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Sociology in Alex Haley's "Malcolm X" In the earl

Sociology in Alex Haley's "Malcolm X"

In the early chapters of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Malcolm X describes the urban subcultures that characterized his childhood environments. He identifies two primary subcultures: the Black bourgeoisie, which in his early life he described as "brainwashed" because they aspired to mimic the more "cultured" and "cultivated" lives of White people (Haley and X 41). This class of people worked in professions deemed appropriate by the dominant White culture, such as teachers, preachers, nurses, postmen, janitors, domestic servants, Pullman (sleeping train car) porters and dining car waiters (Haley and X 42). Malcolm notes that this class would mimic White society by claiming to be "in finance" or "in law," when in fact they may actually have only been a messenger or janitor in a financial or legal office (Haley and X 42).

In contrast to this class was a more underworld class to which Malcolm quickly became attracted. This class overtly worked as shoeshine boys, con men, peddlers and in nightclubs while covertly selling marijuana or engaging in pimping and prostitution (Haley and X 50). At the time, Malcolm seemed to view this class as less beholden to White notions of Black inferiority. He flourished in this class, often intermingling with Whites, many of whom came to Harlem in the 1940s (Haley and X 83-95). As Malcolm would come to realize later, both of these subcultures were a response to the limits placed on Black opportunity and achievement by the dominant White culture. At the time, Malcolm despised those Blacks who aspired to White middle-class socioeconomics. But he eventually learned that his own actions were also a reaction to the same oppressive factors.

Sociologist Erving Goffman developed the term dramaturgy essentially to define life as a drama that individuals learn to perform (Heslin 107-108). Malcolm X's early life experiences taught him to perform the role of hus...

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Sociology in Alex Haley's "Malcolm X" In the earl. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 11:07, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1703730.html