Race Relations

For a book set in the Southern United States in the early 1970's, a time and place of intense racial tension (see also "Style - Setting"), exploration of the issue of race relations in The Moves Make the Man is surprisingly understated. The point is not made to suggest that the issue is not present; on the contrary, there are a number of powerfully described confrontations, such as the battle of wills between Jerome and the basketball coach in "Second Part, Section 13, in which race is the motivating factor. As well, the events of the story proper are set in motion by an action (the black Jerome being transferred to an all white school) taking place within the context of a national effort to reduce racism. But ultimately, the story is not actually ABOUT racism, which in fact is a secondary theme / issue when compared to the...