James Baldwin's Essay 'My Dungeon Shook'

PROSE Style Analysis Essay: “My Dungeon Shook” James Baldwin composes a powerful letter to his namesake in his moving letter, “My Dungeon Shook”; in this letter, he implements a cynical and severe tone, elaborate and colloquial diction, complex and repetitive syntax, and numerous examples of figurative language, in order to criticize the institution of slavery and racism on the one-hundredth year anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. Baldwin’s choice of tone parallel the severity of his topic, and his elaborate diction demonstrates the elevation of education of people of color since the emancipation. In addition, his paradoxes and allusions serve to illustrate his point and assist the reader to further comprehend his point. Racism discussed by Baldwin constitutes the effective use of a cynical and sever tone as a mirroring effect to his topic. Baldwin’s cynical tone accentuates the lasting affect racism and slavery has left on the culture of black people when he details, “I know what the world has done to my brother and how narrowly he has survived it. And I know, which is much worse, and …show more content…
Baldwin’s elaborate diction serves primarily to highlight that he has risen above the disarray that racism has cause when he explains, “…with a very definite tendency to sound truculent because you and your father resemble him much physically” (Baldwin 13). Also, his colloquial diction when he produces, “I tell you this because I love you, and please don't you ever forget it”, implies familiarity of the recipient. The deeper context behind this is that he is addressing the whole of society, and he is expressing that he knows society will be able to overcome its racist tendencies (Baldwin 13). Beyond his detailed diction, Baldwin also employs a colorful display of syntactical elements in his