In "That Evening Sun," Quentin's hometown of Jefferson is shown as being super divided by race, which is something Quentin gradually becomes conscious of. After all, he grows up within this racial pressure cooker and is unaware of how omnipresent racism is. He's kind of like the fish that asks, "What is this "water" thing everyone keeps talking about?!"
A distraught (perhaps crazed) black woman named Nancy seeks help from Quentin's white family but finds none. The bleak depiction of her plight, the "meh" attitude Quentin's family shows to her, and the cruelty with which she is treated by other whites all help to lay out the troubled race relations in the South around the start of the 20th century.
Questions About Race
- How could Nancy's plight have been addressed? Could the characters have responded more helpfully, or do the beliefs of their time limit their options?
- How do the Caddy, the young Jason, and the young Quentin's views on race differ? How are they alike?
- What does Nancy believe about the power of white people or black people to protect her from Jesus? What might her belief or beliefs say about the town of Jefferson?
- What might be the significance of Quentin's final question asking his father who will do the family's washing now that they're leaving Nancy behind?
Chew on This
The pervasive racism of the town of Jefferson means that the white family's options were too limited for them to truly help Nancy.
The pervasive racism of the town of Jefferson shouldn't have stopped the white family from doing more to help Nancy.