The Journey to Manhood in Gaines' Bloodline

• Main Author: Rawat, Shagun
• Format: Others
• Published: ScholarWorks@UNO 2011
• Subjects: Racial denigration; animalistic state; maturity; nurturing; self-identity; manhood
• Online Access: http://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/1341; http://scholarworks.uno.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2325&context=td

Ernest Gaines collection of five short stories Bloodline, (1968) depicts the effects of racism and its denigrating effects on the lives of the black men. Gaines use of animal imagery furthers the effects of racism on the psychology of the blacks. The resolution comes around in the form of a mentor who helps the protagonists to break through the debilitating mind-set and work towards a new self-identity no longer defined by the white man. Gaines articulates the effects of lack of maturity, responsibility and understanding on the lives of the protagonists, their families and the community as a whole. Gaines brings out the new avatar of the black man who in his self-actualized journey arrives at an understanding of nurturing, caring and contributing to the community. It marks both the culmination and a beginning of true manhood in the lives of his central characters.