Essay Questions

On what event was the play based?

The play was based on an event that took place a few years before, in 1955. In that year, a 14 year old black boy named Emmett Till was murdered by two white men because Emmett allegedly hit on a white woman. The young man was murdered in a brutal manner and the two white men were eventually tried for the murder but were acquitted. The murder of Emmett Till was the event that sparked the Civil Rights Movement, the black community being enraged by the fact that the killers remained unpunished for their actions.

Why does Richard’s father insist his son puts away the picture with white women he has?

In one of the scenes, Richard is with his father in a bar and he shows him pictures of white women he dated while in New York. Richard’s father is quick to tell his son to put the pictures away, scared for his son’s safety. The reason why Richard’s father is scared is because many white racist used to be against white women having relationships with black men. While the women were only criticized, black men were in danger of losing their lives because they were getting involved with women the white men saw as being too good for them. Because of this, Richard’s father insists his son never mention this because he is scared the white men will react violently because of this.

Why do Meridian and Parnell blame Christianity for slavery?

The reason why Christianity is blamed by the black people in the play is because many white people used Christianity as a way to promote slavery. When white men came to America and when slavery started, the reason many agreed to have slaves is because they believed they were doing their duty as good Christian people by helping those who never heard about it come to the true faith. They also used the Bible to claim black people were inferior and thus needed the help of the white, superior race to reach God.