Author: Malcolm X
When: 1965
What: The Autobiography of Malcolm X
Brief Overview: Within an excerpt drawn from The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Malcolm X describes his experience of dedicated studies while imprisoned in Norfolk, Massachusetts. Wishing to emulate the eloquent speech and plethora of knowledge that others around him exhibited, Malcolm X took to copying each page of the dictionary, and consequently increased the number of words he understood while reading.
Important Vocabulary: Mr. Elijah Mohammad, who was a spiritual leader for the nation’s Black Muslims in the mid-twentieth century, and served as a mentor for Malcolm X. Norfolk Prison Colony, which was founded as the nation’s first “community prison” in 1929. The prison had dormitories (not cells), a school, a quad, and an auditorium.
Questions: How long was Malcolm X incarcerated for? Answer: Seven years.
Noteworthy Quotes: “Many who today hear me somewhere in person, or on television, or those who read something I’ve said, will think I went to school far beyond the eighth grade. This impression is due entirely to my prison studies.” “I suppose it was inevitable that as my word-base broadened, I could for the first time pick up a book and read and now begin to understand what the book was saying. Anyone who has read a great deal can imagine the new world that opened.” “In fact, up to then, I never had been so truly free in my life.”
Initial Reactions: Malcolm X describes an experience shaped by levels of dedication, perseverance, and motivation that are fairly rare both in and out of prison. Although his initial goal was to emulate those around him that he viewed as commanding and intelligent, Malcolm X discovered an entirely new world through his studies. His description of the freedom that reading can bring reminds me of childhood, when my mother would encourage me, saying ” You can travel anywhere in the world while you read.”
A Composition of Self by Alexis Rivera 