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Rhetorical Analysis Of Learning To Read By Malcolm X

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“Learning to read” by Malcolm X uses ethos and pathos throughout the whole essay. He gives you a sense of trust by letting his reader know that he is not perfect, being that he was once illiterate himself. He is comfortable with the fact that he came from the bottom and that he was not always this powerful influential man. He appeals to your emotions by giving examples of the racism he endured, and how he handled it.
The first example of ethos found was “In the street, I had been the most articulate hustler. But now trying to write simple english, I not only wasn't articulate, I wasn't even functional” page (257). Malcolm X shows the side of him that someone else would have been embarrassed to divulge, but this proves that he wants us to know all the details of where he started in his life. He gives us the sense that it's okay we are all human, and should be comfortable with letting our struggles be known, to let others know where …show more content…
If he could do it while serving a prison sentence, then a person to whom is free should have no excuse on why they can't learn a new craft. His tone throughout the essay is mixed. If he is talking about racism his tone transfers to anger, if he is talking about his past life and events, his tone is relaxed and passive. Malcolm lets you into his life and wants you to grasp his points on how he didn't learn to read like a typical person or child. He felt that jail was the perfect place to learn how to read, and that he got the most out of his jail sentence. Rather than being down, he found something to make his prison sentence

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