The Autobiography of Malcolm X gives us a portrait of a profoundly influential figure who went through a whole series of transformations. It's safe to say, however, that two events in particular punctuated the life of this remarkable and controversial man: his prison conversion and his trip to Mecca. This pivotal moments raise many questions about the nature of religious belief and experience--and the story as a whole reminds us about the often intimate connection between religion, race/racism, and politics.
To reassert our big question: It seems that Malcolm X's religious faith was shattered--almost from the beginning--by his personal experience and the racist environment he grew up in. But like C.S. Lewis, he eventually found something he could believe in. What exactly is the connection between religion and racism in this story?
This text also tells us a lot about the nature of religious experience (conversion in particular), and it also reveals something more generally about the process we undergo when our fundamental beliefs about the world change. What are the most important forces behind these kinds of shifts? What anticipates them? And what role does after-the-fact interpretation play? Does this form of analysis diminish or undermine the religious content of conversions like the ones that Malcolm X undergoes? I.e., does it raise doubts about the truth or reality of religious conversions?
While reading The Autobiography of Malcolm X, I too thought about what made Malcolm X’s two transformations important and stand out from his regular experiences. I believe that this book links Malcolm X’s conversions to his travels to show both the spiritual and physical aspects of his changes. Each of Malcolm’s conversions involves first traveling to a far away place. For example in prison he begins to imitate Bibi and learn how to read and write. The same situation happens when Malcolm X makes the pilgrimage to Mecca. He broadens his perspective on race in America when he learns that in Islam, people of all races, including whites come together in prayer. I feel that the traveling to different places before Malcolm’s conversions show the role that the environment plays on his worldview. Even in his younger years, Malcolm was influenced by his environment when he moved to Boston and began to do drugs and steal. I believe that this form of analysis doesn’t raise doubts about the truth of religious conversions. This is because if one just stays in the same environment for their life, that is what they base their beliefs on and they are not able to see the bigger picture and other parts of the world. However if one travels to distant places, like Malcolm, they are able to get a better understanding of the world and observe various people and their beliefs. From this their beliefs are not just confined to one particular place. For example, Malcolm originally claimed that white people were the devils and the cause for inequality in America. However once he traveled to Mecca, he was able to see people of all races participating in the religion of Islam. He realized what he originally was preaching in the Nation of Islam was wrong.
ReplyDeleteI think the validity of all conversion stories should be questioned. Clearly these people begin with, at the very least, a desire to find something larger than themselves, even if they're not aware of it. When combining these various anticipations and expectations with our tendency to see what it is that we want to see, someone who is looking for God will most likely "find" him, regardless of whether or not he actually exists.
ReplyDeleteIn Malcom's case, I think it is quite obvious as to why he experienced a conversion. He found himself in a terrible situation, with years of hardship behind him; so when he was given an explanation/solution for his suffering, he readily accepted it.
The teachings of the Nation of Islam made sense to Malcom because of his past. If he had grown up as a privileged child in America, he would have had no real use for Islam and would therefore never have experienced a conversion.
I think this pretty much destroys all credibility a conversion experience is capable of possessing. If you begin believing in God simply because it's convenient for you, what does that say about the probability of his existence? What does that say about you?
*The link between racism and religion in this text is that religion answers the questions about racism and also attempts to explain racism. Because Malcolm X and countless others in this text were directly impacted by unfair racism, it seems as if they are searching for some kind of answer or explanation as to why they are subjected to racism. For Malcolm X and other members of The Nation of Islam, their particular interpretation of Islam offered the answers they were looking for. This answer, in the form of religion, came to Malcolm while he was becoming more and more aware of himself and for the first time begin to question why racism existed and not just how to function with it. This experience replayed itself later on in the story when Malcolm was again looking for answers after being forced out of The Nation of Islam. Once again religion was able to provide answers for Malcolm regarding racism at a time when he was questioning much in his life. His religious trip to Mecca was able to change his views of racism. Instead of seeing it as a personal trouble of one particular group he begin to see it as an evil that effects all of man kind.
ReplyDelete-As Malcolm evidenced most spiritual and personal transformations occur when one begins to question their personal beliefs. This questing is usually the product of someone noticing disruptions in their faith. The after the fact interpretation is extremely important because it allows the person to pin point exactly what went wrong with their beliefs and why. It might also make it easier for the person to recount their story to others.
It certainly is beneficial to turn to God when you hit rock bottom!Malcolmx was at his lowest point ,when he was introduced to Islam. Im sure he resolved most of his deep rooted issues by turning to faith.His leap of faith paved the road for a better tomorrow ,in both the physical and spiritual sense.Freuds perspective of turning to God for comfort is clearly visible through Malcolms submission.
