Essay Questions

Explain the relationship between black and white people in the novel.

The novel tells the story of Logan Circle which is a poor neighborhood that was mostly inhabited by poor black people. The people of Logan Circle felt anger and hatred for the white people who were relatively rich and lived in the lavish neighborhoods in Washington DC. This anger and hatred developed because the people of Logan Circle blamed white people for their poverty and misfortune.

When Judith who was a white woman moved to Logan Circle, this anger was wrongly placed on her since she was turned away from community meetings, her car and house were vandalized in an effort to push her out of Logan Circle. The residents of Logan Circle disrespected her in the streets.

This anger that the poor black people of Logan Circle felt was wrongly placed because there existed a social disconnect between people from the two races that was built by media and other societal injustices.

Describe the experience of various immigrants in the novel.

The immigrants to the United States from Africa include Stephanos who was from Ethiopia, Kenneth who was from Kenya and Joseph who was from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Berhane Selassie was a refugee from Ethiopia to the United States.

Stephanos had moved to the United States with the hope of finishing college and getting a good job. This would enable him to cater for the needs of his family in his home country. Unfortunately for him he did not finish school and he ran a shop in Logan Circle that was making loses. This made him desperate and angry for he felt that he had not achieved his dreams.

Joseph also had similar dreams as Stephanos and he ended up working as a waiter in a lavish hotel in Washington. Joseph is angered by the state of sub Sahara Africa due to the military coups that were in the region.

Kenneth finished school and became an engineer. He had a relatively better life than his friends since he earned a lot more than they did.