The Fire Next Time

In “My Dungeon Shook,” Baldwin depicts his relationships with his father and brother. How are they symbols for African American manhood, particularly in Baldwin’s life? How do you think these men, including Baldwin, formed young James’s view of himself as a man?

Choose one of the themes in the two essays. How does that theme inform your understanding of the African American experience? How does the African American experience affect all Americans?

What role does love, in its many forms, play in the resolution of African American oppression? Do you agree that Baldwin’s belief in love is a path to equality or not? Explain.