The Autobiography of Malcolm X (1965) was the result of a collaboration between the African-American Muslim minister and human rights activist Malcolm X and the journalist Alex Haley. Haley based it on a series of interviews between 1963 and Malcolm X’s assassination on February 21, 1965. It is a spiritual conversion narrative outlining Malcolm X’s philosophy of black pride, black nationalism, and pan-Africanism. While Malcolm X and scholars contemporary to the book’s publication regarded Haley as the book’s ghostwriter, modern scholars regard him as an essential collaborator who subsumed his authorial voice to allow readers to feel as though Malcolm X were speaking directly to them. Haley also influenced some of Malcolm X’s literary choices and Haley’s proactive censorship of antisemitic material significantly influenced the ideological tone of the Autobiography, increasing its popularity although distorting Malcolm X’s public persona. A New York Times reviewer described it as a “brilliant, painful, important book” and Time named it in 1998 as one of ten “required reading” nonfiction books. A screenplay adaptation provided the source material for Spike Lee’s 1992 film Malcolm X. Read more: _______________________________ Today’s selected anniversaries: 1245: Thomas, the first known Bishop of Finland, was granted resignation by Pope Innocent IV after having confessed to torture and forgery. 1804: Built by Cornish inventor Richard Trevithick, the first self- propelled steam locomotive first ran in Wales. 1828: The inaugural issue of the Cherokee Phoenix, the first newspaper in a Native American language, was published. 1919: Bavarian socialist Kurt Eisner (pictured), who had organized the German Revolution that overthrew the Wittelsbach monarchy and established Bavaria as a republic, was assassinated. 1952: Protesters in Dhaka, East Pakistan, walked into military crossfire demanding the establishment of the Bengali language as an official language. _____________________________ Wiktionary’s word of the day: jump the shark: 1. (idiomatic, of a television program or other narrative) To undergo a storyline development which heralds a fundamental and generally disappointing change in direction. 2. (more generally) To experience a decline in quality, appeal, popularity, etc. ___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day: This world would be a whole lot better if we just made an effort to be less horrible to one another. If we took just 5 minutes to recognize each other’s beauty, instead of attacking each other for our differences. That’s not hard. It’s really an easier and better way to live. And ultimately, it saves lives. –Ellen Page Read More about the article here ift.tt/1cA4WSd ift.tt/1k3puVW
Posted on: Mon, 24 Feb 2014 12:49:16 +0000