The Spook Who Sat by the Door (Masterplots II: African American Literature Series)
At a glance:
- Author: Sam Greenlee
- First Published: 1969
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Social criticism
- Time of Work: The 1960’s
- Setting: Chicago, Illinois; Washington, D.C.; New York City; and Langley, Virginia
- Principal Characters: Dan “Turk” Freeman, Pete “Daws” Dawson, Joy, The Dahomey Queen
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism
- Subjects: African Americans, Segregation or integration, Virginia, 1960’s, New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Politics, Racism, Revolutionaries, Crime or criminals, New York City, Gangs, youth, Social work, Chicago, Washington, D.C., War, Robbery or robbers, Politicians, Conspiracies or conspirators, Employment or employees, Espionage or spies, Guerrillas or guerrilla warfare, Martyrs or martyrdom, Public relations
- Locales: Virginia, New York, NY, Chicago, IL, Washington, D.C., Langley, VA
The Novel
Dan Freeman’s elaborate plot against a racist society is set in motion by Senator Gilbert Hennington’s willingness to do anything to win reelection. Concluding that he cannot win without the black vote, he decides to campaign for the integration of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), figuring that the CIA is vulnerable after the Bay of Pigs and U-2 disasters. This cynical maneuvering for public attention works, and Hennington is reelected.
Freeman is one of the twenty-three black men chosen for training, with the understanding that only one will complete...
[The entire page is 2962 words long]
