Themes: Lula as a Representation of White America
Lula represents white America, characterizing the guilt, fascination, and hatred it feels toward black America. Her persistent assertion that she is old underscores her belonging to a long tradition. Although she plays the role of a white liberal— romancing a black man, expressing preference for black culture over white, and declaring that the only person in her family who ever amounted to anything was her mother, who was a Communist—when Clay is lured into emerging from the shelter of his disguise, she quickly and coldly destroys him. Moreover, she is able to command the unquestioning assistance of the white and black passengers on the car, indicating the authority of the social order and the stereotypes it engenders.
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Themes: Archetypal Figures and Stereotypical Roles
Themes: Clay as a Stereotype of the Black Intellectual