James Baldwin : Biography

JAMES'S BACKGROUND

James Baldwin was born August 2,1924. He was the oldest of nine children. James was born to his single mother Emma Jones at Harlem Hospital. James's mother married David Baldwin. James served as a minister at the age of 14 to 16 at Harlem Penacostal. He attended Dewitt Clinton High School. Here James worked for the school. He graduated in 1942. This is when he had his first homosexual relationship. Becoming Famous James Spent his life writing. James Baldwin became famous from his ability to write. James became famous by writing about his sexuality and his workings with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

James's Impact On Others and Society

James made an impact on people by causing people to realize their truth or helping them speak their truth. James's life has been remarkable because he dedicated it to writing about equality not just as race but for sexuality. James was a hero in the world of writing because he had the ability to criticize and love thing at the same time.

His Decisions/Lessons

According to http://oxfordre.com Baldwin made the difficult, yet inevitable decision to renounce the ministry altogether. He knew he wanted—in fact, needed—to become a writer; in the meantime, he began working at a railroad in New Jersey.

Quotes

• Love takes off masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within. This means to me: Love reveals everything and people don’t want to feel love because they don’t want to reveal themselves.
• Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them. This means to me: Children don’t always listen but they will always mock.
• Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced. This means to me: You have to face your obstacle in order to take it on.

Another's Country (summary and theme) "Another Country is unified by an intertwining pattern of events and themes. The story often jumps drastically from scene to scene, and the narrative voice enters the minds of the characters, like Vivaldo, Cass, and Eric. They went to seek honest means to express themselves they did things like engaging in parties and discussions, arguments and sex, with the mystery of Rufus always nearby. Vivaldo is full of jealousy when Ida spends more time with her fast-talking producer, however she accuses him later of making the racist assumption that all black women are whores. Eric is anxious about his future with Yves and somewhat dazed to be back in New York. He becomes a haven for the disillusioned Cass and when she comes to him, they begin an affair. As the weeks pass, Vivaldo’s jealousy becomes more isolating, Cass’s infidelity more frivolous, and Eric’s future with Yves more certain."The theme of this book is "In Another Country" is a story about coming to terms with loss.  "The book focuses on the events in the life of an American man living in Paris and his feelings and frustrations with his relationships with other men in his life, particularly an Italian bartender named Giovanni whom he meets at a Parisian gay bar. The novel explores the internal struggle of facing your sexuality despite imposed hyper-masculinity alongside navigating the public sphere and illustrating the challenges and blessing of accessible queer spaces." The theme of this book is sexuality and sexual identity  Venn Diagram War, accepting loss, a group of guys expressing themselves about life situations Sexuality, acceptance Man has problems with his relationship, talks about him learning to accept his sexuality Another's Country Giovanni's Room Both

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