Preview

Champion of the World

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
271 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Champion of the World
Maya Angelou shows her point in “Champion of the World” by showing that nobody is inferior to anybody else. She reinforces her point throughout the entire story by having race to race comparisons. The story is directed to all those who think that they are superior to those who have a different skin color or race. She reiterates racism throughout the short story by pinning race on race. The story and message told by the story are effective because she used different techniques for the audience to go on. She told about all of the African-American people in the store listening closely to the radio and made it into a really big deal. By making it into a big deal we can understand that the African-Americans were counting on a win by, one of their kind, Joe Louis. In paragraph sixteen, Maya Angelou gives examples about what would to come if Joe Louis were to lose. “It was another lynching”, “a black boy whipped and maimed.” She uses these examples because that is how it used to be and how she thought it would be if Joe were to lose. The examples she uses are strong and bold and show us that the black people couldn’t afford to lose in another aspect of life. She needed to prove a point and she did just that. She wanted the ones to think that they were superior to open their eyes and see that they are no different from anyone else that walks this earth. Regardless of skin color, race, or nationality, there should not be discrimination and this story demonstrates

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Angelou mainly speaks about her race and gender in many of her poems. The poems speak up about the strength the community has and that they will rise above all even if there are many things trying to push the individuals down. Angelou’s poem “Still I Rise” not only affected Americans, it also affected other parts of the world. Nelson Mandela was moved by it enough that he read it aloud at his presidential inauguration. Angelou had created a movement amongst the black community similar to Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm…

    • 563 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Purpose: The purpose of this story and why it was written was for that African American can no longer feel less from the white race. So they are able to feel confident because of Joe Louis’s victory they were no longer seen as the lowest class their was in American society. African Americans were no longer feeling that they were slaves for the white race they were free from slavery no longer having to do work for the Americans. They did have to believe what they said that God himself didn’t love them because they were black.…

    • 485 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    A fight between Louis and a white rival was a major event for the black community. “The last inch of space was filled, yet people continued to wedge themselves along the walls of the Store.” (Angelou 110) The enthusiasm of the people who wanted to listen to the fight was so great. Angelou focuses on the vulnerability of African Americans during the segregation era. “My race groaned. It was our people falling…one more woman ambushed and raped.” this shows how upset and ashamed Angelou is about the mistreatment of her race. At the end of the match they all were happy because the boxer that won was African American “…Joe’s gonna whip that cracker like its open season.” (Angelou 111) This shows the emotion the patrons at the store felt while listening to one of their kind fight a person who was ‘‘white.’’ Angelou also speaks about the mistreatments her race went through on a daily basis. Angelou, just wants everyone to be treated the same. “It wouldn’t do for a Black man and his family to be caught on a lonely country road on a night when Joe Louis had proved that we were the strongest people in the world.” (Angelou 112) The quote shows the fear and anguish Angelou and the black community experience during this time of segregation in the…

    • 666 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Joe Louis and Fish Cheeks

    • 985 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Being a different nationality than those of a more prevalent country can easily dictate whether one feels misplaced, different, or mistreated. In Maya Angelou's “Champion of the World”, she recounts a scene of a boxing match between Joe Louis and Carnera in which the outcome of the match was very important because it would determine whether the blacks would be subjugated to the whites or not. Similarly, in Amy Tan's “Fish Cheeks”, she remembers a story of when she was fourteen during Christmas when her crush and his father were invited to their house, she felt embarrassed at her family, the food, and Chinese traditions. Both stories mention nationalities which feel inferior to the white race. Despite having common ground, the two stories have different perspectives and points of view. Additionally, they use different literary devices, making one story more effective than the other.…

    • 985 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the two stories, the characters are both faced with similar problems, they are discriminated or are unpleased with the way they look. In Champion of the World, the characters are forced into slavery and hard work because they are African American they believed they “...were stupid and ugly…” (Maya…

    • 281 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mammas Encounter

    • 760 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Maya Angelou was born in St. Louis, Missouri (1928) as Marguerite Johnson; however she grew up in Stamps, Arkansas where her grandmother ran a general store. Angelou has acted and written several plays, poems, and a six-part autobiography “I Know Why the caged Bird Sings” making her one of this country’s foremost black writers. In this story Angelou tells about how her grandmother (momma) triumphs over a pack of taunting neighborhood children. I feel very strongly about this particular piece given the time set and the way black people were treated by the whites, and how without harsh words or threats some black people overcame the taunting and cruelties of the whites.…

    • 760 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Reyita

    • 904 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Reyita explains how a black mans best or even only chance was in sports, especially boxing. It was almost impossible for black men to escape poverty at that time.…

    • 904 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The author was very successful in proving her point about the racism going on in the world. She first proved a point by telling her story because she is admitting that racism is something, and how she knows that it is. Her purpose was to inform people that racism is something and if someone that is young with a very racist family can overlook those things her family did, then she knows that people now can start to overlook t what happened in the…

