Cane is not a typical novel. It is, in fact, sui generis—a unique piece of writing in American literature as well as in the entire scope of Third World writing. I suggest that Cane should be regarded as a lyrical novel—a narrative structured by images instead of the traditional unities. Its tripartite structure is developed from a series of thematic tensions: North/South; city/country (with the almost ubiquitous image of the land); past/present; black/white; male/female. Structured by these counterparts or tensions, Cane achieves a lyrical beauty and power which make it, for me, the most compelling novel ever written by a black American writer. (pp. 30-1)

The most fascinating aspect of Toomer's novel for me is … the narrator-observer who wanders throughout the book. This is the author's emotional center, for the fact is that Cane does have a central character—a figure...