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Moses
Charlie Slatter is a neighbor of the Turners, and thinks of himself as Dick’s “mentor.” A working-class Englishman who previously worked as a grocer in London, he made a fortune through tobacco farming in Southern Rhodesia. He is at times a good friend to Dick, and seems to genuinely have Dick’s interests at heart. However, he is also self-interested and strategic, and much of his support for Dick is secretly rooted in the fact that he wants to take over Dick’s farm to increase his own profits. Furthermore, Charlie is exceptionally invested in maintaining the racial hierarchy of Southern Rhodesia, which leads him to force Dick and Mary to leave the farm after he comes to believe Mary is having an affair with Moses. After Mary is murdered, Charlie conspires with Sergeant Denham to cover up Mary’s relationship with Moses in order to protect the reputation of the white race.
Charlie Slatter Quotes in The Grass is Singing
The The Grass is Singing quotes below are all either spoken by Charlie Slatter or refer to Charlie Slatter. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 1
Quotes
To live with the color bar in all its nuances and implications means closing one's mind to many things, if one intends to remain an accepted member of society. But, in the interval, there would be a few brief moments when he would see the thing clearly, and understand that it was “white civilization” fighting to defend itself that had been implicit in the attitude of Charlie Slatter and the Sergeant, “white civilization” which will never, never admit that a white person, and most particularly, a white woman, can have a human relationship, whether for good or for evil, with a black person. For once it admits that, it crashes, and nothing can save it.
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Charlie Slatter Quotes in The Grass is Singing
The The Grass is Singing quotes below are all either spoken by Charlie Slatter or refer to Charlie Slatter. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 1
Quotes
To live with the color bar in all its nuances and implications means closing one's mind to many things, if one intends to remain an accepted member of society. But, in the interval, there would be a few brief moments when he would see the thing clearly, and understand that it was “white civilization” fighting to defend itself that had been implicit in the attitude of Charlie Slatter and the Sergeant, “white civilization” which will never, never admit that a white person, and most particularly, a white woman, can have a human relationship, whether for good or for evil, with a black person. For once it admits that, it crashes, and nothing can save it.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
