Summary—Chapter Twelve: Savior
Yes! Yes, that raping, red-headed devil
was my grandfather! . . . . I hate every
drop of the rapist’s blood that’s in me!
See Important Quotations Explained
In August 1952,
the prison releases Malcolm on parole into the custody of his brother
Wilfred. Malcolm buys a wristwatch, a suitcase, and a pair of eyeglasses.
In Detroit, Malcolm instantly appreciates the warmth and order of
Wilfred’s strictly Muslim household. The solidarity and austerity
of his first Nation of Islam temple meeting excites Malcolm. In
Chicago Elijah Muhammad publicly likens Malcolm to the biblical
figure Job, inviting everyone to watch the strength of Malcolm’s
faith now that the safety of prison is gone and he is back out among
the temptations of the real world. At dinner that night, Malcolm
asks Elijah Muhammad about recruitment techniques, as he is eager
to work to attract new members in Detroit. Elijah Muhammad advises
Malcolm to court young people.
In Detroit Malcolm has little luck at first, persuading
only a few neighborhood youth to visit the temple. Over several
months, however, membership triples. During this period, Malcolm
replaces his last name with “X” to represent the unknown African
name he would have had if his ancestors not been kidnapped and enslaved. Malcolm
begins to speak at temple meetings and gains confidence as an orator.
He is surprised, humbled, and flattered when Elijah Muhammad appoints
him as the assistant minister at the Detroit temple.
Malcolm soon learns Elijah Muhammad’s life story. Born
in Georgia in 1897,
Elijah Muhammad was small of stature but bold, especially when it
came to issues of race. He mediated fights between his siblings
and was frank but nonconfrontational with white employers. In 1931,
in Detroit, Elijah Muhammad met Wallace D. Fard, a peddler and self-proclaimed
prophet who converted him to his version of Islam. By the time Fard
disappeared in 1934, Elijah
Muhammad was at the helm of the Nation of Islam. Death threats from
jealous rivals, however, compelled Elijah Muhammad to move himself
and his family from city to city for seven years. He spent time
in prison, supposedly for draft evasion, although he was in fact
too old to serve in the military. Only in the 1940s
did he reclaim his position as the head of the Nation of Islam.
Summary—Chapter Thirteen: Minister Malcolm X
Elijah Muhammad needs ministers for his growing nation,
so Malcolm X quits his job at the Ford Motor Company and begins
extensive training. During this time, Malcolm fully develops his rhetorical
style. When Malcolm is ready, Elijah Muhammad sends him to Boston
to aid in the founding of a temple there. Malcolm visits his old
haunts and tries to convert Shorty, who loves white women and pork
too much to be persuaded. Ella is amazed at Malcolm, and although
she does not convert, she is happy to see he has changed. Once the
Boston temple is up and running, Elijah Muhammad sends Malcolm to
Philadelphia. Early in the summer of 1954, Muhammad
appoints Malcolm to found the small New York Temple. As in Boston,
Malcolm seeks out his old crowd. He discovers that Sammy the Pimp
is dead and that West Indian Archie is dying. The lack
of response to his initial teachings frustrates Malcolm, but he continues,
and the temple grows. Malcolm and his followers develop techniques
for drawing blacks from black nationalist rallies and churches that
advocate a return to Africa. Malcolm has so much luck winning over
Christians that he refines his speaking style with them in mind,
emphasizing Christianity’s role in the oppression of blacks.
In 1956 a
woman named Betty joins the New York temple. For ten years, Malcolm
has been celibate and fully devoted to his work. He hardly courts
Betty, but he approves of her from a distance. Malcolm introduces
Betty to Elijah Muhammad, and then proposes marriage abruptly from
a payphone in Detroit. They marry and settle in Queens, New York,
and have four children while Malcolm is alive; a fifth child is
born after Malcolm’s death.
