end goal to set up matchless superiority and keep up the parity of force. He suggests that the Negro culture had no binds

Malcolm X gainsays the phrase “the ballot or the bullet” by saying “1964 looks like it might be the year of the ballot or the bullet” (X n. pag.). His juxtaposition of two stances on racial equality illuminates the urgent need for change, whether it be through the path of the ballot or the bullet. The culmination of this maxim resulted in the exact outcome he wished for. Change ensued because of its direct correlation to both votes cast and riots that erupted. X proceeded to quote Patrick Henry when saying “Liberty or death was what brought about the freedom of whites in this country from the English.

Malcolm X is more adversarial towards the white community through his vivid descriptions of the brutal history of oppression black Americans face, in order to empower his audience to follow

Using the term “the white man” to speak of the government easily allows Malcolm to show the audience who the enemy is, and bring out anger towards those in charge of the government. Another great example of pathos is when Malcolm states, “Why does it look like it might be the year of the ballot or the bullet? Because Negroes have listened to the trickery and the lies and the false promises of the white man now for too long, and they're fed up” (X, 1964). Words like “trickery’’ and “lies” are used to make the audience feel and realize that the government is the one wronging them. The government is responsible for the injustices faced, and black people have been tricked into this way of life, and it’s time for the black citizens to feel angry.

“The Ballot or the Bullet” , by Malcolm X, uses parallel structure and anaphora to make it memorable and illustrate Malcolm X’s opinion on the Negro rights topic. “The Hypocrisy of American Slavery” , by Frederick Douglass, includes antithesis to interpret his opinion on the Negro rights issue. Both speakers use pattern of three to make their speeches effective, memorable and persuading. Malcolm X was a civil rights leader before he was assassinated at the age of 40.

Hence, they crave peer acceptance in both, receiving genuine approval from neither” (West 139). Another renowned description of this phenomenon by Malcolm X is a metaphor stating that there are two kinds of slaves, the house negro and the field negro. Malcolm says that the house negroes love and protect the white master while field negroes hate and resist him, while this rhetorical device can be useful in highlighting differences amongst black people it’s a broad over generalization, and plain negligence to try and fit a black person in one of the two categories. Nevertheless, Malcolm creates a clear analysis of the issue of double-consciousness, showing that he understands the complexity of the matter at hand and that he is knowledgeable on the subject, hence utilizing ethos. While Malcolm X strongly believes that “black self-love and black self-determination [will make black people] free of the tension generated by ‘double-consciousness’”

In April 1964, in the midst of a 54 day Senate filibuster of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, Malcolm X gave his famous speech, “The Ballot or the Bullet”. In “The Ballot or the Bullet”, Malcolm X advocates for racial, economic, and social justice through the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, more black voting control, and more black local control through any means possible, including violence and the threat of it. Throughout the entire speech, the metaphor of “the ballot or the bullet” is repeatedly used. X states this phrase constantly throughout the speech, even repeating it multiple times in succession. He uses this anaphora to emphasize the importance of this to his audience.

Whites-Blacks relations The relationship between the two races is practically the basis of the civil rights movement. From their rhetoric, it is clear that Martin Luther King and Malcom X held quite different views on the current and future relationship of Blacks and Whites in the United States. Martin Luther King knew that Blacks are the minority in the US and that they “cannot walk alone”. They need allies in the white majority to be able to achieve any changes.

Malcolm X believed that this distinction was important because it made civil rights issues the issues for all of mankind, which meant that it could not be ignored by anybody because it "didn 't involve them". B) The philosophy of black nationalism signified many things in the 1960s. It could mean anything from pride in one 's community to a belief in total separatism, from creating African American-owned businesses to wearing dashikis in honor of African traditions. Black Nationalism though historically speaking has been the emphasizing the difference between blacks and whites as well as the black people 's power or right to shape their own destiny.

Malcolm X and his ideals are arguably a representation of the transition from the early 1950 's non-violent movement for integration to a more aggressive black power movement. Evidence of this is shown through powerful strands of his novel “The Ballot or the Bullet” including when he writes, “I don 't mean go out and get violent, but at the same time you should never be non-violent unless you run into some non-violence.” (Malcolm 439). In writing that members of the civil rights movement should never be non-violent he does so facetiously. This excerpt indicates a call for violence as a more powerful method for achieving the equality he feels they deserve.

Philosophical differences between martin luther king and malcolm X The philosophical differences between Martin Luther King and Malcolm X have to do with the their protest strategies. MLK never fought with violence. Although he would get physically attacked, he stood his ground and continued to fight for equality peacefully. King believed that whites and blacks should come together to end the hate and violence.

Introduction: Malcom X urges the Negro community to fight to gain the equal rights they deserve by taking action against their white oppressors. He emphasizes that blacks will gain their rights either thorough voting, with the ballot, or else through the inevitable violence with the bullet. Thesis [part a] Like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., also fighting for the civil rights of black Americans in the 1960s, but in a more peaceful manner, Malcom X takes a different approach.

In America at the time The Ballot or the Bullet was given, segregation was still occurring. Malcolm X was a fighter for civil rights. In 1964 there was going to be a presidential election. Malcolm X was a civil rights leader and part of The Nation of Islam. He gave this speech on April third in order to talk about both the election and how African-American people should proceed in order to benefit from the election.

Over the course of Malcolm X’s life, his perspective of identity changed, particularly before and after he went to Mecca. In the speech By Any Means Necessary Malcolm stated, “The time for you and me to allow ourselves to be brutalized non-violently is passe….Be non-violent only with those who are non-violent to you”(Malcolm X). Essentially, Malcolm X is implying that we should have the rights to defend ourselves from those who cause harm to us. Before Malcolm x went to Mecca, he believed that white supremacy could not be conquered through love, but only through vigorous self-defence (“By Any Means Necessary”) .

In Malcolm X’s speech he presents two types of blacks from the days of slavery: the House Negro and Field Negro. There were some similarities and more differences that were brought up in video comparing the two types of blacks, in a sense it seemed as if the House Negro had more power and privilege than the Field Negro. Malcolm X did an excellent job describing the two and showing that there were still slaves in that time, referring to the 1950s/60s, when he wrote the speech. He clearly highlights the difference in slavery and how it applies to the current time. He even compares himself as a Field Negro, for wanting to separate.