Structure

This work has several noteworthy structural elements. The first is its overall structure – specifically, its having been broken down into three parts, two of relatively equal length and a third that on first glance looks like an epilogue, but in actual fact contains the work’s climax. Each section is prologued with a quote from a noteworthy black American writer that metaphorically introduces the main ideas of the section that follows.

The second point to note is that the event-to-event structure of the work is roughly chronological. The author anchors his comments, analyses, and recollections in a time-defined narrative of his life, moving from his childhood and youth in Baltimore through his young adult experiences in Washington DC to his more mature, contemporary adulthood in New York City. Here it’s important to note that the author layers this basic structure with flashes-back and flashes-forward in time...