Study Guides: Malcolm X

"Message to the Grassroots"

A PDF version of the speech is available on GA View. You should download, print, and read this version.

Study Questions

  1. What similarities are evident between the ideas of Malcolm X and the ideas of nonviolent leaders like Martin Luther King, John Lewis, Bob Moses, Diane Nash, etc.?
  2. What are the key differences in their ideas?
  3. What motifs are evident in the speech?
  4. Like MLK, Malcolm X was a brilliant communicator. What similarities are evident in the style of the two men as writers and speakers?

Malcolm X (Spike Lee, 1993)

The IMBD entry for the film includes the basic details.

Study Questions

  1. What motifs, meanings, and contexts are conveyed by the opening credit sequence?
  2. What motifs, meanings, and contexts are conveyed by the closing sequences?
  3. Is Denzel Washington the right choice for the lead? Why or why not?
  4. Why include the production sequences in the ball room and the night club?