James, the narrator in Ernest Gaines' "The Sky is Gray" is an eight-year-old African American male who is still a child but being the oldest male in the household he faces more responsibility than a normal young boy would. His father is deployed to fight in World War II, so his mother; Octavia is forced to take care of the household. She in turn must teach him how to be a gentleman, which he becomes at the end of the story. Influenced by the women in his life, James, the protagonist in Ernest Gaines' short story "The Sky is Gray" makes a transition from boyhood to manhood.
A gentleman, as defined by Merriam Webster's Collegiate dictionary is a man whose conduct conforms to a high standard of propriety or correct behavior or a man of any social class or condition often used in a courteous reference. A gentleman possesses sincerity, nobility, strength, security and assurance. Each male makes a transition from boyhood to manhood, a time of change from childhood to adulthood. Octavia is the guide for James in his journey to maturation, into being a gentleman. The narrator states, "I look at my mama and I know what she's thinking. I been with Mama so much, just me and her. I know what she's thinking all the time". (p. 384) He realizes early he has a responsibility, the reader realizes this when the narrator states: "I'm the oldest and she say I'm the man".(p 384) Usually the oldest child has the most responsibility because they act as a role model to the younger siblings and if anything should happen to the parents, they must take care of everything.
Octavia does not worry when she leaves James at the house with the younger children because she knows James is going to look aft...
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...r but Octavia tells him "You not a bum," she says. "You a man."(p.404) This is significant because it shows he is not seen as a young boy by his mother anymore, he is now seen as a man. We see the influence and change in James by all of the life lessons his mother instills in him, she tells him he needs to not cry, to be strong, and be able to stand alone symbolizes that he must be independent, he must also put others before himself and do things he may not like to do but must do as a necessity to live, such as killing the cardinal birds for supper. Helena also shows James that everything in life you must work for, that is why she tells him to take out the trash cans.
In Conclusion, influenced by the women in his life, James, the protagonist in Ernest Gaines' short story "The Sky is Gray" makes a transition from boyhood to manhood.
He was offered a “Club cap” but James “gave it back” to his friend, Kris. They waited until Kris left the apartment building, then played a game of checkers. James had wanted to fit in with his friends in the “K-Bones” club but had realized that his brother was more important. He pushed his friend away to play games with Isaac. Furthermore, James has to “take care of” Isaac when his mother is at work. Even when he is trying to fit in with a devious club, he would still “hold Isaac’s hand” or even “carry him home”. James is a very nice and caring brother. This is logical because, that is what a good brother should look like. James must truly love Isaac as his brother, and admires his family more than his
In this memoir, James gives the reader a view into his and his mother's past, and how truly similar they were. Throughout his life, he showed the reader that there were monumental events that impacted his life forever, even if he
As a boy, James questions his unique family and color through his confusion of race issues. Later in his life, as an adolescent, his racial perplexity results in James hiding from his emotions, relying only on the anger he felt against the world. It is only when James uncovers the past of his mother does he begin to understand the complexity of himself and form his own identity. As James matures, issues of race in his life become too apparent to ignore. His multiracial family provides no clear explanations on prejudices and racism, and when "[James] asked [Ruth] if she was white, she'd say, No. I'm light skinned and change the subject.
Stories about youth and the transition from that stage of life into adulthood form a very solidly populated segment of literature. In three such stories, John Updike’s “A & P,” Richard Wright’s “The Man Who Was Almost a Man,” and James Joyce’s “Araby”, young men face their transitions into adulthood. Each of these boys faces a different element of youth that requires a fundamental shift in their attitudes. Sammy, in “A&P”, must make a moral decision about his associations with adult institutions that mistreat others. Dave, in “The Man Who Was Almost a Man,” struggles with the idea that what defines a man is physical power. The narrator of “Araby,” struggles with the mistaken belief that the world can be easily categorized and kept within only one limited framework of thought. Each of these stories gives us a surprise ending, a view of ourselves as young people, and a confirmation that the fears of youth are but the foundation of our adulthood.
Within the autobiography Black Boy, written by Richard Wright, many proposals of hunger, pain, and tolerance are exemplified by Wright’s personal accounts as a child and also as an adolescent coming of manhood. Wright’s past emotions of aspirations along with a disgust towards racism defined his perspective towards equality along with liberal freedom; consequently, he progressed North, seeking a life filled with opportunity as well as a life not judged by authority, but a life led separately by perspective and choices.
