"Cane"

Paper Summary:

Dusk is portrayed as an image of fusion in Jean Toomer's "Cane". It shows something to be both ending and beginning at the same time. Dusk joins light and dark, day and night, and most importantly, black and white. This paper explains that it is a time of merging, a time of vagueness, and a time of ambiguity. It discusses how Toomer's writing is marked by patterns of imagery that find their roots in dusk. Compelling evidence of dusk seems to lie in the murkiness of both the atmospheres and the characterizations of Karintha, Becky, Carma, Fern, Esther, and Louisa. The paper also shows how each of these characters had their own "dusky" stories to tell.

From the Paper:

"Dusk is portrayed to be a reflection of Karintha's soul in the novel Cane. Imagery can be seen joining the light and dark, "perfect as dusk when the sun goes down" (Toomer, 3). In my opinion, this shows Toomer's wish for the merging of the two races. The light and dark images seen in this particular excerpt can signify Toomer's underlying dream for a merging of the two races; especially by his use of racially mixed characters. His vision of the future, essentially, is where race in no longer the basis of identity. Toomer desperately wanted the colors to merge in his characters; creating a race-free society just like the merging of colors in dusk. After all, dusk is the intermediary between the golden light of the sun and the darkness of the moon; it is where color merging takes place."

More papers on "Cane":

• Book Review # 115746 : "Cane River"
• Analytical Essay # 56408 : "Jean Toomer's "Cane"
• Essay # 40057 : "Sugar Cane and Soils"
• Analytical Essay # 25245 : "Cane"

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