Essay Questions

Why does the book begin with Henry dying?

By beginning the book with Henry dying, Jones likely wanted to portray the irony of the main theme of the book. Henry began life as a slave, but, shortly after he was born, his father bought his family freedom from the slaveowner William Robbins. After this, Henry gets to live a free life, and never experiences what his parents or friends had to go through.

As he grows, he becomes more interested in gaining power, and starts a plantation of his own. Once a slave himself, he hires slaves to do his bidding. Instructed by William Robbins, he is sent to a free African American school that teaches young freed slaves. He learns the art of whipping and keeping slaves in line. By beginning the book with Henry dying, Jones is pushing the point that Henry finally got what he deserved. Instead of learning from the mistakes and crimes of white slaveowners, he became money-hungry and segregated others.

What is the complexity of the struggle that Moses faces?

The first slave that Harry bought, Moses is disliked around the farm. Like all slaves, he wants to be free, but it often rude. Although he has never broken any serious rules (like running away), he decides to do just that after Harry dies. Moses thought that Henry's widow was in love with him, but, after some flirting, found out she was not. Moses believes that she is wrong in her beliefs for him, and runs away from the plantation, despite the fact that dozens of white farm owners are now looking for him.

Not only did Moses run away from the plantation, but he ran away from his family. Before leaving, he misinformed them, saying that he would be "right back". However, Moses runs off to Mildred's house, Mildred being the mother of Harry. Mildred doesn't do much to comfort Moses, and the duo are interrupted when a white man looking for Moses breaks into the house. In an intense struggle, both Mildred and the white man are killed, leaving Moses wounded, alive, and responsible for their deaths.