    • 1129 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    King

    • 1943 Words
    • 8 Pages

    A Web quest Go to HYPERLINK http//www.politicalcompass.org www.politicalcompass.org and click on take the test. Take the test to find out where you land on the political compass and plot it here My Political compass Economic Left/Right 0.25 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian 0.87 Q Do the results surprise you Why or why not A No, they do not surprise me, because I dont really know a lot about political issues, they dont really spark my interest. However I do feel that the people of this nation deserve fairness and equality. Q Who does it say your views are similar to A My views were very similar to an authoritarian Q You have decided you would like to run for the Missouri City Council. What are the steps you need to take (What application When is the election) A The Election is November 3, 2015 Research elected positions that are going to be vacant in the next elections such as mayor, city trustee or councilperson. Determine which position to run for and where one stands a good chance of winning. Know other candidates, as you will be running against them and maybe serving with them. Get endorsements from influential figures and other reputable local people as early as possible. Do some homework. Research the history of the city, its demographics, action of predecessors and current events. Be prepared for formal and informal interviews. Attend school board meetings and other meetings that discuss issues affecting the council. Before establishing a campaign platform, get information about the council by reading local dailies and talking to locals. Find out the issues that concern individuals within the locality. People running for council seats should understand that their lives will be on the limelight and understand the ramifications of such situations. They should discuss their decisions with family members because their lives will also be radically altered. Practice public speaking. Practice speaking in front of large and…

    • 1943 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The poem, “Still I Rise,” by Maya Angelou, is about an African-American female who faces adversity in the form of racial discrimination and fights for her own rights by standing up and rising above her oppressors. She says “You may shoot me with your words/ You may cut me with your eyes/ You may kill me with your hatefulness/ But still, like air, I’ll rise…I am the dream and hope of the slave” (21-24,40). This quote demonstrates how she lived in a time where she was discriminated. The words “shoot,” “cut,” and “kill” reflect a violent tone which reveals how her oppressors treats her harshly and she does not have the ability to live the way she wants to. These ideas all show how African-Americans faced a time where they could not choose how they wanted to live their life. The phrase “hope of the slave” connotes prosperity, thus suggesting that she stands up for herself of the harsh life she faces. This idea is important because it shows that she has confidence, and she does whatever it takes to not be discriminated against, no matter what her oppressors may say. Ultimately, Maya Angelou gains power by overcoming racism since she fights for herself no matter what the circumstance is, and this illustrates how anybody can fight for themselves if someone else is being racist toward them. To continue, there is a short story that includes a time where blacks were also discriminated. The short story, “Mrs.…

    • 1432 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Poetry Response

    • 1275 Words
    • 6 Pages

    “Harlem Hopscotch” by Maya Angelou (740) is a metaphor for the constant struggles young African American children had to deal with while trying to fit into a white man’s society. Reading this poem in 2012, I can see the humor and sarcasm Angelou has put into this poem. Lines such as, “Another jump to the left everybody for hisself” reveals an image of a white man’s superiority and ignorance to others needs. “Since you black don’t stick around. Food is gone and rent is due, curse and cry and then jump two” There is such humor in this line about the struggles that African Americans went through and in some areas are still going through. For a strong African American who was trying to get out from behind the white man’s shadow; the visual of all the hoops that they would have to go through to get to the front of the line is impressive. This poem reveals a tone of depression in which the African American could not get out into the white man’s world.…

    • 1275 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    One example is when Maya felt discriminated at her graduation ceremony when Mr. Edward Donleavy says, “The white kids were going to have a chance to become Galileos and Madame Curies and Edisons and Gauguins, and our boys would try to be Jesse Owenses and Joe Lousises”(Angelou 174). He believed in the limits the opportunities of race had to offer and stereotyped about white children becoming the thinkers and black children only transforming into the athletes. Henry Reeds, a student in Maya’s class, fights against Donleavy’s racist words with his own valedictory speech entitled “To Be or Not To Be” and singing Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing, which is also known as the Negro National…

    • 859 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Champion of the world

    • 519 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Many events have strengthened the bonds of families, friends, and even ethnic communities and groups in history. This boxing event has done exactly so. Many people from family and friends to even strangers gathered together to listen to this boxing match. The fact that being African-American at that time meant being in a whole different social class so they would be mistreated and under-privileged. This boxing match was an African-American man versus an American man. Supporting the underdog meant having pride in being African-American.…

    • 519 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In “Champion of the World”, Angelou tends to have more elements in her article. Her depiction is meticulous. At the beginning of the story, she first introduces uncle Willie’s store as the environment settings and use it as a basic setting throughout the whole story. Afterwards, Angelou starts to picture the people’s behaviors in the store. For example, “Women sat on kitchen chairs, dining-room chairs, stools, and upturned wooden boxes. Small children and babies perched on every lap available and men leaned on the shelves or on each other.” (93) She depicts the image of the store before the fight begins. After that, the voice from the radio starts to appear in the story. Moreover, the author also uses multi-angle description to tell the story to the readers. In addition to the first person view, Angelou uses third person narrative on the radio narration. At the time when the radio is broadcasting the fight, she has not forgotten to insert some setting description about the situations in the store, for example, “there were only a few calls for RC Colas,…

    • 1543 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the past, there were direct discrimination toward African Americans such as police brutality and racial stereotype about African Americans. Policemen stopped the marching violently when they knew that those African Americans are protesting the rights they always deserve. People produced songs with lyrics like “if you are white, you are fine; if you are black, go back, go back”, and they published cartoons that had African Americans been drew in an ugly and terrifying way. Those are the dues African Americans have to pay, and they suffered all these terrible acts of the white people in order to survive in the United States. This film uses the unavoidable facts about the discriminations African Americans suffered to emphasize the big ideas that African Americans have done a lot of effort to gain their freedom should always be memorable by the people of the world. Nobody should ever deny African Americans’ suffering because those are part of the U.S…

    • 829 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays