This is such a wonderful rhetoric. Instead of saying “I’m your uncle,” he states “I keep seeing your face, which is also the face of your father and my brother” (7). I don’t know about you, but I think that’s brilliant. If it was me who wrote this, I would be like “you look like your father, who is my brother.” James emphasizes “we have not stopped trembling yet, but if we had not loved each other none of us would have survived” (9). This quote is significant because it shows that if these African Americans do not love who they are and stand together, then there will be no change.

This reminds me of Joshua in the play Cloud Nine. Joshua is played by a white male possibly because Joshua wants to be a White man and desires what white people have.  He said he hated his own people and that they are bad.  Even when his parents died, he didn’t go to their funerals.  This definitely shows that he is disgusted with the black race and prefers to be associated with whites–to the point of being white himself. James, however, wants his nephew to love and appreciate himself, and that goes for every colored people. Do not let anyone’s judgment become reality. Do not try to be white. If you do not accept yourself, how can you make others accept you?

James then goes on and make a move about don’t trust anyone, including himself, and trust your own experiences. This is true because everyone experiences their lives differently, and the world changes everyday. Wow, the letter started with “Dear James” and ended with “Your uncle, James.” The uncle does not want his nephew James to follow the similar footsteps as their family. It sounds like as if Uncle James does not want his next life to be what he had been through. This letter should be to the world, but Uncle James made it to his nephew James to establish a connection.