ReplyDeleteFor Malcolm X, I agree that his conversion made a very positive impact on his life and its direction. However, I do not think that the fact that his conversion occurred when he was in prison or that it helped him is proof that conversion experiences are all unreliable. If there is a God and we were made by him, to know him, than we will change for the better after this relationship is established, this makes sense given that reality. It also makes sense that if someone would rather not believe in a God who is in control of everything and knows them inside and out, it will take them hitting rock bottom before they realize they are not in total control and that they need something they have been missing. We should also remember conversions like that of C.S. Lewis, who never hit "rock bottom" and were quite content as an atheist, without God. After research, dsicussion, and perceiving his surroudnings from an entirely different perspective, he came to realize that God was real and he couldn't escape this truth. Turning to a loving, all-powerful God in any state of mind will be comforting. This means that he is who he says he is, not that is all our wish-fulfillment. Indeed, Malcolm X did not wish to humble himself nor did C.S. Lewis wish to admit that an omnipotent being was in control of everything, but these are all parts of who God is and what he commands, so they accepted it all. If Malcolm X was creating the God of his wishes, it would not have been one that required him to give up so much.
ReplyDeleteGoing off of Ginettes comment, I too believe a lot of Malcolms deep rooted issuses were resolved by his new found faith. I also believe that his new found faith was the cause of many hardships brought to his life including the danger him and his family were put in. I very much respect his over all determination to make a difference in this society and i feel his trip to mecca brought a new found "conversion" to his life to traditional Islam. I feel He was able to gain empathedic feelings that he struggled with concerning race by experiencing the mecca world where all muslims are equal no matter what color your skin is.
ReplyDeleteFaith is used quite often as a way to explain and understand experience. I agree with Jamie's comment saying that Malcolm his conversion should be acknowledged with respect. After all it was bad enough that he was in jail, its so powerful with him to exit with a new found understanding of life and how he wants to lead his own. His opinions may have startled some people within religious communities, but change cannot start until some tries to change something else. Malcolm started that change within racism, and would later change how people looked at people in regards to many other aspects : gender, sexuality and religious affiliation.
ReplyDeleteThe question of whether the after-the-fact interpretation and anticipations of conversion diminish the conversion experience itself is a challenging question. I think that when a conversion experience occurs it may seem from the outside to have occured suddenly and out of nowhere when in fact, upon further investigation, there was plenty of aniticipation that lead up to that point. There is rarely a conversion experience that is truly out of nowhere. Like in Malcolm X's case, there is anticipation of the conversion. Events lead up to the actual experience. Although he may not have recognized them at the time, he uses after-the-fact interpretation to realize that they were steps toward the conversion itself. This does not diminish the conversion experience, however. At the time that the conversion occured and when other conversions occur one may not see the foreshadowing of the conversion, but will add that in afterwards. In Malcolm X's conversion experience the anticipation was his "hitting rock bottom" spiritually and perhaps mentally. Like Nancy said, his hitting rock bottom before his conversion does not make that conversion unreliable. He was in need of some spiritual guidance and he obtained that guidance, but that does not make the experience any less true.
ReplyDeleteJust because Malcom X made a positive change in his life due to his conversion does not mean that it necessarily deserves "respect" or that it was undoubtedly real. It is admirable that he turned his life around to such an extent but that alone does not make his experience true.
ReplyDeleteImagine if the religion of Islam had been presented to Malcom in a completely different light while he was in prison. Say, for instance, no mention was made of the "white devil" or of the black man being the original man on earth. Do you think it would have grabbed Malcom's attention then? If Islam had been presented to him as a peaceful religion of brotherhood and acceptance (as it was later on), he would have had no interest in it.
The Nation of Islam fit Malcom's initial purposes and I am convinced that played a large part in his conversion. If the religion had been depicted in a gentler light, Malcom would not have put his faith in Allah. A shift in how the religion was represented (one that actually would have described the religion more accurately) would have destroyed Malcom's belief.
It seems that we use religion to suit our own needs, whatever they may be. This hints at Freud's wish fulfillment theory.
Diane, what you said is true, and this is what I argued before: just because the faith made a positive impact doesn't mean it is necessarilly true but it also doesn't mean that it has to be false. If God is real, he will have a positive impact on the life of someone who accepts him because we were made to be in that relationship. I also agree that the Nation of Islam was originally appealing because of its radical views, but what is important is that Malcolm X later re-evaluates these original beliefs he held and revises them according to what he sees in Mecca. His open-minded ability to analyze his experiences and derive the truth from them is what makes his faith develop into a more accurate understanding of his religion and God. He changes his views not because it suits his needs at that time, but because it is what he has seen to be true!
