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Chapter 22
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Sun Does Shine, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Discrimination and the Criminal Justice System
Optimism, Faith, and Choice
The Death Penalty
Suffering, Community, and Support
The Power of Stories
Summary
Analysis
On Wednesday, April 1, 2015, while Ray is meeting with one of Bryan’s staff attorneys, the attorney gets a call from Bryan and says that Ray has to call Bryan as soon as he can. Ray wonders what it could be—the date for his trial hasn’t been set yet because the district attorney’s office couldn’t find the bullets or the gun from his case. The state accused Bryan of stealing them, until a clerk found a box with the evidence in a storage facility. They are now waiting for the prosecutors to run new tests.
Even after nearly three decades, the state continues to resort to corruption and manipulation in order to avoid reversing Ray’s conviction. This illustrates that it is not just the state from 30 years ago that discriminates against Ray: this is still an issue in the book’s present day.
Themes
When Ray gets Bryan on the phone, Bryan excitedly tells him that the district attorney filed a document without telling anyone. The state dropped all charges against Ray—he’s going home. Ray crouches down; he can hardly breathe. Bryan says Ray can get out on Friday morning, and Bryan will be there to walk him out of the jail. Ray laughs and says that he needs to bring Ray something to wear to walk out in.
This is the final testament to the power of faith and optimism. Only through Ray’s incredible perseverance and Bryan’s efforts was Ray able to withstand everything the state could throw at him and earn his freedom back. Without that hope and support, he would never have been able to survive.
Themes
Ray then grows quiet; he doesn’t know how to thank Bryan for all he’s done. Bryan has been by Ray’s side for 15 years and behind the scenes for even longer—Ray doesn’t know how he can repay him. “God bless you,” Ray says, and Bryan chokes back a teary “Thank you, Ray.” When Ray hangs up, he sobs.
Ray’s heartfelt thank you, and Bryan’s grateful response, underscores the power of community support. Without Bryan’s empathy and his hard work, Ray would never have gotten out of jail. Likewise, without Ray’s perseverance, Bryan could never have gotten him off of death row.
Themes
On Friday morning, Ray changes into a suit that Bryan brings him. Before Ray walks out to meet his friends and family, Bryan says that Ray can say whatever he wants to the press that is also waiting. Ray is nervous, but he thinks about the guys on death row who will watch his release on the news. Then, after nearly 30 years in jail, he walks out of the building. Ray’s family and Lester greet him tearfully, praising God. After they settle down, everyone gets silent, waiting for Ray to speak. “The sun does shine,” he says. He looks at Lester and Bryan, the two men who saved him, and he begins to cry.
Ray’s statement to the press calls back to his and the other inmates’ discussion of Go Tell It on the Mountain and Ray’s assertion that the sun would never refuse to shine. With this statement, Ray is sending a signal to the other men about the importance of maintaining hope even in the face of insurmountable odds and despair: it is the only way that Ray has been able to walk free.
Themes
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Ray climbs into Lester’s car—the first time he’s ridden in the front seat in 30 years. Before they go to Lester’s house, Ray asks Lester to go to his mom’s grave. Ray is startled by the voice of the GPS—he thinks a white woman is in the car with them—until Lester explains what it is, and Ray realizes he has a lot to learn about the world.
Much of the rest of the chapter illustrates the toll that the biased criminal justice system has taken on Ray’s life and the far-reaching consequences that it has even when he gets out of jail. Ray now has to face a completely different world in 2015 than the one he left in 1985. He is also suspicious of white people because of his experience at his trial.
Themes
When Ray visits his mom’s grave, he cries and tells her that he said he’d be home. As he grieves, Ray grows uneasy to be outside without any guards or fences. Lester then takes Ray to a buffet, where Ray is nervous that Lester didn’t pay for the food until Lester assures him that he paid with a credit card. Ray also hasn’t used a fork in 30 years, so he fumbles with it. He worries that people around him are looking at him as a guy who got away with murder. Lester tries to reassure Ray that everything’s going to be okay.
Ray presents further examples of how much his experience in jail has cost him in his life. He worries about other people’s biases, he is afraid of being arrested again, and he has forgotten common experiences like using a fork. But through all of it, Lester is there to support him just as he has been during Ray’s time in jail.
Themes
When Ray gets to Lester’s house, he feels the anxiety lift a little. He, Lester, and Sia stay up laughing and talking until 2:00 a.m., and then Ray goes to lay down in the guest bedroom. He knows that the guys on the row will soon be getting up for breakfast. Lying in a bed is so strange to Ray that he starts to get anxious again and worries he’s going to have a heart attack. Ray gets out of the bed and goes to the bathroom, which is almost exactly the same size as his cell. He lies on the floor and sleeps, thinking that this feels more like home.
Ray concludes his first day of freedom by illustrating that he still doesn’t—and may never—feel truly free, the deeper cost of the havoc wreaked on his life by the criminal justice system. After being on death row for 30 years, he has become so accustomed to a lower quality of life that a bathroom floor feels more comfortable to him than a bed.
Themes
