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KAREEM JABBAR'S "GIANT STEPS".
Term Paper ID:12069
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Essay Subject:
Autobiography of professional basketball star.... More...
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6 Pages / 1350 Words
1 sources, 6 Citations,
MLA Format
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Paper Abstract:
Autobiography of professional basketball star.
Paper Introduction:
This paper is a review of the book Giant Steps by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Peter Knobler. This book is the autobiography of basketball player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and as such it contains a great deal of background on the games of basketball, the other players, one of the major games in which Jabbar has been involved, and even some pointers on how the game should be played. Of greater interest to the general reader, however, is the underlying story of one individual’s effort to overcome what he saw as handicaps and to find a place for himself in the world. The personage that emerges from this portrait is interesting, somewhat shy. And as his story progresses Jabbar becomes more and more in control of his own life and his own attitudes. This latter is particularly important in the world of professional sports, which is shown in this book to be
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Jabbar, by the end of this book, has changed his life and has found anew maturity and new meaning. As wealthyand powerful and celebrated as I was, I was still not capable of taking mylife in my hands" (Abdul-Jabbar 23 ). This book is the autobiography of basketball playerKareem Abdul-Jabbar, and as such it contains a great deal of background onthe games of basketball, the other players, one of the major games in whichJabbar has been involved, and even some pointers on how the game should beplayed. He found something that hecould do well, better than others of his age, and it became his entree intothe adult world and into the world of celebrity, acquainting him withsports figures and jazz musicians and giving him a different outlook on hislife. His particular approach involved his religiousfaith in being a Muslim, but there are other ways that would serve forother individuals. I'd be happy . This latter is particularly important in the world ofprofessional sports, which is shown in this book to be dangerous to themaintenance of individuality and filled with temptations that can warpvalues and misdirect energies for the unwary. The growing awareness of Jabbar, his new openness toward ideasand events in the world, was perhaps the most important change to developin him and to lead him to a new maturity. As Jabbar says of the jazz musicians and related people he knows inNew York: "It was like a private community, and I was feeling stronger bythe hour as I was welcomed into it" (Abdul-Jabbar 98). . Jabbar clearly attributes much of his own growing awareness toHamaas, who taught the young man to view the world with a critical eye andto make better and more reasonable judgements based on the issues that areimportant. The world of professional sports may be a good testing ground forcharacter, as sports are always claimed to be, but it does seem that manyfail the test and give in to the temptations that are so prevalent there.This is the story of a man who overcame it -- to find a new meaning for hislife and to serve as a deliberate example for the improvement of theposition of his race. This wasworse than hypocrisy, this was blasphemy" (Abdul-Jabbar 18 ). I would meetindividual white people and like them on a personal level, but the race asa whole could die tomorrow as far as I was concerned" (Abdul-Jabbar 176).Hamaas shows Jabbar that it is wrong to think in terms of absolutes likethat. He opposes those who would undermine such an effortand encourages those who provide support, and in this way he shows his trueintention to the world. Hisgrowing faith helped to sustain him, but it had been a long time beforethat faith had taken hold and given him direction. Of greater interest to the general reader, however, is theunderlying story of one individual's effort to overcome what he saw ashandicaps and to find a place for himself in the world. But they took the name of Allahand soiled it, and this above all else Hamaas could not tolerate. Indeed, attimes his mentor, Hamaas, could hold him back as well as help him, such aswhen the young man had to make a decision he now knows was wrong. Wehave all entered new school situations and found that perhaps we do not fitin as easily as we had hoped. Giant Steps. He does not rely onhis status as superstar of basketball but instead deals with people aspeople and with himself as an individual. "The Black Muslims created a sense of unity for blackpeople against a common enemy -- whites. . In the course of this book, we see howKareem Abdul-Jabbar worked through periods of weakness to emerge with aninner strength that can sustain him in times of trouble, such as the daywhen his house burned to the ground because of a electrical short. This paper is a review of the book Giant Steps by Kareem