The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Question 1

Where was Malcolm X born?

Answer 1

Omaha, Nebraska

Question 2

What was Malcolm X’s original last name? Why did he drop it?

Answer 2

“Little”; he believed black people inherited their last names from the slaveholding families who once owned them. He dropped it because he didn’t want to allow the slaveholder’s mark on him, and to emphasize the fact that white people stole black people’s true family history and cultural legacy from them.

Question 3

Where did Malcolm spend most of his childhood?

Answer 3

Lansing, Michigan

Question 4

Who does Malcolm go to live with in Boston?

Answer 4

His half-sister, Ella

Question 5

Where does Malcolm find a job as a shoeshine boy?

Answer 5

The Roseland Ballroom

Question 6

What was the religious group with which Malcolm was devoted?

Answer 6

Nation of Islam; Elijah Muhammad

Question 7

Name some parallels between “Autobiography” and “Black Boy”.

Answer 7

• Second portion of the book details fervent commitment to an institution: Communism in Wright’s case, and Nation of Islam in Malcolm X’s. Both books work through disillusionment with these institutions, and seem to get caught up in recent personal conflicts. (Obviously more extreme in Malcolm’s case, as his recent conflicts resulted in his death.)
• Dismissive treatment of women
• Exploration of urban, masculine spaces
• Anger

Question 8

What is the name of the white women with whom Malcolm has a long affair?

Answer 8

Sophia

Question 9

Who is Malcolm’s good friend in Boston, who gets him his job at the Roseland and whom Malcolm later draws into a burglary ring?

Answer 9

Shorty

Question 10

How long did Malcolm X spend in prison? How did he chiefly spend his time there?

Answer 10

7 years; educating himself, notable by reading and copying the dictionary.

Question 11

From whom did Malcolm X first learn about the Nation of Islam?

Answer 11

His brother Reginald

Question 12

What is the name of Malcolm’s wife?

Answer 12

Betty X

Question 13

What happened to the relationship between Malcolm X and Elijah Mohammed?

Answer 13

Once close because of Malcolm’s remarkable recruiting ability and devotion, their relationship deteriorates as Mohammed becomes suspicious/jealous of Malcolm’s growing role as an influential public figure. When allegations of Mohammed’s sexual harassment within the church emerge, Malcolm slowly realizes he wants to break with the church - especially after taking a pilgrimage to Mecca AND suspecting that Mohammed was trying to assassinate him.

Malcolm was eventually suspended from the organization.

Question 14

How did Malcolm lose his father?

Answer 14

He was killed by the Black Legion, a white supremacist group

Question 15

Discuss the circumstances surrounding the composition of the “Autobiography”.

Answer 15

Malcolm X worked with author Alex Haley to create the “Autobiography.” At first, Malcolm wanted only to talk about Nation of Islam propaganda. Finally, through careful observation and asking about Malcolm’s mother, Haley begins to get Malcolm to open up.

Malcolm’s trust in Haley was slow to grow, with Malcolm sometimes claiming he was ready to abandon the project altogether, but eventually Malcolm put a lot of trust in Haley and his ability to write a book Malcolm approved of.

Question 16

How did Malcolm’s pilgrimage to Mecca change his perspective?

Answer 16

His pilgrimage had two major effects. First, it showed him the “real” Islam. He was able to see that a lot of the practices implemented by Elijah Mohammed weren’t true to the spirit of Islam.

Second, it changed his perspective on relationships between race. He previously thought of all white people as “white devils”; in Mecca, he saw people of many different skin colors and nationalities worshiping together, and concluded that America had a very particular problem with race. American white people, because of the way society was structured, were likely to be racist and hold certain views - but not every white person was like this, and other systems of interaction were possible in other places in the world.

It wouldn’t be fair to call him an integrationist by the end, but his perspective was becoming more nuanced because of his experiences abroad. He still believed in the separation of the races, because that is what people were naturally inclined towards.

Question 17

What new name did Malcolm adopt in Mecca?

Answer 17

“Elijah Malik El-Shabazz”

Question 18

Where did Malcolm die?

Answer 18

He was assassinated in Harlem, giving a speech for the Organization of Afro-American Unity.

Question 19

How were Malcolm’s views different from Martin Luther King Jr.’s?

Answer 19

In very broad strokes, Malcolm advocated for separatism and militancy (if necessary) and King advocated for non-violence and integration.

Question 20

What is the name of the numbers runner with whom Malcolm gets in such a serious conflict that he has to leave Harlem?

Answer 20

West Indian Archie

Question 21

What was Malcolm’s father’s occupation?

Answer 21

Baptist Reverend

Question 22

What type of hairstyle does Malcolm adopt during his hustling days?

Answer 22

A “conk” in which his curly hair is straightened. This was a painful process that Malcolm later comes to see as symbolic of black people’s self-hate and conforming to white standards.

Question 23

What are “the numbers”?

Answer 23

A gambling racket widely played by the black community. The numbers that were trying to be guessed were the last three numbers in the daily total of U.S. foreign and domestic sales.

Although the odds were against you, far more people “hit the numbers” under this system than in contemporary lottery.

Question 24

What is “Yacub’s History”?

Answer 24

A story told within the Nation of Islam. According to the story, the original people were black. An evil scientist named Yacub creates a race of white devils. It is prophesized that black people will seize back power from these white devils in the 20th century.

Question 25

Discuss Malcolm’s relationship with Reginald.

Answer 25

Reginald was Malcolm’s younger brother. He looked up to Malcolm, and the two were very close through their lives. Though Reginald is the one who first converted Malcolm to the Nation of Islam, his subsequent loss of faith distances him. During this period of his life, Malcolm places the Nation above everything else in his life, even close personal relationships.

Question 26

What were the three things Malcolm bought after first leaving prison?

Answer 26

• Eyeglasses
• Watch
• Suitcase

His reading in prison had damaged his eyes, but the price was worth his new character. His future life would consist of almost-perpetual travel from one place to another, with a great consciousness of time and his schedule.