Ossie Davis On Malcolm X

[Mr. Davis wrote the following in response to a magazine editor's question: Why did you eulogizeMalcolm X?] You are not the only person curious to know why I would eulogize a man like MalcolmX. Many who know and respect me have written letters. Of these letters I am proudest of those from asixth-grade class of young white boys and girls who asked me to explain. I appreciate your giving methis chance to do so.

　　You may anticipate my defense¹ somewhat by considering the following fact: no Negro has yet askedme that question. (My pastor² in Grace Baptist Church where I teach Sunday School preached a sermonabout Malcolm in which he called him a "giant in a sick world.") Every one of the many letters I gotfrom my own people lauded³ Malcolm as a man, and commended me for having spoken at his funeral.

　　At the same time-and this is important-most of them took special pains to disagree with much or all ofwhat Malcolm said and what he stood for. That is, with one singing exception, they all, every last,black, glory-hugging one of them, knew that Malcolm-whatever else he was or was not-_Malcolm wasa man_!

　　White folks do not need anybody to remind them that they are men. We do! This was his oneincontrovertible benefit to his people.

　　Protocol and common sense require that Negroes stand back and let the white man speak up for us,defend us, and lead us from behind the scene in our fight. This is the essence of Negro politics. ButMalcolm said to hell with that! Get up off your knees and fight your own battles. That's the way to winback your self-respect. That's the way to make the white man respect you. And if he won't let you livelike a man, he certainly can't keep you from dying like one!

　　Malcolm, as you can see, was refreshing⁵ excitement; he scared hell out of the rest of us, bred as we areto caution, to hypocrisy⁶ in the presence of white folks, to the smile that never fades. Malcolm knewthat every white man in America profits directly or indirectly⁷ from his position vis-a-vis Negroes,profits from racism⁸ even though he does not practice it or believe in it.

　　He also knew that every Negro who did not challenge on the spot every instance of racism, overt⁴ orcovert, committed against him and his people, who chose instead to swallow his spit and go onsmiling, was an Uncle Tom and a traitor⁹, without balls or guts¹⁰, or any other commonly accepted aspects of manhood!

　　Now, we knew all these things as well as Malcolm did, but we also knew what happened to peoplewho stick their necks out and say them. And if all the lies we tell ourselves by way of extenuationwere put into print, it would constitute one of the great chapters in the history of man's justifiablecowardice in the face of other men.

　　But Malcolm kept snatching our lies away. He kept shouting the painful truth we whites and blacksdid not want to hear from all the housetops. And he wouldn't stop for love nor money.

　　You can imagine what a howling, shocking nuisance this man was to both Negroes and whites. OnceMalcolm fastened on you, you could not escape. He was one of the most fascinating and charmingmen I have ever met, and never hesitated to take his attractiveness and beat you to death with it. Yethis irritation¹¹, though painful to us, was most salutary. He would make you angry as hell, but hewould also make you proud. It was impossible to remain defensive¹² and apologetic about being aNegro in his presence. He wouldn't let you. And you always left his presence with the sneakysuspicion that maybe, after all, you _were_ a man!

　　But in explaining Malcolm, let me take care not to explain him away. He had been a criminal, anaddict, a pimp, and a prisoner; a racist¹³, and a hater, he had really believed the white man was a devil.

　　But all this had changed. Two days before his death, in commenting to Gordon Parks about his pastlife he said: "That was a mad scene. The sickness and madness of those days! I'm glad to be free ofthem."And Malcolm was free. No one who knew him before and after his trip to Mecca could doubt that hehad completely abandoned racism, separatism, and hatred¹⁴. But he had not abandoned his shock-effectstatements, his bristling¹⁵ agitation¹⁶ for immediate¹⁷ freedom in this country not only for blacks, but foreverybody. And most of all, in the area of race relations, he still delighted in twisting the white man'stail, and in making Uncle Toms, compromisers and accommodationists-I deliberately¹⁸ include myself-thoroughly ashamed of the urbane¹⁹ and smiling hypocrisy we practice merely to exist in a worldwhose values we both envy and despise.

　　But even had Malcolm not changed, he would still have been a relevant figure on the American scene,standing in relation as he does, to the "responsible" civil rights leaders, just about where John Brownstood in relation to the "responsible abolitionists in the fight against slavery. Almost all disagreed withBrown's mad and fanatical tactics which led him foolishly to attack a Federal arsenal²⁰ at Harpers Ferry,to lose two sons there, and later to be hanged for treason.

　　Yet today the world, and especially the Negro people, proclaim Brown not a traitor, but a hero and amartyr in a noble cause So in future, I will not be surprised if men come to see that Malcolm X was,within his own limitations, and in his own inimitable style, also a martyr²¹ in that cause.

　　But there is much controversy²² still about this most controversial American, and I am content to wait for history to make the final decision.

