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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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