The gun symbolism
The gun symbolism is present in the story “The Man Who Was Almost a Man” and it represents the main theme of the story, namely the theme of masculinity. The gun is a symbol of masculinity, of masculine power, and in the story the teenage boy, David, who desperately wants to prove that he is a man wants to come into possession of it. David refuses to give up on the gun, because by giving up on it would mean that he gives up on being a man.
The underground symbolism
“The Man Who Lived Underground” is a story containing many symbolic meanings, but the most obvious one is the symbolism of underground. The black man is forced to flee underground, because the surface world doesn’t allow him to live freely. The underground is a symbol of oppression and cornering of black men. He observes the surface world from the safety of darkness, he is afraid to come back out into the surface because of the mistreatment. The underground is symbolic because of the white supremacy and the belief that black people are less than, and should be below, white people. This is accentuated by the ending of the story, with the black man’s life being devalued and taken senselessly by the white policeman.
Shadow symbolism
The shadow symbolism is present in the story “The Man Who Killed a Shadow”. When it comes to shadows, they are something that is constantly present, but people go about their lives unaware of them most of the time. Shadows are often times used symbolically with negative connotations. This applies to this story as well. The black man in this story lives his life with the shadows of racial oppression, racism and unfairness of the treatment of black people. He tries to live his life without acknowledging the shadows, but succumbs to drinking when this becomes impossible. The symbolism of shadows in the story represents everything that comes with racial oppression and discrimination; everything that prevents a black man to live his life without constantly minding his skin color.
Motif of racist language
Needless to say, most of the stories are filled with the motif of racist language to accentuate the image of racist America. From the demeaning words and phrases that undermine the age and experience of black men, i.e. addressing an adult black man as “boy”, to straight-up offensive racially charged insults, it is a reflection of a system that allows the mistreatment and dehumanization of black people in America.
