Is the novel an essentially racist text? How is race used throughout the narrative to construct meaning?

The narrator observes that many menial jobs (refer to pp. 245-246) are considered to be properly done only by women or African Americans (for example, an earth-moving machine is referred to as "The Hundred-Nigger Machine", p. 146). In point of fact, nearly all of the female and African American characters in the novel are employed at performing these types of menial and physically-demanding jobs - is this simply a textual coincidence?

Discuss the relationship between the novel's author and the novel's narrator. Are they the same person? How is the narrator constructed as a character throughout the narrative?

The narrator states that Dwayne Hoover went crazy because of 'bad chemicals'; is this a plausible and satisfactory explanation?

Consider the actual plot of the novel - what really happens...