Baldwins First Time
Baldwin's Fire Next Time
We always say "Love conquers all" is commonly said and heard in our
daily lives. Ironically, this is necessarily not true as James Baldwin
views our society. He illustrates the stereotypes of both Blacks and
Whites. In his argumentative autobiography, The Fire Next Time, the
author brilliantly perceives the idea that love, instead of fear, liberates
society. To truly "liberate" society, one must discover his/her
individual and personal identity by learning to love.
Baldwin describes "fear" to be ignorance, and "love" as knowledge.
He joined the congressional church due to fear. He was afraid to become
involved with his friends who began to drink and smoke. To avoid such
situations, Baldwin was driven into the church because he "supposed that
God and safety were synonymous." (16) Timidity blinded him to believe
that following God's words shielded him from the evils of society. However,
because of Baldwin's love for his church, he reads the Bible, only to
realize that was strictly about the teachings of White people. He thought
that going to the church will protect him, and shield him against what he
feared. Instead of freeing the community from discrimination between
Blacks and Whites, the Bible supported the existence of racial barriers by
teaching one should behave. Realizing the hypprocarcy involved with
Christianity, the author broke away from the congressional church, to
search his own way of liberating the society.
Baldwin emphasizes that liberation is love, and "love is more
important than color."...
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