The Sky Is Gray Analysis

Lessons of Tough Love in The Sky is Gray

Ernest Gaines’ short story, The Sky is Gray, was published in 1963, towards the end of the Civil Rights Movement. The title of the piece hints to the general dreariness which lingers throughout the story. James, the narrator, is a young boy in a poor African American family in Louisiana during World War II. Despite the racism and poverty which control James’ life, his mother teaches him how to survive adversity with her tough love.

Throughout the story, James’ mother, Octavia, appears to be harsh, standoffish, and unaffectionate. At the beginning of the story, when they are waiting for the train, James says he wants to hug his mother and tell her he loves her. But he knows he is not supposed to because,

In The Sky is Gray, Octavia is seen using this tough love many times. While they are in town, James is hungry and cold. He stares into a white-only café and wishes he could go inside. Octavia tells James to keep his “eyes in front where they belong” (Gaines 4). She knows he is hungry and cold—she probably is too. Yet, Octavia does not outwardly worry or fuss over James. She does not ask him how he feels or reassure him in any way. She simply reminds him, forcefully, to keep looking forward. Octavia does not want James to focus on the unavailable warmth and food because it will only make his longing worse. Another example of Octavia’s tough love takes place at their rural home. In this scene, Ty and James’ hunting traps catch a pair of redbirds. James says, “I didn’t want kill the redbirds, but she made me kill them.” The scene is painful to read as James begs his mother not to make him kill the birds. “I can’t,” he cries over and over again, but Octavia is persistent (Gaines 3). “Get him out of there,” she says (Gaines 3). She increases her force throughout the encounter from ordering, to slapping, to hitting James with a switch. Octavia would not let her son go without killing a redbird. This scene is the most obvious and pointed example of Octavia’s harsh parenting. Their family needed the birds to eat. Octavia is teaching her son how to survive and be strong for the sake of the

She may not be fond of hugs and sentimental words, but she shows her affection in other, less obvious, ways. Octavia is teaching her son how to be resilient with her tough love. The last line of The Sky is Gray is “’You not a bum,’ she says. ‘You a man’” (Gaines 14). This line is, in her own way, Octavia telling her son she is proud of him. James is becoming the man she wants him to be. Unfortunately, because of his race, James may face many hardships in his life. But thanks to his mother, he will be prepared to survive and, hopefully, overcome those