The pressure to apologize for the actions of others within the narrator's racial group is a constant internal issue he faces. Embarrassment and shame for actions that don't even directly affect him as a person, but he deems a shame to black people as a whole. At first, when Trueblood explains his incestual dilemma, the narrator pushes to leave and continues to question "how can he tell this to white men..." (58). The narrator feels responsible in apologizing for any image single people/groups display for his race as a whole, emphasizing that present theme of internalized racism.
As Mr. Norton falls ill to the heat and shock of Trueblood's story, and is taken to Golden Day where chaos and violence uproars through the misconstrued veterans, the narrator feels another presence of pressure to redeem his personal image as a result of the actions of others. Yet again, when the veteran Doctor is asked to explain his backstory by Mr. Norton, the narrator urges to leave. Questioning once again "...why would the vets act that way with a white man in the house?" (98) and continuing in thoughts to plead for forgiveness to Mr. Norton. The spiel that plays out in his head displays self-hate and incrimination for reasons he has no control over. "I wanted to...beg his pardon for what he had seen; to plead and show him years...to assure him that...I hated them, that I believed in the principles of the founder..." (99) are only some of the constructed ideas he plans to use in pardoning a new stereotype or view of himself and others of his race. The shame and guilt he knows will come from the whites, pressures him and pushes him to break down in tears and apology for no relevant reason.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-batts-speaks-to-fop-20150527-story.html
(link describing officer apologizing for the riots in Baltimore, calling people protesting and rioting for the silencing of black people's rights and freedoms just as the narrator apologizes for the veterans rowdiness against their corrupt attendant)
This brings up a really good point that we still see today. There are a lot of groups of people within races that make bad choices-this leads to the others in the race constantly being shamed for no reason. Currently, Muslims have been under fire as a whole when they are not all ISIS. However, they feel the need to apologize and do their best to separate themselves from the terrorists to show they are not all the same. Good catch!
ReplyDeleteWe can definitely see, in this section, self-preservation driving the narrator's need to apologize for other characters' actions. At this point in the story, he is still very much looking toward other people to define his identity. The narrator is embarrassed by Trueblood and the chaos at the Golden Day and is quick to apologize to Mr. Norton for all they have experienced. The narrator seeks approval from Mr. Norton and wants to "redeem his personal image" because Mr. Norton is a respected white man and the narrator values his opinion.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis is such an extremely important point in today's world as well. Many races are stereotyped just because a small number of people who only physically resemble them make bad decisions. You cannot blame an entire race for one persons mistakes. Race does not define people, people define people. As Briana said, Muslims are currently facing many problems with their place in society due to a group of Muslims that are narcissistic. I feel as if people forget that people who are apart of things such as ISIS hate everyone but themselves. There is no race or religion to blame. This is a very important point in this story as well and you helped me make sense of a part of the book I was confused about. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteThe excessive apologetics that stem from the mouths of the oppressed race are very prominent in this scene. It is not so much as the narrators empathic impulse to apologize, but rather the forced influence that makes him. He has grown up to respect the white man and obey when necessary - in which these lessons could be traced back up to a white man in the hierarchy. The apologetics symbolize the break from slavery of body, but a renewed slavery of tongue and thought to an extent.
ReplyDelete