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November 25, 1959
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Black Like Me, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Appearance, Identity, and Bigotry
Unity, Division, and Communication
Implicit Bias and Systemic Racism
Fear and Violence
Summary
Analysis
Feeling that “the situation in Montgomery” is quite “strange,” Griffin decides to “try passing back into white society.” This decision also has to do with the fact that he can’t bear to face “hate” anymore.
Griffin’s unwillingness to withstand “hate” anymore is worth noting, since it says something about just how emotionally destructive and upsetting it is to live under the constant influence of racism. Indeed, Griffin has only been disguised as a black man for about a month, and yet he can’t bear to continue even for the sake of this experiment. As such, he decides to transition back into “white society”—an option that is obviously unavailable to people dealing with racism and bigotry.
Themes
