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Part 1, Chapter 14
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 spends his time in the clearing foraging and reading. His thoughts overwhelm him, and he longs to write. The slave narrative of Venture Smith frustrates him, recalling “the tidiness of lies” used to justify slavery. He does not read the Bible, understanding it as a tool of the enemy. Young George returns and gives Jim a pencil he has stolen from his master. He implores Jim to tell his story by listening. Jim does not understand, but feels the advice is profound. At night, he hears dogs barking and wonders whether he or the racoon that lives in a nearby tree are their prey.
Jim’s eagerness to write represents his desire to assert his agency through the act of storytelling. While reading grants him a sense of freedom, he is frustrated by the content of his books—even the slave narrative feels too neat, a far cry from his own experiences. Young George’s theft of the pencil feels momentous. Jim treasures it as a tool for regaining his autonomy, but he also seems to dread the consequences of its theft. Young George’s directive to listen is unclear but suggests that Jim ought to consider the collective enslaved voices who have been silenced as he tells his own story.
Themes
