Everything That Rises Must Converge Character Analysis

Julian

A recent college graduate who has returned home to live with his Mother while trying to launch a career as a writer. He is an idealistic, self-professed intellectual whose liberal values are at odds with… read analysis of Julian

Julian’s Mother

A descendant of formerly slave-owning family that fell on hard times, she raised her son Julian by herself. Julian’s Mother laments integration and the cultural change sweeping the South as the death of a regal… read analysis of Julian’s Mother

Carver’s Mother

A black woman who boards the bus Julian and Julian’s Mother are riding. She wears a gaudy hat identical to Julian’s Mother’s and has a similarly antagonistic relationship with her son, commonalities striking enough to… read analysis of Carver’s Mother

Carver

A rambunctious little boy who rides the bus with his mother. Carver is forced to sit with next to Julian’s Mother while Julian sits next to Carver’s Mother. Carver is playful and interacts with… read analysis of Carver

The Well-Dressed Black Man

A fashionable black passenger on the bus with whom Julian sits to make a point to Julian’s Mother. The Well Dressed Black Man represents to Julian his naïve ideal of the sort of bourgeois… read analysis of The Well-Dressed Black Man

Minor Characters

The Woman With The Protruding Teeth

A white passenger on the bus who talks with Julian’s Mother about race and proper behavior. She, like Julian’s Mother, is deeply invested in propriety and in acting in a fashion that’s befitting to one’s social standing.

The Woman with Red and White Sandals

Another white passenger on the bus who vocally shares Julian’s Mother’s opinions about integration. Her contribution suggests that, among the white population of the South, Julian’s Mother is not alone in her bigotry.