The Collision Between Race and Privilege

Living a privileged life is usually thought to be exclusive to wealthy, white people. That stereotype proves to be false in this novel as January’s appearance and upbringing create a collision between race and privilege. January notes that people are not sure how to treat her because she lives a life of privilege, yet her skin is not white. Locke tries to convince January that the color of her skin does not make her inferior. Yet, when he is angry with her, he insinuates that she will never be worth anything because of the color of her skin. When January travels to Kentucky alone, she realizes for the first time the sort of treatment she should expect to receive without Locke’s money making her acceptable.

January notes that when she was a child, people were always uncertain about her...