The allegorical struggle for respect
Austin Reed maintains that he is beset on all sides by false accusations from people who look down on him for being African American and poor. It is 1850 in New York, so there are plenty of racists, even though they are in the north. His story is frustrated by people who blame him for their problems, leading to legal issues. He experiences the brokenness of the system, but since he is literate, his memoirs are his martyrdom, because he was able to share his point of view.
The motif of penal injustice
The idea of American criminal justice is that people are innocent until proven guilty, but in this case, that is obviously not the case. In this story, Reed is assumed to be guilty on charges that he claims he had no part in. For him, these battles started very early; he was even sent to a juvenile delinquent center as a youth for his decisions to commit theft. He is very poor, so he feels that his crime is sometimes a kind of survival instinct.
The symbolic question of guilt
Throughout the story, he admits to some crimes, while on other charges he maintains he was innocent. The question he raises in his prose is whether the nation is ready to give Black people the benefit of the doubt, and that question is still pertinent. The question of guilt in his life is a good symbol for the ongoing complications between American justice, the undeniable historical disenfranchisement of Black people, and the ongoing journey for justice.
Escape and capture
The motif of escape and capture is a portrait of Reed's desire for freedom. He wants to be free not only from jail but from the narrow confines of his life. With his criminal history, it is hard for him to get on his feet, and the lifestyle he gets left with has him continually at odds with the law. He is not enfranchised by the law, but is treated as a villain, he feels.
The motif of vice
Reed has complicating habits. For instance, there is his propensity to gamble and get himself into debt. Early in life, he admits he was a career criminal and thief. Although he is smart and well-read (a huge accomplishment for a man during a time when few Black Americans could read or write), he often struggles to make wise decisions, because he is plagued by paranoia and frustration, and because he is human. The question of vice gives the reader a decision to make about whether they will judge this man or not.
