Conversations motivated by love, based in wisdom, and seasoned with grace: rhetorically tracing 'the talk' african american parents have with their sons

This thesis presents a rhetorical analysis of The Talk African American parents have with their sons, preparing them for life within American civil society. Black male disposability provides a unique challenge for African American parents who struggle to support their sons in their development while informing them of the inherent risks of being Black and male in America. This thesis analyzes two of these conversations, one between Emmett Till and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, prior to Till’s murder in 1955; and the conversations Lucia McBath and Ronald Davis had with their son, Jordan Davis, who was killed in 2012. This study uses public memory and genre as a theoretical and methodological approach to further explore The Talk. This analysis concludes that there are three defining elements of The Talk: concern for the person, a cautionary tale, and potential violations.