From the beginning of his tale, the ex-colored man admits to a vague feeling of "unsatisfaction, of regret, of almost remorse." As the story is told, it becomes clear that these confused emotions are the result of a confused identity. The narrator struggles not so much under the prejudices of a divided society but under the prejudices and predispositions of his own mind. From the beginning, the narrator as a young boy conveys a sense of entitlement. His mother and the relative affluence she builds for them by working and receiving money from his absent father protects him from the judgment and self-doubt he might otherwise have experienced sooner and is only exposed to due to a faux pas at school
[...] How the ex-colored man's identity is constructed From the beginning of his tale, the ex-colored man admits to a vague feeling of “unsatisfaction, of regret, of almost remorse.” As the story is told, it becomes clear that these confused emotions are the result of a confused identity. The narrator struggles not so much under the prejudices of a divided society but under the prejudices and predispositions of his own mind. From the beginning, the narrator as a young boy conveys a sense of entitlement. [...]
[...] This internal conflict is best demonstrated by passages like the one with the porter, who has guided and assisted him on his journey South, and yet after having to eat at a colored-only restaurant, the narrator is reluctant to go out with his friend again when he knows he could pass for a white man and eat somewhere nicer. In fact, this ability to pass between both worlds appears to be an underlying theme in the story as the narrator moves from South to North and back again several times in an attempt to find a place and people with whom he is comfortable. [...]
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