Living during the early nineteen hundreds was not easy for African American women. Women gained power through marriage, but they still were looked down upon and treated like slaves. In the story “Their Eyes Were Watching God,” Zora Neale Hurston uses diction, symbolism, and foreshadowing to reveal how Janie sought to discover her own identity marrying three different men who helped her discover her independence leading to the fact that women were poorly treated during this time period and deserved more respect than they received.
Throughout Black Boy, Wright explores what it means to be an African American individual living in the Southern and Northern United States during the early 20th century. Because of his inherent strength and his stubborn unwillingness to conform to the expectations of the many, he struggles to find his place within his society. However, Wright’s struggles are not limited to those against the Whites while living in the South. An uneasy feeling of conflict pervades the book, and it becomes evident that his conflicts arise not only from his society’s rejection of his skin color, but from his community’s rejection of his character. In his autobiography, Wright defines himself as a fighter in an unending battle for acceptance—not just as a disenfranchised
James the landlord is one of them. He appears to be a brave and fearless character ignoring his morals in his work life, while in his personal life, his wife pressures him into doing his job harshly and without thinking about morals just to get money. This is sometimes reflected in society by politicians who run for office because they think they can help society, but are willing to do and say things they may not believe in just to get elected. Like Mr. James, they behave in a way that is in conflict with their internal morals. A politician's desire for power drives them to do or say things they might not really want to do or believe in. Power and recognition conflicts with their desire to do good, and Mr. James is the same. He collects rent or evicts tenants even though it creates a moral conflict in side. In conclusion, while Mr. James appears to be harsh and fearless on the outside, on the inside he is fearful of his wife, uneasy about taking money from the poor but does not stand up to his greed-filled wife, allowing the hypocrisy to go on, like a politician and his
The novel Black Boy was Richard Wright’s way of telling his own story about life from when he moved to Chicago at the age of nineteen. There are difficulties with his white colleagues and involuntary social isolation.
Jay Gatsby is a self-made man who started out as a poor farm boy with nothing more than some resolves to make his dreams come true. He became blinded by his love for Daisy and luxurious possessions, and was unable to realize that he was losing himself in the process. Gatsby’s life, although filled with hundreds strangers, is extremely lonely. Gatsby had more acquaintances than most people could ever imagine, but none of them were true friends, as evident by his funeral comprised of four people: Nick, Gatsby’s father, Owl Eyes, and the minister. Although Gatsby did reach the dream he had thought he wanted, he in no way achieved the true American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald uses Gatsby’s story to demonstrate the corruption of the American Dream in the 1920s as a result of an over indulgent America who had lost all sense of morality.
... than a servant, for you do nothing for your keep.” They also tell her that “to strike a young gentleman, your benefactress's son! Your young master.” The servants respect the Victorian patriarchal society, despite the fact that they are so badly treated through it. Brontë is trying to tell us that this system has been in form for so long, that people are thinking of it as natural, and insists that it should not be so. In Brontë’s opinion, everyone should have equality.
Zora Neale Hurston focuses on the evolution of an African-American woman as she goes through adulthood and three marriages in Their Eyes Were Watching God. Hurston expresses the framed narrative through Janie Crawford’s point of view as she recounts her story to her friend Phoeby, and uses two dialects throughout the novel. The clear dichotomy of the narrator’s diction and the characters’ African-American dialect gives importance toward Janie’s struggles and progress to find her strength and independence. Hurston magnifies the theme of voice and language, not only with the characters’ personalities, but also with the form of the novel as she employs a third person omniscient point of view, provoking imagery and shifts in tone.
In the story, “Boys and Girls”, the narrator is not the only one coming to terms with their identity.
James was an authoritarian parent. He was controlling, in-charge and no one questioned him. He would play the role of the doting father. When his children made mistakes, he made a point to criticize them. He often compared them to other kids that he felt were “more perfect.” When his often unspoken expectations were not met he would yell and scream striking fear into his entire family. “He’s not a warm, fuzzy kind of guy, and he’s not going to inspire feelings of intimacy. But when his system works, he can boast about one thing: His recruits tend to obey” (Dewar).
Ernest J. Gaines was born in Louisiana. He was one of twelve children. His dad was out of the picture when Gaines was a small boy, which pushed them to move away to New Orleans for better work. Aunt Augustine, become gains main role model. His childhood experiences, was the foundation on which his short story “The Sky Is Gray” seemed to be based upon.