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    Comparison Essay - CAP

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    Adia Keene
    The document compares the essays "Notes of a Native Speaker" by Eric Liu and "Notes of a Native Son" by James Baldwin. Liu discusses assimilation and argues that power in America has been associated with whiteness. He uses metaphors and symbolism to illustrate this point. Baldwin treats race as a communal issue and calls readers to action against racism. His essay draws parallels between his father's death and race riots using an extended metaphor of his father's disease representing racism. Both essays effectively justify their statements on race, though Baldwin's has a clearer call to action and more cohesive extended metaphor.

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    Comparison Essay - CAP

    Uploaded by

    Adia Keene
    80 views3 pages
    The document compares the essays "Notes of a Native Speaker" by Eric Liu and "Notes of a Native Son" by James Baldwin. Liu discusses assimilation and argues that power in America has been associated with whiteness. He uses metaphors and symbolism to illustrate this point. Baldwin treats race as a communal issue and calls readers to action against racism. His essay draws parallels between his father's death and race riots using an extended metaphor of his father's disease representing racism. Both essays effectively justify their statements on race, though Baldwin's has a clearer call to action and more cohesive extended metaphor.

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    Baldwin-Liu Comparison Essay. AP Lang. Junior Year.

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    The document compares the essays "Notes of a Native Speaker" by Eric Liu and "Notes of a Native Son" by James Baldwin. Liu discusses assimilation and argues that power in America has been associated with whiteness. He uses metaphors and symbolism to illustrate this point. Baldwin treats race as a communal issue and calls readers to action against racism. His essay draws parallels between his father's death and race riots using an extended metaphor of his father's disease representing racism. Both essays effectively justify their statements on race, though Baldwin's has a clearer call to action and more cohesive extended metaphor.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    80 views3 pages

    Comparison Essay - CAP

    Uploaded by

    Adia Keene
    The document compares the essays "Notes of a Native Speaker" by Eric Liu and "Notes of a Native Son" by James Baldwin. Liu discusses assimilation and argues that power in America has been associated with whiteness. He uses metaphors and symbolism to illustrate this point. Baldwin treats race as a communal issue and calls readers to action against racism. His essay draws parallels between his father's death and race riots using an extended metaphor of his father's disease representing racism. Both essays effectively justify their statements on race, though Baldwin's has a clearer call to action and more cohesive extended metaphor.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 3

    Adia Keene

    Pd. 2
    Oct. 18, 2018
    Comparison Essay

    Writer and domestic policy specialist, Eric Liu, in his essay, ​Notes of a Native Speaker​,

    initiates a unique conversation on what it means to assimilate and be American. As he takes time

    to reflect on the events that altered who he is, Liu aims to resonate with an audience of other

    immigrants and distinguish the difference between desiring power and desiring whiteness.

    Similarly, James Baldwin, a novelist and essayist born in the 1920’s, also reveals his opinion on

    the treatment of race in his narrative, ​Notes of a Native Son.​ His purpose is to instigate change

    and action amongst readers so that they will not remain complacent. Both authors use metaphor,

    symbolism, and imagery in unique ways to develop their arguments about race in America.

    Liu and Baldwin seem to vary greatly in their opinions on race. In ​Notes of a Native

    Speaker​, Liu interprets race as closely tied to power, and explains that in America power has

    been a metonym for whiteness. Throughout the essay metaphors are used to illustrate how this

    comparison was drawn. Towards the beginning Liu says that he “[pleads] guilty to the charges,”

    such as “learning the ways of the upper middle class.” To Liu, assimilation is a criminal act in

    which the damages are ascribed to immigrant families and their cultures. In addition to metaphor,

    symbolism is also used to place readers in Liu’s shoes throughout various points in his life. For

    example, he describes Yale, his alma mater as “a grand WASP temple” with “wrought-iron

    gates.” Like assimilation, his college only let a few participate, but once they do, they are

    transformed into members of the most dominant culture. Despite his criticisms of assimilation

    throughout his essay, new ideas are presented at the end of ​Notes of a Native Speaker ​that

    provide further insight into Liu’s opinion on race. He states that he himself does not want to be

    white, but rather wants to be integrated. He repeats the phrase “torrent of change” multiple times
    in reference to immigrants. The belief that immigrants will come to America in waves to bring

    about change brings into light Liu’s point that assimilation is inevitable, but it will not always be

    white. With metaphors and symbolism tied directly to ideas, every aspect of the essay is clear to

    the reader in its intent. A combination of various stylistic and rhetorical devices make ​Notes of a

    Native Speaker​ a comprehensive and thought-provoking piece.

    Despite Liu’s various allusions to Baldwin, both in his title and throughout his essay, the

    way that Baldwin addresses race in ​Notes of a Native Son​ does not bear much resemblance to

    Liu’s piece. Baldwin treats race as an important, communal issue, and his call to action seems to

    be intended primarily for those of his own race. The basis for much of Baldwin’s essay is the

    parallel drawn between two major events in Baldwin’s life that occurred around the same time:

    his father’s death and the race riots. An extended metaphor referencing his father’s disease, is

    central to tying the two stories together. For example, Baldwin described how his father would

    cause him and his sibling’s to “become paralyzed” in a metaphorical sense or how his father was

    “eaten up by paranoia.” When Baldwin describes the disease as he simultaneously describes

    instances of racism a message is conveyed that racism itself is a disease. The narrative ends with

    a call to action, in which Baldwin states that complacency is not an option. He proclaims that

    “one must never, in one’s own life, accept these injustices as commonplace but must fight them

    with all one’s strength.” This proclamation ties together several ideas presented throughout the

    essay.

    Both ​Notes of a Native Speaker​ and ​Notes of a Native Son​ are effective in justifying their

    statements on race. Overall, Baldwin’s essay has the slight advantage over Liu’s due to the clear

    call to action at the end, which adds an evident intent to the entire essay, as well as the use of
    extended metaphor, which ties the entirety of the essay together in a way that ​Notes of a Native

    Speaker​ did not.

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