Student Question
What did Richard observe at the railroad station in Black Boy?
Quick answer:
At the railroad station, Richard observes racial segregation for the first time, noticing separate lines for whites and blacks at the ticket window. His understanding of racial division deepens when he sees that blacks and whites occupy separate parts of the train. Richard's naive curiosity about the segregation leads to his mother's reaction, making him realize that racial separation is a harsh social reality, marking his introduction to segregation's pervasive presence in society.
At the railroad station, while waiting for the train that would take him to Arkansas, Richard notices for the first time that "there (are) two lines of people at the ticket window, a 'white' line and a 'black' line". While he had been visiting his Granny, Richard had "developed a sense of the two races...with a sharp concreteness", and when he boards the train, that sense is intensified when he realizes "that...Negroes (are) in one part of the train and that the whites (are) in another". His curiosity awakened, Richard naively asks his mother if he can go see "how the white people (look) while sitting in their part of the train". From his mother's reaction, Richard begins to perceive that his request is neither right nor possible; his observations at the railroad station are Richard's introduction to the monstrous social reality of racial segregation (Chapter 2).
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