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Part 1, Chapter 1
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in James, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Speech, Performance, and Willful Ignorance
Identity, Narrative, and Agency
Racism, Dehumanization, and Hypocrisy
Innocence vs. Disillusionment
Family, Alliance, and Loyalty
Summary
Analysis
In the evening, Jim gathers Lizzie and some other children for a language lesson. They learn how to speak the way white people expect enslaved people to, because disappointing white people only leads to suffering. They are not to make eye contact or speak first and must always “let the whites be the ones who name the trouble.” Jim runs the children through hypothetical scenarios, instructing them to never suggest that a white person has made a mistake. Mumbling is allowed because white people love to correct slaves. Though Jim does not believe in “their white God,” he encourages them to talk about religion, knowing that the better white folks feel, the safer they are.
Jim’s language lesson highlights how his performed dialect is an inherited survival technique designed to pacify white people. “Slave talk” effectively allows white enslavers to maintain an illusion of superiority. It is worth noting that, while Lizzie and the other enslaved children are aware of their performances, the white adults in charge of them are not. This lack of awareness indicates a widespread naivety among white people in this society and shows how Black safety hinges on the maintenance of white comfort, even when the safety they perceive is an illusion.
Themes
Huck approaches Jim at work and asks if he prays. Jim assures the boy that he prays often, but can tell Huck is still conflicted about the idea of God. He advises Huck to pray so Miss Watson can hear him, as that will make his life easier. The boy leaves, and Old Luke arrives with news of a free Black man who cut some policemen to avoid being hanged. Luke and Jim notice a white man watching them and switch to slave diction. The man asks if a nearby horse is for sale before moving on. Old Luke says white people love to buy things they don’t need.
Knowing that Jim does not believe in God adds layers of nuance to his conversation with Huck. At first, Jim performs piety like he does for other white people. But then he seems to let Huck in on his secret, instructing him to meet Miss Watson’s expectations in order to make Huck’s life easier (which is exactly what Jim and the other enslaved people do). Jim’s conversation with Old Luke suggests that enslaved people are well aware of the dangers they face as Black people in white society, even if they are free. Old Luke’s comment alludes to the white desire to possess things for the sake of possessing them, which might be referencing the institution of slavery in general.
Themes
Old Luke tells Jim that the man who attacked the police officers was burned alive. No one was indicted for the man’s murder because it was an act of a multitude, which Luke interprets as: “If enough of them kill you, they’re innocent.” Jim wonders if they’ll ever get to St. Louis or New Orleans, and Luke responds in slave talk, which makes Jim laugh. A white man, disturbed by their happiness, asks what they’re laughing about. Jim and Luke perform ignorance, asking the man if whiskey really runs down the streets of New Orleans. When the man leaves, Jim suggests he is off to get drunk, simply because the man knows that they—enslaved people—cannot. Luke finds this ironic.
Old Luke and Jim’s continued conversation demonstrates the futility of seeking justice in a world in which so many people accept the crimes of slavery and murder. It also highlights how white society at large dehumanizes Black people and sees no issue with acquitting itself of any wrongdoing when a Black person dies. Old Luke and Jim are able to find comfort in their shared suffering, but even that small consolation is policed by the white man who interrogates their laughter. Jim’s speculation that white people take joy in experiences that exclude Black people—like drinking—paints them as morally depraved.
Themes
