In the last few days, we have seen lots of depictions of
African Americans and their lives in Baldwin’s writing. We have seen a black
family with children playing on a rockpile, the same family going on a
spiritual revival, drug addicts and their loved ones, a struggling actor, and a
re-assimilating singer, among others. With all these characters, none struck
such stark contrast as the last two. Peter from “Previous Condition” and the
unnamed narrator from “This Morning, This Evening, So Soon” stuck out to me as
two very similar people in two very different situations, and, as such, being
treated very differently.
It’s immediately evident that there are some similarities
between Peter and the narrator from “This Morning, This Evening, So Soon.” They
are both black men, are in a similar line of work, both have close relationships
with white women, and their two stories both center around the struggles
associated with racism against them. The main difference, then, is the
environment they have to deal with. Peter is in America, and the unnamed narrator
is in France. With this geographic difference, everything changes in the way
these two men are treated. On one hand, Peter is already struggling as an
actor, then has additional problems from being a black man. He is kicked out of
his apartment simply for being black,
with no other discernible transgression. On the other hand, the unnamed
narrator is also black, but not discriminated against for that reason. Instead,
he is a successful singer who is recognized and respected in France. On page
182, Vidal provides a possible reason as to why there may be this distinction
between Europe and America. He says “Perhaps it is because we, in Europe,
whatever else we do not know, or have forgotten, know about suffering.”
Another interesting similarity between these two stories is
that both principal black characters have a close relationship with a white woman.
The unnamed narrator is married to Harriet, and Peter is very close friends
with Ida. These relationships also demonstrate the apparent disparity in racist
perception in Europe vs. in America. While the unnamed narrator is free to argue
with his wife in public without so much as a strange look, Peter and Ida
attract all the attention in a restaurant when he loudly exclaims after being
whacked with a fork.
As was also brought up in class, Europe is definitely not
free of racism, but, based on these stories, it certainly seems to be less of a
problem.
That the case even now fifty years later; the general perception seems to be Europe>United States>Asian countries in this respect. It is interesting how similar both men are, with such differences in reaction. Their view of America also seems to be similarly dim; narrator is instantly on the defensive when coming to America, while Peter is constantly trying to avoid conflict. I do wonder how much Peter would benefit from a move to France. He is constantly tormented by discrimination, and so I could imagine how doing so could benefit him.
ReplyDeleteVidal's comment is really interesting. I think that he is referring to the white Americans who still think that they are living in the past. We know that Vidal and most other Europeans have been greatly affected by war, but the implication that he makes with his statement is that white Americans don't understand how their actions can come back to bite them. This is echoed in the narrator's later statement about how black Americans find some amusement in the white Americans thinking that they are still the masters of the black Americans.
ReplyDeleteI think that the narrators of these stories are so similar because they are both based on the same man, James Baldwin. He seems to draw heavily from personal experience when writing, and I think that these stories are defiantly examples of this. The narrators are then essentially the same man at their core but with slightly different lives.
ReplyDeleteI think it is interesting that despite the narrator's success in Europe, he still wants to come to America. He is already famous in France and knows that he will face racism in America. Yet, he still wants to come back. At first I thought it might be about family, but they live in Alabama and he is moving to California. I wonder what we are missing that makes America so desirable.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was interesting how similar Peter and the narrator were, particularly when the narrator first came to France. There is a particular scene in "This Morning, This Evening, So Soon," where Vidal is trying to get the narrator more into the part of Chico, and the narrator is upset because he thinks that no one understands the struggles he faced because he was black. This is like how Peter doesn't really think that Ida and Jules can sympathize with him because they haven't faced as much racial discrimination. It is also interesting, though, how later, once the narrator has settled into Paris, how he seems to be in the situation that Peter really wants: people acknowledge his race, but don't discriminate against him, and he doesn't have to play into a certain role.
ReplyDelete