James Weldon Johnson is very intentional in the way he spoke about the characters in The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man. The doctor is a character that Johnson uses to speak about self-hate within the African American community. The way the doctor conducts himself around the unnamed protagonist shows the way African American classified themselves during this time. The doctor shows the protagonist that on a larger scale, the self-hate in the African American community surpassed the status quo of the idea that self-hate is merely a physical competition among African American. Johnson uses the Doctor to show that self-hate in the African American community is also a class issue.
To speak on the concept of self-hate; one must know what it is. Self-hate is the hatred of oneself. Self-hatred in The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man is spoken about through the lens of the African American community, how it is self-hatred within the entire community. Self-hate is a social concept that was created with the system of slavery and never quite died out. Self-hate is something in the African American that is associated with the physical characteristics and associated with African American women. The …show more content…
Johnson states “he commented rather harshly on those of the latter class which we saw.” (Johnson 73). This is the setup of his actual thoughts. This shows that in the doctor’s self-hate there is a hierarchy as far as class. He did not have anything to say harshly about those of his class or the class above him. The doctor feels as if he is better than the lower class of African Americans. This divides the African American community which is what the system of self- hate was created to do. The doctor’s comments were to a degree that the unnamed protagonist was not used to. This shows him that not even African Americans can see themselves as equals among each
To speak on the concept of self-hate; one must know what it is. Self-hate is the hatred of oneself. Self-hatred in The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man is spoken about through the lens of the African American community, how it is self-hatred within the entire community. Self-hate is a social concept that was created with the system of slavery and never quite died out. Self-hate is something in the African American that is associated with the physical characteristics and associated with African American women. The …show more content…
Johnson states “he commented rather harshly on those of the latter class which we saw.” (Johnson 73). This is the setup of his actual thoughts. This shows that in the doctor’s self-hate there is a hierarchy as far as class. He did not have anything to say harshly about those of his class or the class above him. The doctor feels as if he is better than the lower class of African Americans. This divides the African American community which is what the system of self- hate was created to do. The doctor’s comments were to a degree that the unnamed protagonist was not used to. This shows him that not even African Americans can see themselves as equals among each