Blonde Who Strips And Is Chased By The Audience

Before the ten classmates fight, they are forced to consider a "magnificent blonde—stark naked." The white men menacingly watch as the young men tremble with fear, knowing that in the time they live, a Black man who demonstrates sexual interest in a white woman risks being lynched. The narrator's description of the woman objectifies her into a "kewpie doll" as he tries to express his contradictory feelings of lust and fear. As the woman dances, the white male audience grows increasingly rowdy until they are literally passing her around over their heads. Finally, the woman escapes and the "battle royal" begins.

Classmates At The Smoker

When the narrator shows up at the hotel, expecting to give his speech, he is grouped with nine of his fellow classmates, all of whom are African American. The main event at the "Battle...