In 1958,
Malcolm’s half-sister, Ella, converts to the Nation of Islam. The
Nation of Islam gets public recognition when police attack one of
its members. The “Fruit of Islam,” the Nation’s elite youth group,
leads a mass demonstration, standing ominously before the precinct
house where the bleeding victim is being held and then before the
hospital to which Malcolm has demanded the victim be taken. Later,
the Nation of Islam wins $70,000 in
a lawsuit against the city. Malcolm is so busy that the Nation buys
him a car to use for his travel between cities. Having taken a vow
of poverty, Malcolm has access to the Nation’s substantial resources
but personally owns almost nothing. By 1965,
there are sizable temples in Chicago, Detroit, and New York.
Analysis—Chapters Twelve & Thirteen
Malcolm’s purchase of a wristwatch, suitcase, and eyeglasses
upon leaving Massachusetts state prison symbolizes his newfound
time-conscious efficiency, tireless drive, and mature vision. If
Malcolm’s earlier peaceful surrender to the Boston detective marks
the beginning of his prison conversion, then the purchase of these
amenities marks the completion of this same conversion as well as
the beginning of his career of religious and political authority.
Whereas his initial surrender to the detectives is a passive act
of submission, this purchase is an active act of self-possession.
Malcolm’s statement that “without fully knowing it, I was preparing
for what my life was about to become” shows his instinctive determination.
In picking up the tools of his trade as soon as he is released from
prison, Malcolm makes a symbolic commitment to a life of authority
and responsibility with the Nation of Islam and beyond.
The wristwatch, suitcase, and eyeglasses each symbolize
an important aspect of Malcolm’s career as a Muslim minister and political
figure. The wristwatch represents his obsession with efficiently
managing his busy daily schedule. He is committed to the people
and events of his daily life, not distanced from them as Elijah Muhammad
and other religious leaders are. The suitcase represents Malcolm’s
commitment to a life of constant work and frequent travel in the
name of spreading Islam. His travel allows him to interact with
other blacks nationwide and other minorities worldwide, and such
experiences help him develop a more mature perspective on the struggle
against oppression. Malcolm’s eyeglasses represent his newfound
clarity of vision on race in America. Though the glasses serve the
practical purpose of correcting the vision problems Malcolm has
developed from years of reading in prison, they also serve the symbolic
purpose of correcting his understanding of the issues at hand. His
statement that “in all my years in the streets, I’d been looking
at the exploitation that for the first time I really saw and understood”
shows that his time in prison has made him see the race problem
clearly. With his commitment to his message, connection to his people,
and understanding of the problems plaguing his people, Malcolm is
prepared to launch himself into a new and productive life.
In Chapter 12, “Savior,”
both Malcolm and Elijah Muhammad compare Malcolm’s faith in Islam
to Job’s faith in God, each using the biblical parable to make a
different point. As the story goes, Satan challenged God to test
Job’s faith by making him suffer through various trials. While Elijah
Muhammad uses the story to highlight Malcolm’s ability to resist
the temptations of his former life once released from prison, Malcolm
uses the story to draw attention to the trial of his faith that
his difficult relationship with Elijah Muhammad creates. Though these
comparisons serve different purposes, both point out Malcolm’s ability
to stand behind his ideological convictions and carry on a prolonged
struggle against difficult odds.
Malcolm’s discussion of his relationship with Elijah Muhammad reveals
that he sees Elijah Muhammad more as a god than as a human. Elijah
Muhammad’s assertion that Malcolm will remain a faithful Muslim
out of prison reciprocates and intensifies Malcolm’s faith in Elijah
Muhammad. Elijah Muhammad’s confidence inspires years of near-absolute
devotion from Malcolm, and Malcolm describes having more faith in
Elijah Muhammad than in any other man. Malcolm foreshadows how this
great faith in Elijah actually proves the downfall of their relationship
with his statement that “I know today that I did believe in him
more firmly than he believed in himself.” This quote implies that
Allah’s greatest trial for Malcolm is Elijah Muhammad himself. Although
Elijah Muhammad inspires Malcolm to persist in the face of adversity,
his own faltering in the face of adversity later becomes an obstacle
in their relationship.