ReplyDeleteIt's Diana*. But I do agree with you on some level. I'm not necessarily saying that Malcom's faith/conversion was false, I just think that the circumstances surrounding them need to be taken into account and that we shouldn't blindly accept these types of stories even if they have a positive impact.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious, do you think Malcom could have changed his life around without religion? It seems to me as if he was born to lead and that Islam only happened to be the trigger to his self-improvement. I feel that if it hadn't been that, it would've been something else that spoke to him.
I'm not so sure that he would have become what he did without his religious conversion in prison. It seems like he could have so easily gone back to hustling when he finally got out, especially because he wouldn't have had such an influential mentor. He also wouldn't have had strong ties to his family because they were part of the Nation of Islam and wouldn't have necessarily been allowed to associate with him. He wouldn't have had a support system. You're right that somewhere down the line he may have been spurred on by something else to become as influential as he became, but I don't think that he would have been anywhere near the same person without his religious conversion. It completely changed his outlook on life and it seems that very few other things could have accomplised that with him at that point in his life.
ReplyDeleteIt is my belief that religious conversions usually occur when individuals are in crisis. In C.S. Lewis' case he wasn't going through a personal crisis, that we know of. I think Malcolm X needed something to believe in, and something to channel his anger into. By involving himself in his new found religion, he actually became a fanatic, which seems very scary to me. It's also questionable, the way he had a second "conversion", can these life changinf conversions happen more than once in someone's life?
ReplyDeleteI think that conversions are the best time to question God's motives. People turn away from God just as quickly as they beg Him for help when they are at rock bottom. In Malcolm X's case, he found a whole new perspective of God. I have found that the peaks and the vallies of life are the best time to soul search. In most of that soul searching, the question of God is involved. A person who goes through their life under a harsh scrutiny such as racism is not limited to soul searching often. I find that regardless of what the individual decides, the existence of God stands; whether they are calling Him harsh and powerless or omnipotent and great. For him to questioned alone, hints at his existence.
ReplyDeletei completely agree with Emily on the whole conversion of religions thing. While sitting in class last week the same thought crossed my mind. If people are so eager to turn away from one god and turn towards another where are the boundaries really. My father is going through something very similar with a reevaluation of his faith and is looking into completely different religions while hes been soul searching. Yes, i understand that finding yourself is an integral part of human existence but where do you draw the line in religion. If it's supposed to be this almighty power that will smite you if you disobey it how can you pack up and move on to the next religion. Gods existence is always there.
ReplyDeleteAfter-the-fact interpretation's role in religious conversion is huge, in my opinion. When talking about the way people experience things in class, we talked about the fact that one never truly experiences something in the moment. it is a combination of anticipation and and interpretation once it has taken place, which truly shape the affect of an experience on a person. I think that both of these things had an enormous affect on Malcolm X because we see so much of his life both before and after his conversion. The need to convert is extremely apparent when he is in jail and the outside influences seem to change him into the man that converts. I agree with what a lot of people have already said, which is that Malcolm X has turned to God when he needs him most while in jail and it truly changes him in a serious way. I can't view his conversion as being something to doubt simply because of the profound affect it has on who he is and how it ends up shaping him.
ReplyDeleteThe connection between racism and religion, in Malcolm X's experience, has much to do with his conversion to Islam. From birth Malcolm X was discriminated against because of the color of his skin. He felt this discrimination even from the same people who practiced the same religion, Christianity. And it seems since his upbringing he has been very critical of Christianity and its racist attitudes, so when a religion, Islam, was brought to Malcolm's attention he accepted, in part, because it not only accepted him it embraced him. There was no discrimination for Malcolm in Islam. When Malcom X was incarcerated he was at the lowest point in his life(his words), he was a drug addict, and stealing to get by. Because he was in such a bad state and looking for an out Malcolm was ripe for a religous conversion. I feel that his conversion is in fact less credible because he was looking for it, he may not have known exactly what he was looking for but all the same he was looking for an out. Perhaps if he was not in such a sad state of affairs and had this religous conversion I could feel it to be more credible
ReplyDeleteMalcolm X had a perspective that merely presented his own views on what he thought was wrong with religion and the white man. Islam came to him later in life and through Islam did he realize that the life he had been leading was not one of faith or prosperity. I agree with Peter that his conversion is not exactly valid. How could he be responsible for such a new age religion for its time. When is prison one fantasizes from illusions. Is Malcolm X the exception?
ReplyDeleteIf Malcom X was still alive today, he would be president.
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