Act 1, Scene 1 Summary

This play is the epic story of Jack Jefferson, a black boxer in pre-World War I America, and his journey from the top of the sporting world down to the bottom and back to the top. Partly because of his intimate relationship with a white woman and partly because of societal resentment of blacks in general, Jack encounters considerable obstacles in his journey, including a trumped-up criminal charge and the deterioration of his own sense of who he is. By the end of the play, he has triumphantly regained his personal integrity on his own terms, and while he is no longer a world champion boxer, he has become a champion human being.

The play begins with an argument over whether Brady, the current white heavyweight boxing champion, should fight an up-and-coming black boxer. Brady at first rejects the idea but...