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About the The Devil Finds Work by James Baldwin Discussion category
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1
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23
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June 23, 2025
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Overall, what did you think of The Devil Finds Work?
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34
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130
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June 23, 2025
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Baldwin died in 1987. Which movies that premiered after his death, featuring Black actors in major roles, would you have liked his opinion on?
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5
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40
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June 23, 2025
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Which of the films that James Baldwin mentions are you familiar with? How has your opinion of these movies changed since reading The Devil Finds Work?
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19
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87
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June 23, 2025
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Is it possible for a white screenwriter or director to authentically capture a Black person’s experiences? Is it possible for a white audience to determine when a film is a realistic portrayal of a Black person’s life or will bias always stand in the way?
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12
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45
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June 23, 2025
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Do you feel Baldwin wrote his essays with a specific audience in mind? Who do you think he is addressing, if so?
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5
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31
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June 23, 2025
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What did you learn from The Devil Finds Work? What surprised you the most?
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14
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57
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June 23, 2025
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Baldwin states on page 35, “It is said that the camera cannot lie, but rarely do we allow it to do anything else. . . The language of the camera is the language of our dreams.” What do you think he means?
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9
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66
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June 23, 2025
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The Devil Finds Work - As A Play
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14
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39
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June 23, 2025
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Which of Baldwin’s statements in the book did you find the most remarkable? Why did it stand out for you?
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8
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41
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June 23, 2025
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What does the author see as the dangers of the way Black lives are portrayed in the movies?
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8
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39
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June 23, 2025
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What do you think Baldwin would have to say about today’s society if he were alive today? Do you think he’d have seen any improvement in the decade since the book was written? How about representation at major award ceremonies like the Oscar and Emmy’s?
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8
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31
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June 23, 2025
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What do you think the book’s title means?
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8
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27
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June 23, 2025
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Have you read any of Baldwin’s other works? If so, which ones, and how does The Devil Finds Work compare?
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7
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33
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June 23, 2025
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How do you feel Baldwin’s readings of Uncle Tom’s Cabin and A Tale of Two Cities shaped his views?
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4
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18
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June 23, 2025
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Is there another author whose style you find similar, or whose writing addresses themes comparable to those found in The Devil Finds Work?
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4
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12
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June 23, 2025
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What impact do you believe Bill Miller had on Baldwin’s life? Is there someone who you can name that had a similar impact on your own?
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7
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25
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June 23, 2025
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Baldwin writes, “The immense quantity of polish expended on Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? is meant to blind one to its essential inertia and despair.” Are there recent movies you can think of that depict a false narrative of the Black experience?
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2
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22
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June 23, 2025
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Regarding In the Heat of the Night, Baldwin states: “It is impossible to accept the premise of the story, a premise based on the profound American misunderstanding of the nature of the hatred between [B]lack and white.” How does he understand this hatred?
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4
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14
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June 23, 2025
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What differences did Baldwin draw between his experiences at the movies and at the theater? Do you agree with him?
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3
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12
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June 23, 2025
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