If He Hollers, Let Him Go

Answer one of the following questions clearly, directly, and completely. Be sure to quote and analyze specific passages from the course readings to support your answer.

1. In If He Hollers, Let Him Go, the characters often refer to the power of place. In many cases, they call attention to what would or wouldn’t happen in some other part of the country under similar circumstances. Give a few examples of this pattern and explain why this might be so. In particular, consider that pattern and the larger question of whose values would prevail in Los Angeles during a time of rapid change.

2. After one frustrating exchange with a supervisor, Bob considers returning to that supervisor’s office and beating him up. He then realizes that if he did, he would lose his car. “I think that was what made me decide that my pride wasn’t worth it. My car was proof of something to me, a symbol” (pp. 30-31). What does Bob’s car symbolize? Give examples to support your answer.

3. Toward the end of If He Hollers Let Him Go, Bob Jones says, “I knew that unless I found my niche and crawled into it, unless I stopped hating white folks and learned to take them as they came, I couldn’t live in America, much less to accomplish anything in it.” How does this comment contrast with his remarks at the beginning of the novel? What experiences lead him to this conclusion? Be specific.

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