” These glances were exchanged between black men all over the city every minute of the day, a quick solidarity worked into the weave of every man’s mundane pursuits, a nod or smile or quick greetings.”
( Cole, p. 191)
In chapter 18, Julius and two young black men initially give each other a friendly exchange. The next second, however, they attack and rob him. Julius feels a sense of betrayal because of the connection he thought he had with them. He thought the glances that black men give to each other were a way of acknowledging their common struggles in life. There is an irony in this situation where the young black men who rob Julius are hurting him rather than supporting him.
I think the irony in this chapter highlights the lack of belonging that Julius feels, even among people whom we think Julius could connect with. Even though Julius is a black person from the African continent, we would think that he would have a friendly connection with the two young black men. However, we see throughout the book that Julius does not necessarily feel a strong sense of connection with people just because of their common nationality or ethnicity. In fact, Julius feels a broad- universal connection with people based on their experiences such as Dr.Saito and Farouq.
Hello Yingrong,
I agree with your analysis. I think this quote also explains Julius’s distrust and desire to distance himself from new people as an adult. Julius has gone through so many negative experiences as a child, that his train of thought as an adult makes so much more sense now. When Julius ran into people that he felt like he could connect to, they broke his trust and stole from him. Due to this, he prefers to observe people, rather than engage with them to prevent being exploited. Dr. Saito and Farouq are interesting because they are some of the only people Julius shares a deep affinity with and trusts as an adult.
Hi Yingrong,
Feeling betrayed by your own people is a horrific feeling, which is even worse than being betrayed by an utter stranger. Thus, Julius being backstabbed by the black men, whom he identifies with, is even worse for him than if it happened through someone else.
-Zachary Rosman
Hey Yingrong,
I think that your analysis of this even is spot on. I felt something similar while reading this. I connected this to a point earlier in the plot where Julius encounters the black cab driver. In that situation, Julius was the one who seemed to betray the driver’s idea of black solidarity. I think that this theme of expecting others to behave a certain way because of some common interest is present throughout the book to show that people are individuals first and part of a group after. This helps us understand that Julius leads an aimless and mundane life because he has no one to answer to.