Blog Post #3: Coates Interview

Amity Tran

HON 101

Schultz

15 September 2016

Blog Post #3: Coates Interview

The most interesting aspect of this interview was how personal it felt. It made me feel as if I was listening to two friends having a conversation. There was nothing about this interview that felt awkward or rehearsed, which I really enjoyed. I think the casual feel of the interview enhanced the interview rather than make it feel unprofessional because Coates seemed really comfortable and willing to be open with his answers to the interviewer’s questions. An example of this is when Coates gave the anecdote about his father finding out that Coates’ book was a New York Times #1 Best-Seller. He said that when his father found out, his father said,”You now made up for all the dumb stuff you did as a kid. We are so proud of you.” This was my favorite part of the interview because it made Coates human.

Other than asking Coates about his personal life, the interviewer also asked Coates about his two books. The interviewer was very knowledgeable about Coates’ books, so rather than asking generic questions about the contents of the book, he asked questions about what inspired Coates’ style of writing and when Coates’ became aware of the situations that he writes about in his book. I thought these were good questions because they gave the interview more substance; it felt like I was learning something new about Coates that I would not have learned from just reading the book.

Personally, I thought the casualness of the interview was a nice touch because it gave more insight into Coates’ personality and what kind of person he is. By knowing more about who Coates is as a person, you can understand what influenced him to be in the position of an intellectual on living as an African-American in America. If the interview was serious, I don’t think I actually would have listened to it all the way.