Between The World And Me Analysis

In his book Between the World and Me, American journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates passionately writes about America’s racial history, and how said history shapes our lives today, particularly those of African Americans. Written as a letter to Coates’ son, Somari, Between the World and Me explains and emphasizes the reality of being black in America, as opposed to what Coates refers to as “living white”, often referred to as “the Dream”. Between the World and Me” highlights three aspects of cultural psychology covered in class: stereotyping, socialization, and the self.
Ta-Nehisi Coates is an American writer, journalist, and educator born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland. Coates’ father, William Paul Coates, was a former member of the Black Panthers, a controversial black-nationalist and …show more content…
However, his writing comes across as incredibly cynical, as if he’s already given up. Ryan Holiday, a best-selling author and editor-at-large for the Observer, points out that while his subject matter is incredibly important, Coates’ tone makes it seem as if he doesn’t want to understand why America’s history is what it is (Holiday, 2015). The writing also showcases a strong “us versus them” mentality, which seems to be counterproductive. While Between the World and Me is written to showcase the daily struggle of African Americans, the tone in which it is written is accusatory; it appears as though Coates simply wants to pass blame on those who he deems as “living white”, or those who achieve the American Dream. A telling example of this comes from one of the last pages of Between the World and Me, in which Coates states: “They made us into a race. We made ourselves into a people” (p. 149). This statement is a perfect example of the “us versus them” mentality Between the World and Me showcases. It is clear that by “they”, Coates is referring to white