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Part 1, Chapter 21
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
Jim and Huck continue traveling at night. One evening, they find the Duke and the King waiting by their raft, having stolen a boat and caught up to them. The men know that Jim is a runaway and have concocted a plan to sell him repeatedly, having him escape each time only to be sold again. As a minor, Huck cannot claim to own a slave, and the King declares, “Possession is nine-tenths of the law,” meaning he owns Jim by virtue of claiming to own him. The Duke removes his belt to beat Jim, who takes the lashes rather than see Huck hurt in his place. The men remark that Jim does not seem to experience pain like a human man.
The knowledge that Jim is a runaway emboldens the Duke and the King, who treat him even more callously than before, knowing how much he has to lose. Their plan to exploit Jim is easy to implement because what the King says is true—anyone who sees hm with Jim will assume he is Jim’s enslaver. The Duke’s violence is wholly unnecessary and merely exhibits the depth of his wickedness. His remark that Jim does not feel pain reveals his racist perception of Black people as something other than human.
Themes
