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Thought-provoking and epiphany-stirring, American History X
embodies the shocking tale of confused young Danny Vinyard and his journey to
overcome the obstacles of bigotry, racism, and hatred that his life seems to
revolve around. Danny is influenced by the premature death of his prejudiced
father and his older brother Derek, who he idolizes, as his brother becomes the
leader of a local white supremacist group. As a result, Danny develops a
narrow-minded perspective of the world. Although a number of incidents
influence Danny's outlook on the world around him, including the murder of his
father by a black drug-dealer and a heated debate between his older brother
Derek and their mother's liberal-minded date about the beating of Rodney King,
one event rises above the others in terms of the effect it has on shaping
Danny's views and beliefs.
Late one night, after telling Derek that a "black guy" is trying to break
into his car, Danny's older brother immediately seizes a pistol and runs outside
to confront the would-be thieves. Upon opening the door, Derek shoots one of
the men, killing him instantly, and wounds the other. As the wounded man tries
to escape, Derek walks up behind him, pointing his gun to the man's head, and
tells him to "bite the curb." He then proceeds to stomp on the man's head,
instantaneously breaking his jaw and neck. During all of this, Danny stares
shocked and slightly-traumatized, while the sirens of police cars wail and
scream down the street, screeching to a stop in front of his older brother.
Derek is then arrested and eventually sentenced to three years in prison for
voluntary manslaughter.
However, while in prison, Derek surprisingly experiences a drastic
transformation of perspective. After realizing the ignorance of his past
beliefs and actions, and after forging a strong friendship with an unexpected
individual, Derek survives prison. With the help of his admired English teacher,
Dr. Sweeney, who ironically is a black man, Derek leaves prison a changed
person. He returns home to find that his little brother Danny has followed in
his footsteps. To his brother's distress, Danny has now become active in the
local white supremacist group, has written a paper on Adolf Hitler as a civil
rights leader, and is now threatened with the possibility of expulsion by none
other than the man that helped Derek amend his bigoted ways, Dr. Sweeney.
The story then progresses with a multitude of conflicts as Derek attempts in
vain to persuade his younger brother that it is wrong to blindly hate a fellow
human being solely based on color. At first, Danny resists, appalled at the
betrayal of his idol to the cause he so firmly-believed in; but, after Derek
psychoanalyzes himself in an attempt to educate his brother about the corruptive
power of racism and hate, Danny finally agrees to discard his intolerant ideas
and to trust the man he had so long placed his confidence in. But, just as we
start to feel that there may be hope for the brothers, the story ends in
tragedy. And this, I believe, is the most important part, because without a
tragic end, the reality of the story cannot be absorbed. Only with a
heartrending conclusion can the true meaning be gained.
And that meaning is this:
The story derives not from the imagination of the writer, but from the
reality that we all live in. Many people truly value bigotry, racism, and
inequality, and those people are consumed by their skewed views. The truth is,
many people remain ignorant and never manage to understand the significance of
empathy, unity, or love. There aren't enough people that genuinely care about
the well-being of their fellow human beings. However, we need not despair just
yet. The future is not yet set, and our story will not necessarily end in
tragedy. We simply need to learn a simple lesson.
Hate will forever separate us, and there is nothing else, no
alternatives, no way to avoid a tragic fate, except one possible solution.
If we make the effort and learn from our mistakes now, then love can
ultimately bring us back together. And that is because love, if wielded
sincerely, always defeats hate.
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