Abdul-Jabbarand Peter Knobler. The personage thatemerges from this portrait is interesting, somewhat shy. Jabbar's life changed, but he still had a long way to go. This is a difficult lesson to learn, particularly in a society suchas ours which places such a high premium on success and wealth. An important element that emerges from the teaching of Hamaas is thedifference between the Muslim faith and Black Muslims, a group that isusually identified with the Muslims but which is seen as quite a differentmatter by Hamaas. More importantly,though, Jabbar fell back on this faith because he was shy and uncertain andfelt everyone was against him at times: "Surrounded by hostile forces, as Ifelt myself to be, I needed someone to believe in. Probably the clearest thing toemerge from this book is the fact that everyone learns from theirexperience, or should learn from it, and that it is this experience thatperforms the real transformation. It wasnot just that the decision was wrong, but rather that the young man did nottake the time to consider and evaluate and make the decision himself: "Ican't say that Hamaas made me take that step. As Jabbar notes, wealth and power andsuccess do not solve our problems for us: we have to solve these ourselves,through our own effort and understanding. (Abdul-Jabbar 98). Jabbar emphasizes his own reliance on his faith time and time againin this book. The reality issomewhat different, and the prime lesson of Jabbar's account of his life isthat he is an individual, and that once he had achieved success he wasstill that same individual. There is much in this book with which any reader can identify. Jabbar's experiences with members of a race -- such as with certainJews in Harlem who gouged the black community -- caused him to see allmembers in that same light. The racism that developsis based on the same false criteria and the same absolutes. Allah was a source ofcomfort, and the teachings of Muhammad gave me inspiration in an otherwiseextremely boring home life . It sustained him in times of trial, and it sustained him aswell through the tensions of the basketball court. New York: Bantam Books, 1983. In such a world, the young man inevitably comes into contact withdrugs and sex and for a time can get lost in both. These kinds of changes undergone by Jabbar as he began to emerge as abasketball star are the sort of things gangly kids such as himself, frommiddle-class backgrounds, would dream about. Works CitedAbdul-Jabbar, Kareem and Knobler, Peter. This lifeof Jabbar also demonstrates how many are unprepared for the discovery thatthese things are not the cure-alls that they are thought to be. . This is a valuable lesson forhim to learn, and he shows the reader how such an attitude and suchcapabilities can serve well even in a hostile world. He has married once more, but this time witha greater sense of certainty and from a deep love and commitment thatderives from his ability to make his own decisions. The world of professional sports in particular is a field ofseemingly rapid entry into the world of success, particularly for minorityathletes. . But I didn't do what I wanted, didn'teven really go off by myself and ponder this major question. At first, Jabbar washimself afflicted with the curse of racism and was only "cured" when heturned to Islam wholeheartedly under the tutelage of Hamaas Abdul-Khaalis.As Jabbar notes: "Ever since the Sunday bombing that killed four littlegirls in the Baptist church in Birmingham, Alabama, when a whole lot ofwhite people died in a tragedy . This is emphasized once more in our educationalsystem, and Jabbar's period at UCLA shows this as well. Indeed, we all likely to find that the successful and thefamous have had these same problems, and we can then test our own responsesagainst theirs. The middle-class black is inundated by assurances that success and wealth and powerare all that are necessary to change the problems of the present into thepromise of a future. It certainly served himwell after his house burned and he found himself disoriented: "Islam hadtaught me how to face the world, and once again I turned to it forstrength" (Abdul-Jabbar 98). There is little difference between this andthe attitude of certain whites toward the blacks. I had my free choice; Icould have done whatever I wanted. And as his storyprogresses Jabbar becomes more and more in control of his own life and hisown attitudes. . We have all had to face the need to makedecisions regarding our future, and we have all had to choose between thetemptations of this world and some of the more lasting values which aremore satisfying. Jabbar was not immune to the racial tensions of his time, andthe period in which he grew up and became well known was a particularlyimportant and volatile period for blacks in America. Celebrity itself is aheady experience that creates great opportunities, but how the individualhandles this situation can determine whether those opportunities serve toweaken him or to strengthen him. One does not need tobecome a basketball player to encounter a similar hostility, a similar setof problems, and similar opportunities for solving them. .
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