​Chapter 17

1. What do you think of Brother Hambro? Why did the brothers have TIM meet with him? What does TIM think of Brother Hambro and the training with him?
2. Where or how does “invisibility” come up in this chapter?
3. What is TIM’s assignment? What do you think about the assignment?
4. What do you think are Brother Jack’s motives? The organization’s motives?
5. Brother Jack speaks about “increasing the effectiveness of our action” and organizing “the energy that has already been released” (362) and states that “if we fail to lead them into action, they will become passive, or they will become cynical” (363).
   1. What does this quote mean?
   2. What does Brother Jack want to do? What does he want TIM to do? Why have TIM do it, why can’t Brother Jack go out their himself?
   3. Is Brother Jack being racist or discriminatory in any way in this statement? How so or why not?
6. What does Brother Jack say about The Brotherhood’s stance on violence?
7. What do you think of Brother Clifton? What does TIM think of him? What happens between them and why?
8. Who’s Ras the Exhorter? What does he do? How does he view TIM or the Brotherhood?
   1. What does “Uncle Tom” mean?
9. Who do you agree with more, TIM or Ras?
   1. Who’s a better speaker? - Rhetorically more convincing?
   2. What would TIM’s grandfather think of Ras and his views?
10. TIM and Brother Jack keep bringing up “science,” “discipline,” and “ideology” - why do these terms keep coming up and what do they mean in the context they are used?

 

Malcolm X Movie Questions
After finishing the movie, answer these questions in one document to submit to Turnitin.com. Due Monday, 2/20/17 by midnight (11:59pm or earlier). Use complete sentences and number your responses. Each question should have a minimum of one paragraph each, but you may end up getting more in-depth with some questions more so than others – that’s fine and up to you which ones you want to elaborate more on – so you might end up responding to some questions with 2-3 paragraphs. Minimum of 3 pages total (no more than 6) which comes out to a tiny bit more than half a page per question. MLA format. I recommend you start answers to some of these questions while you watch the movie, then polish/finish responses when the class finishes the movie. Feel free to reference other resources in your answers (Douglass, MLK/MX speeches, previous novels, class discussions, etc.) although it is not required. Answer all 5 questions!

1. Compare and contrast Malcolm’s life and TIM’s experiences so far (up to chapter 12). Based on what Malcolm X experienced, what predictions do you have for TIM?
2. After returning from Mecca, Malcolm outlines his new plan for solving the problem of racial relations between the African American community and the White American community in America.  Discuss if his plan to divide the races and let them work on their own to solve a common problem is the right way to solve the problem of racism in America or not.  Be sure to address if is racist or not.  He definitively says that whites cannot join his group and instead should work amongst themselves.  Is that being racist?  If you believe that it is a racist practice, is racism justified in this situation?  If is it not a racist practice, then what about it makes it not racist?  Do you think it will work?
3. After Malcolm’s separation from the Nation of Islam, Malcolm finds himself unsure of the future.  In a rare moment of unguarded emotion, Malcolm says in front of Alex Haley (the author of his autobiography, which the movie was based on), “We had the best organization the black man’s ever had – and n*****s ruined it (p. 418)!”  He says this because he feels the Nation of Islam has lost its true purpose of uniting Black Americans under one religion – and thus creating a political group that could change American society - and that it was the ignorant African American people who allowed the Islamic community to become divided.  Alex Haley says that this is the only time he ever heard Malcolm use a racist term to describe his own people.  What makes it so surprising is that he says this at a time in his career he is at his most non-racist point of view about America since he has returned from Mecca. Is Malcolm allowed to use this term or not?  Argue both sides of this argument before you come to a conclusion.  You CANNOT simply say that he can because he is black.  You must prove that he can or cannot. You can also talk about how everyone or no one should be allowed to use the term instead of just focusing on Malcolm and this specific situation as long as you use Malcolm as an example.  (Feel free to also bring up any connections from Invisible Man so far.)
4. Malcolm once said of Black Americans, “You can’t hate Africa and not hate yourself.” Can you hate where you racially come from and not hate yourself? Argue both sides of this statement.  You do not have to limit yourself to Africa; you can discuss any person’s racial background. (This is a good opportunity to bring up ties to TIM.) 
5. When trying to address the racial injustices in America, what do people need to understand in order to overcome racism in America?  First, decide on which group of Americans you would like to address (little children, lawmakers, racists, etc.) and then list and explain the three top things that they need to. Explain how these three things will lead to a solution to America’s racism problem.  You do not have to come up with the solution, you just have to explain why these three things are essential when coming up with that solution.