IntroductionThe works of James Baldwin are directly related to the issues of racism, religion and personal conflict, as well as sexuality and masculinity during the Baldwin years.The works of James Baldwin, both fiction and nonfiction were in some cases a direct reflection of his life. Through careful interpretation it is possible to combine his work to give a "detailed" look at his real life. However, since most of the writings he created are all considered true literary works, we cannot consider them autobiographical in nature. Religion Personal Life Baldwin reflected his own life in various forms. These include autobiographical essays in fiction and drama. His first novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain, and the play The Amen Corner, reflect his childhood experiences in the Harlem churches where James and his stepfather, David Baldwin, preached. The "Autobiographical Notes" section of Notes of a Native Son and the "Down at the Cross" section of The Fire Next Time provide a seemingly realistic view of Baldwin's childhood and his growing involvement with the civil rights movement. Filled with a number of autobiographical passages in Nobody Knows My Name, No Name on the Street and The Devil Finds the Word come together to provide an overall, somewhat realistic autobiography. Of particular interest is Baldwin's views on his relationships with Richard Wright ("Alas, Poor Richard") and Norman Mailer ("The Black Boy Looks at the White Boy"), both of whom are included in Nobody Knows My Name. (Werner , Craig 45-48) When Baldwin was three years old, his mother married David Baldwin, a Southerner who had made the journey to New York as part of the great flow of black migration north during the post-World War I era. James, t... at the center of the article... aesthetic: James Baldwin's handbook of black American masculinity." African American Review 32.2 (1998): 247. MasterFILE PremierWerner, Craig. "JAMES BALDWIN." Search Guide to biography and criticism 1. (1985): 45-48 Book collection: Nonfiction. Baldwin, James Preservation of Innocence 1.2 (Summer 1949) in Out/Look 6 (Fall 1989), 40-41Powers. Peter Kerry. “The Insidious Body: Isolation, Confession, and Community in James Baldwin.” 787-813. Academic Research Premier.de Romanet, “Revisiting Madeleine and 'The Outing': James's Revision Baldwin of Gide's Sexual Politics." MELUS 22.1 (1997): 3. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Network. 4 December 2010. Robert E. Morsberger. "James Baldwin." Reviews of Magill's Books. Salem Press, 1998. eNotes. com. 2006. December 4, 2010 james-baldwin-0080505824