James Baldwin

James Baldwin, "Notes of a Native Son"

James Baldwin (1924-1987) was born in Harlem, the son of a clergyman. Baldwin was a preacher as well for a short time in his teens, but then turned to literary life. He left Harlem in the 1940s to immerse himself in the culture of Greenwich Village, and to teach himself to write. Troubled about race relations, Baldwin left America for France in 1948. There, he wrote Go Tell It on the Mountain (1953), an autobiographical novel about growing up black in America. He came back to the U.S. about a decade later and was prominent in the Civil Rights Movement. His essay collections, Notes of a Native Son (1955), Nobody Knows My Name (1961), and The Fire Next Time (1963) were both popular and influential. Baldwin also wrote plays and poetry. This excerpt, taken from Notes of a Native Son, focuses upon the author's relationship with his father.

CONTENT

1. What is "the Old Country"?
2. What is the major thing Baldwin discovers in his first year away from home?
3. Describe the social and political context surrounding the death of the author's father in as much detail as you can.
4. In what ways does Baldwin suffer the effects of Jim Crow laws?
5. How does the author get along with the other workers at his job in New Jersey?
6. Describe Baldwin's relationship with his father.
7. In what context does Baldwin make mention of the Japanese? What does this have to do with the rest of the narrative?

STRATEGY AND STYLE

1. "Notes of a Native Son" is a narration about a part of one specific man's life, but it has widespread importance. What are some of the ways Baldwin makes this more than just the story of a single individual? Where in the essay did you go to support your answer?
2. Find a metaphor in paragraph fifteen. What's the nature of the comparison? What mental image does it evoke? How can you relate these observations to the author's feelings about his self-identity?
3. In light of Baldwin's experience, why is the title of the movie This Land Is Mine "patly ironical"?
4. Did any of the vocabulary in this essay give you trouble? (If, upon first reading, you knew the definitions of the words perdition, sardonic, derisive, and efficacy you can skip this exercise.) Make a list of words you didn't recognize and find definitions for them. What are some effective ways for you to bridge this gap in understanding, in this and other similar readings?
5. Since this narration takes place in the Northeast, why do you think the author underlines the riots taking place in Detroit at the time?

1. Describe your impression of the interaction between blacks and whites at your school. Does it differ as the place differs: from a particular classroom to the library to a game room (or whatever your relevant places are)? How might you link your impressions to this essay?
2. Write about your relationship with your father. What can you find similar in that relationship to the father and son relationship described in "Notes of a Native Son"? What's different?

SUGGESTIONS FOR SUSTAINED WRITING

1. Write an essay about the cycle of life described in this essay. Make sure you back up your main points with specific evidence from your reading.
2. Is Baldwin a trustworthy narrator? Review the essay to find the spots where he mentions distracted and altered states of mind. Do these affect his credibility in this regard? Explain, with references to your text.

FOR FURTHER RESEARCH

Expand your answer to "Content" question c.) above by doing some research about Jim Crow laws. Why and when were they started? When were they ended? What, if anything, lingers on about them? Find some similar examples to Baldwin's and a few that he doesn't mention.

WEB CONNECTION

Did you know that Baldwin left the U.S. for a time in the middle of his life? Want to read more about it? Well, this essay explores various expatriate writers who lived in Paris, including Baldwin.

LINKS

Biographical

"I want to be an honest man and a good writer." That's a quote from James Baldwin. Want more? Here are some autobiographical notes by the author. (Free registration required.)

This is a tribute to Baldwin from the Boston Book Review. Here, you'll find some interesting biographical and critical notes. This page is a good place to visit if you're planning to do research on Baldwin.

Would you like to put Baldwin's work into a historical context? Here is a timeline of Baldwin's life, along with a bibliography and critical notes that will provide you with a great deal of help along these lines.

Bibliographical

This page contains the liner notes he wrote for Maya Angelou's poetry record Black Pearls. How can you link Baldwin's work to music? How does this piece of writing help?

This is his last published essay, from EssenceMagazine. Here, you'll find some valuable information about how Baldwin saw Harlem functioning as a symbol of race relations.

Here is a page of quotes by Baldwin. Did you find any that might help you in your own writing?

Cultural

Here is an article by Baldwin about Black English. What are your thoughts about Black English? If we don't recognize it as a language, what do we lose? If we relegate it to substandard status, do we gain anything? (Free registration required.)

This essay from The Threepenny Review describes Baldwin's interaction with the FBI. Baldwin had an FBI file due to his political activism, including his participation in the voter drive in Selma, Alabama in the early 1960s.

If the above essay whetted your appetite for more info about Baldwin and politics, here is a very good general article about the Civil Rights Movement. It'll help you focus on the historical context in which Baldwin lived and wrote.