Heritage Cherished and Shattered in Alex Haley’s Roots

Abstract

Alex Haley’s Roots, claims the fame for the reversal of Blacks’ image in the history of America and particularly in literature. The stereotypes portrayed by the pioneers of the African American writers are enhanced partially and shattered on the other side. Haley presents an entirely new perception which reverses the familiar cultural assumptions.

The new perception of a black man’s life in the beginning of the novel in the Mandinka village, the root of the hero Kunta Kinte and the after life of Toby in the American soil is a total contrast. Haley endeavours to compare and contrast the life of a black man in his native soil and in the alienated life in the American land.
The book begins with the birth of a male child, the first son who will inherit his father’s kingdom. The birth of the child is the most awaited one and is celebrated by everyone in the village. As the child occupies the family hierarchy, he has a carefully chosen name Kunta Kinte which will help him to bring “credit and pride and many children to his family, to his village, to his tribe” (p.3). The child can boast of a distinguished ancestry, as he is the direct descendent of the hero who once saves Juffure from famine.