Reality has flaws and situations that are less than ideal, while fantasy can be filled with nothing but a person’s desires. The disappointments reality can bring are the complete opposite of the bliss of fantasy. Just because fantasy is more desirable, living in it can have its flaws too. Although reality may be displeasing compared to a fantasy, making the best of a reality can make it more bearable to live in and constantly being consumed by a fantasy can amplify the pain of reality more than necessary. Coates clearly outlines the realities of being black in America along with ways to deal with it on pages 144-149 of his book, Between the World and Me. Coates’ utilization of devices about sentence structure and varying types of melancholic diction convey how although the realities of being black include being abused by the society they are in, there is a comfort in knowing that there is a community that expresses the same hurt and fear for having one trait that makes them the same.
Coates’ utilization of metaphoric language along with juxtaposition and an allusion convey how the realities of being black are more complex and challenging than they may appear to be. In this specific section, Coates was visiting Mrs. Jones, the mother of Prince Jones who was unfairly murdered by the police. When Coates asked Mrs. Jones if he expected the cop who shot him to be charged, she replied that she did but “her voice was a cocktail of emotions” (144). The word “cocktail” in its literal sense is a mix of alcoholic beverages, which may be enjoyed in some instances but in many others, a mix of too many alcoholic beverages can make someone sick and hungover. In a figurative sense, a cocktail has a hint of a dangerous connotation because it is associated with an ambivalence that shouldn’t be kept away from others. Her response to whether or not she expected the cop who shot her son would be charged was a mix of emotions that she most likely kept to herself for a long time. This mix of emotions is most likely because her faith in the justice system conflicted with her knowledge of reality. Mrs. Jones “spoke like an American, with the same expectation of fairness” as any of her counterparts regardless of race as well as speaking “a black woman, with all the pain that undercuts those exact feelings” (Coates, 144). About the previously mentioned analysis, Mrs. Jones’ expectations of justice are juxtaposed with the reality of being black in America. The juxtaposition of the “fairness” of America and “the pain” of being a black woman creates a disheartening tone which further contributes to the fact that the realities of being black in America are more challenging than what people perceive. This conveys how America’s fairness and justice are restricted to the privileged white people of America and anyone who is not a part of that, especially black people, will be discarded by the system that they are told will help them. Although Mrs. Jones believed that “the glory days of this country had long ago passed” and that the “glory days were sullied,” she failed to realize that the supposed “glory days” were “built on the bodies of” black people ( Coates, 144). The denotation of “sullied” is to damage the purity of something, which suggests that the history of America had purity and glory. America’s history may have had glory, but it did not stem from purity: Coates spends not only this excerpt but his entire book, explaining how America was built on the black body, so much so that it has become a motif for what America truly is. This conveys how the only “glory” that was “sullied” was Mrs. Jones’ flawed faith in the American justice system protecting the people that they persecuted to succeed. In closing, the destruction of black people throughout American history is a reality that all black people have to accept.
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Coates’ utilization of repetition, juxtaposition, and despondent diction convey how black people have been victims of abuse by their society for a long period. Mrs. Jones remembers her son fondly in many ways but a particular way she remembers her son is through her gifting him a Jeep. She remembers him saying “Thank you, Mom” and contradicts that by saying in a morose tone, “That was the Jeep he was killed” (Coates, 145). The juxtaposition of Prince's “thank you” and the Jeep he was “killed in” is a clear representation of the innocence of good-hearted black people that is met with a fatal end by people who they thought were sworn to protect them. This juxtaposition exemplifies the fact that the happiness that black people try to achieve in America is counteracted by the maltreatment that they face and have been facing constantly. Mrs. Jones also expresses the fact that he had “means”, and “a family”, and “was living like a human being” until “one racist act took him back” (Coates, 145). Mrs. Jones’ despondent diction when she declares that all it took for her son to be taken as “one racist act” holds significance because it further amplifies the abuse black people face because it conveys how they can be killed by just being a “human being”. This exemplifies the fact that black people face prejudice no matter what they do, even if they are causing no harm to others. Coates thought back to the Civil Rights protests that he once viewed contemptuously from a different perspective. Coates reasoned that maybe the participants of those protests, “willingly parted with the sanctity and security of the black body because neither sanctity nor security existed” (146). The phrase “sanctity and security” was repeated to convey how although sanctity and security were promised to all Americans, that promise has never been extended to black people so they have to fight for it. Since they never got the same promised rights as their white counterparts, black people continuously face abuse from the country they live in.
Coates’ utilization of juxtaposition and optimistic diction conveys how struggling collectively as a black community brings people together. Coates considers how the “hope” of many movements may be “to awaken the Dreamers” and convince them that the need to be superior is among the “design flaws of humanity” (146). The collective “hope” that activists have to tell Dreamers that their perception of reality is harmed and flawed is not only an example of optimistic diction but it also exemplifies a commonality amongst black activists that brings them together. Coates talks about how “the warmth of the dark energies” within Mecca, Howard, is “beautiful no matter how brief and breakable” (147). “Warmth” is usually not associated with “dark” energy which makes it clear that this juxtaposition suggests that the dark energies are not always harmful. Dark energy may seem dangerous to the people outside of it but Coates adding warmth to it indicates that there is a sense of community within being victims of irreverence by privileged white people. Lastly, Coates recalls being at a party at a club and says that within all of that energy and action, “there was a moment, a joyous moment, beyond the Dream” which made him recognize the presence of “black power” coming from a “dark and essential planet” (149). The “joyous moment” occurred when Coates was surrounded by light-hearted and celebratory energy which associates the jubilant diction with the black community. This is an exemplification of the fact that despite the circumstances that are expected to tear down the black community, the black community finds a way to build a bond stronger than the hate that is thrown at them.
Coates’ utilization of devices about sentence structure and varying types of diction convey how although the realities of being black include being abused by the society they are in, there is a comfort in knowing that there is a community that expresses the same hurt and fear for having one trait that makes them the same. Instead of accepting injustice, persevere through it with people who face similar situations. Living a fantasy can only be temporary while making the best of reality is sensible and can last a lifetime. The commonalities among people within that reality can form a stronger bond than a fantasy can ever conceive.
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