　　But in personal judgment²³, there is no appeal from instinct. I knew the man personally, and howevermuch I disagreed with him, I never doubted that Malcolm X, even when he was wrong, was alwaysthat rarest thing in the world among us Negroes: a true man. And if to protect my relations with themany good white folk who make it possible for me to earn a fairly good living in the entertainmentindustry, I was too chicken, too cautious, to admit that fact when he was alive, I thought at least thatnow when all the white folks are safe from him at last, I could be honest with myself enough to lift myhat for one final salute²⁴ to that brave, black, ironic²⁵ gallantry, which was his style and hallmark, thatshocking _zing_ of fire-and-be-damned-to-you, so absolutely absent in every other Negro man I know,which brought him, too soon, to his death.

　　 Alex Haley is the world-renowned author of _Roots_, which has sold six million hardcover copies andhas been translated into thirty languages. He is the winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National BookAward. Alex Haley died, at the age of seventy, in February 1992.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 pastor   

n.牧师，牧人

参考例句：

• He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
• We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师：教会的事是由五位执事管理的。

3 lauded   

v.称赞，赞美( laud的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They lauded the former president as a hero. 他们颂扬前总统为英雄。 来自辞典例句
• The nervy feats of the mountaineers were lauded. 登山者有勇气的壮举受到赞美。 来自辞典例句

4 overt   

adj.公开的，明显的，公然的

参考例句：

• His opponent's intention is quite overt.他的对手的意图很明显。
• We should learn to fight with enemy in an overt and covert way.我们应学会同敌人做公开和隐蔽的斗争。

5 refreshing   

adj.使精神振作的，使人清爽的，使人喜欢的

参考例句：

• I find it'so refreshing to work with young people in this department.我发现和这一部门的青年一起工作令人精神振奋。
• The water was cold and wonderfully refreshing.水很涼，特别解乏提神。

6 hypocrisy   

n.伪善，虚伪

参考例句：

• He railed against hypocrisy and greed.他痛斥伪善和贪婪的行为。
• He accused newspapers of hypocrisy in their treatment of the story.他指责了报纸在报道该新闻时的虚伪。

7 indirectly   

adv.间接地，不直接了当地

参考例句：

• I heard the news indirectly.这消息我是间接听来的。
• They were approached indirectly through an intermediary.通过一位中间人，他们进行了间接接触。

8 racism   

n.民族主义；种族歧视(意识)

参考例句：

• He said that racism is endemic in this country.他说种族主义在该国很普遍。
• Racism causes political instability and violence.种族主义道致政治动荡和暴力事件。

9 traitor   

n.叛徒，卖国贼

参考例句：

• The traitor was finally found out and put in prison.那个卖国贼终于被人发现并被监禁了起来。
• He was sold out by a traitor and arrested.他被叛徒出卖而被捕了。

10 guts   

v.狼吞虎咽，贪婪地吃，飞碟游戏（比赛双方每组5人，相距15码，互相掷接飞碟）；毁坏（建筑物等）的内部( gut的第三人称单数 )；取出…的内脏n.勇气( gut的名词复数 )；内脏；消化道的下段；肠

参考例句：

• I'll only cook fish if the guts have been removed. 鱼若已收拾干净，我只需烧一下即可。
• Barbara hasn't got the guts to leave her mother. 巴巴拉没有勇气离开她妈妈。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 irritation   

n.激怒，恼怒，生气

参考例句：

• He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。
• Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说，但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。

12 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

13 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

14 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

15 bristling   

a.竖立的

参考例句：

• "Don't you question Miz Wilkes' word,'said Archie, his beard bristling. "威尔克斯太太的话，你就不必怀疑了。 "阿尔奇说。他的胡子也翘了起来。
• You were bristling just now. 你刚才在发毛。

16 agitation   

n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动

参考例句：

• Small shopkeepers carried on a long agitation against the big department stores.小店主们长期以来一直在煽动人们反对大型百货商店。
• These materials require constant agitation to keep them in suspension.这些药剂要经常搅动以保持悬浮状态。

17 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

18 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

19 urbane   

adj.温文尔雅的，懂礼的

参考例句：

• He tried hard to be urbane.他极力作出彬彬有礼的神态。
• Despite the crisis,the chairman's voice was urbane as usual.尽管处于危机之中，董事长的声音还象通常一样温文尔雅。

20 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

21 martyr   

n.烈士，殉难者；vt.杀害，折磨，牺牲

参考例句：

• The martyr laid down his life for the cause of national independence.这位烈士是为了民族独立的事业而献身的。
• The newspaper carried the martyr's photo framed in black.报上登载了框有黑边的烈士遗像。

22 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

23 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

24 salute   

vi.行礼，致意，问候，放礼炮；vt.向…致意，迎接，赞扬；n.招呼，敬礼，礼炮

参考例句：

• Merchant ships salute each other by dipping the flag.商船互相点旗致敬。
• The Japanese women salute the people with formal bows in welcome.这些日本妇女以正式的鞠躬向人们施礼以示欢迎。

25 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。