IndexIntroductionHidden Intellectualism vs. Homemade EducationConclusionIntroductionGerald Graff, professor of English and education at the University of Illinois, Chicago, questions the effectiveness of the education system in his narrative essay "Hidden Intellectualism". Graff's purpose is to convey the idea that intellectualism cannot be strictly defined by an individual's ability to interact with academic subjects and texts. In the text he shares the relationship that he has with sports books and magazines and how this allowed him to learn the fundamentals of intellectualism. He uses an assertive yet compassionate tone, where the assertive tone appeals to school boards and the compassionate tone appeals to students. On the other hand, Malcolm X, a civil rights activist, presents willpower and education in the passage “A Homemade Education” from the Autobiography of Malcolm Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Hidden Intellectualism vs. a Homemade Education Malcolm's purpose in the text was to show how self-education pushed him beyond his eighth-grade level of education and allowed him to be aware of the many problems of humanity. Malcolm adopts a formal tone in the text to gain credibility and gain the approval of his audience. “Hidden Intellectualism” aims to broaden the idea of ​​intellectualism while “A Homemade Education” shares the power of self-education. In “Hidden Intellectualism,” Graff begins the narrative essay by drawing the audience in and making them feel part of his concern. Use words and phrases like "we" and "us" to increase the audience's relevance and make them feel inevitably invited to pay attention to what the text has to say. Graff first talks about how everyone knows someone who is considered street smart but is unable to apply the same kind of intelligence in an academic setting. He then proposes that “schools and universities may be guilty of missing the opportunity to tap into that street smarts and channel it into good academic work.” In this way, Graff is able to effectively shift the audience's attention towards the topic he wants to educate them with. As stated by Graff, one of the main reasons why schools and universities overlook the value of street smarts is because they exclusively associate intellectualism with a student's ability to interpret topics and texts that are “heavy and academic. He then backs up his claim and adds to his own credibility by stating that “no necessary connection has ever been made between any text or topic and the educational depth and weight of discussion it can generate.” Graff subsequently suggests that in order to seek intellectualism in a wider variety of students, they should be more encouraged to immerse themselves in topics that pique their interest. He then follows the text with his personal experience with the sport to provide an example and prove his point. He begins by telling the audience how he hated books until he entered college; however he tells how he dealt with sports magazines. He lists magazines like Sports, Sports Illustrated, as well as annual guides to professional baseball, football, and basketball magazines, to really show that he was truly passionate about sports and was knowledgeable in that aspect as well. Graff recalls how in the neighborhood where he grew up, he would pass by "hoods" who would bully him if he seemed too intelligent in their eyes. Due to the contextual circumstances.