All God’s Chillun Got Wings (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)
At a glance:
- Author: Eugene O’Neill
- First Published: 1924
- Type of Work: Play
- Type of Plot: Tragedy
- Time of Work: c.1898-1915
- Setting: Lower Manhattan, New York
- Genres: Drama, Tragedy
- Subjects: African Americans, Discrimination, New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Racism, Race, Nineteenth century, New York City, 1910’s, Emotions, Self-confidence, Intermarriage
- Locales: Manhattan, NY
Characters Discussed
Jim Harris, an African American who dreams of becoming a lawyer. The play introduces him at the age of nine and follows his development over the next fifteen years. In the opening scene, he is already in love with Ella Downey, whom he later marries. Jim is ashamed of his race, and his feeling of inferiority prevents him from succeeding.
Ella Downey, a white girl one year younger than Jim. As a child of eight, she admires Jim, but later she reveals a hatred of black people. Although she realizes that Jim is morally superior to her white associates,...
[The entire page is 591 words long]
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