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Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between The World And Me

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Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between The World And Me
Between the World and Me

Between the World and Me is a book written by Ta-Nehisi Coates and published three years ago in July by Spiegel and Grau. This book is structured as a letter to the author’s 15- year old son. In this letter, Coates speaks to his son about his overall place in America as a young Black man, being that this is a nation rich in racism and discrimination. To further delve into this topic with his son, Coates uses an excerpt from The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin as well as his personal experiences growing up as a young Black man in America. This novel has found continued success because of its level of relatability within the Black community; in so many words, it is everything many Black men needed to hear for themselves,
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‘’But this has never been an option because the Dream rests on our backs, the bedding made from our bodies.’’ Out of this thematic message of ‘’The Dream’’ come the many supporting reasons why this is the most powerful message. ‘’The Dream’’ is supported by situations such as unjust killings by police officers amounting to nothing but paid vacations, guns and drugs in the Black Community and violence. Together, all of these lead to something that Coates describes as a ‘’breakable body.’’ To clarify, ‘’The Dream’’ is made by Black ‘’breakable bodies’’ and the things that cause Black bodies to break are the situations listed above and many more where Black rights are disregarded. As a whole, Coates skillfully explains these various ideas into a singular, sensible thread, a chain even, that more appropriately explains to his son and all readers, just how orchestrated ‘’The Dream’’

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