The Good Old Days- Chains and Roll of Thunder

      I was on a walk to school, and suddenly I got splashed by mud from a whites only bus dashing past me. I followed it to an exquisite school, where I only saw whites. This is racial climate. Racial climate is the setting where people are seen by their races in the books Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry (RoTHMC), by Mildred D. Taylor and Chains, by Laurie Halse Anderson. The racial climates that Isabel and Cassie face are influenced by the settings and attitudes. First, the setting in Chains was much more enclosed, but in RoTHMC, the setting was a lot more money related, making the two settings barbaric. Next, Chains and RoTHMC make it unthinkable for blacks to have freedom. Lastly, the racial climate affects Isabel more than Cassie because the way the settings were in Chains was more vehement than the settings in RoTHMC. Though Cassie and Isabel faced many hard challenges, they constantly fought against the rights they were given.

      First, the racial climate in Chains is more brutal than in RoTHMC. To start, the setting in Chains was much more surrounded, but in RoTHMC, the setting was a lot more financially related, making both settings brutal. An example is when the Grangers couldn't buy land due to the Great Depression; “Them Grangers didn’t have nothing to pay their taxes…”(91). This shows how people had trouble paying their taxes. In Chains, there were soldiers everywhere in New York making the city heavily guarded. The text states, “Soldiers splashed through the puddles and carried long muskets …”(27).  This shows how surrounded New York (NY) is. Additionally, the attitudes in both books were different because one emotionally hurts the main character and one physically damages the protagonist. One portrayal, is when TJ Avery got whipped by the Wallaces. “Why do you want to waste a new rope on a n——? ‘Cause big as this n—— an old one will break”(255). This shows Cassie witnessing her friend getting whipped by a white person. An example is when Isabel gets mad when Madam sold Ruth, leading to a beating. “I raised my arm, but it was too late; the frame crashed on my head”(135). This shows Isabel getting beaten by her owner. Finally, the treatment slaves get in Chains is much worse than in RoTHMC. One demonstration of this is when Isabel gets branded. The text states, “The man pushed the hot metal into my cheek… they cooked me”(148). This shows Isabel getting branded, meaning that she gets a permanent mark on her face for doing something unruly; she tries to fight Madam, and then, the next thing she knows is being in court. On the other hand, when Cassie heard about tarrings and burnings, she was terrified: “There were nightmen, burnings, tarrings…”(77). This shows that even though in RoTHMC the people get tarred and feathered, the characters in Chains get branded, making it much worse of a treatment in Chains than RoTHMC. All in all, I think that the racial climate in Chains is more brutal than in RoTHMC.

      Secondly, the whites Chains and RoTHMC make it unthinkable for blacks to have freedom. To start off, in Chains and RoTHMC, whites were superior to blacks. For instance, when Isabel wanted to see Curzon, she saw Dibdin wearing Curzon’s red hat. This infuriated her: “I wanted to pull the bars apart, snatch the hat from his head, and thrash open the bars, but that was impossible’’ (236). This shows that whites are superior to blacks in the situation Isabel is in and many more circumstances. Also, in RoTHMC blacks didn’t get the bus to go to school. This is truly torture for blacks because if whites got the bus in the middle of a thunderstorm, blacks had to walk on the muddy road. The text states, “…while white faces pressed against the bus windows” (13). This shows that whites get more luxury and much easier living compared to blacks. Next, the consequences that people face in Chains and RoTHMC are similar because whites usually had the advantage when in an argument from the people around them. For example, when Isabel went to the jail to see Curzon and she didn’t share the food she got for Curzon with the other prisoners. The text states, “He grabbed my arm, fingers like the claws of panthers” (221);This shows that the prisoner would have hurt Isabel badly if she hadn’t shared the food. Another example is when in RoTHMC, a black got tarred and feathered for not paying debt: “Tarred and feathered him! They poured the blackest tar they could find all over him, then put chicken feathers on him. (74)” This shows the similar types of punishments that blacks are given in RoTHMC and Chains. Lastly, whites are favored and treat blacks like items in both novels. A demonstration of this is when Papa is telling Cassie about blacks and whites hanging around together. Papa says, “You see blacks hanging around whites, they mean trouble. (158)” This shows that a black spending time with a white, can lead to something bad. Another instance is when Mr. Lockton tells Isabel to do everything he can do on his own. This is a hypocritical moment because if Lockton can do this on his own, why was he sending a slave? Because whites treat blacks like items! Lockton says, “Keep the wine flowing and the plates full. (58) This shows how blacks are treated like items compared to how whites were not. Finally, Chains and RoTHMC both make it impractical for blacks to have freedom because of how they treat blacks like objects, and the consequences blacks are given.

      Lastly, the racial climate affected Isabel more than Cassie because the setting in Chains was a lot more unbalanced than the setting in RoTHMC. To start, the meanings of freedom in the novels are divergent. One moment when Isabel had set herself free by saving Curzon from nearly dying in jail, she had felt open to the world around her. The text states, “I was in Jersey. I have set myself free. (300)” This shows us that Isabel feels open and free from being owned by a strict slave owner. The text states, “We promise to take care of our ‘new’ books. (21)” This quote proves that even the blacks in RoTHMC get education. Secondly, Cassie and Isabel are both separated from their loved ones due to the racial climate. For example, when Isabel lost her old owner: “The pine coffin of Mrs. Mary Finch, with her best dress… (1)” This saddened Isabel because Ruth is her only family now. Another demonstration of separation is when Cassie’s father came and then left because he needed to get to work to make money, and he left with this: “Look out there Cassie girl. All that belongs to you… You may not understand now, but someday you will. (7)” This shows us that even though Cassie is sad her father is leaving, yet is left with a strong reason why. Lastly, RoTHMC has more long-term danger, but in Chains the danger is in an instant. An example of this is when Isabel woke up, and NY was burning to the ground. “When I woke, the city of New York was consumed by a burning hellfire. (190)” This shows that in Chains, the danger is right in front of one’s eyes. However, in the other novel, the Logans are given a notice that the Wallaces are bad, dangerous people: “They are bad people, the Wallaces. That is why I don’t want you to go to their store ever—for any reason. (98)” This shows that in Chains, the danger is instantly, but in RoTHMC, the danger is over a period of time. Finally, the racial climate affects Isabel more than Cassie because the way people treated Isabel was way more unbalanced than how people treated Cassie in RoTHMC.

​      To sum up, the racial climates that Isabel and Cassie face are influenced by the attitudes and settings because people see each other differently by their race. In the two novels, the main characters are seen badly by the world around them in that specific time period. Cassie wanted equal rights for all and Isabel wanted freedom for all. No matter how hard it was to find freedom and equality, Isabel and Cassie still fought for their rights.