Racist Indeed

Asking if this man was racist or not is in my opinion slightly foolish since the text clearly identifies that he is. Joe said in his post that it is easy to see why someone would identify the text as such but with lines like "Six black men advanced in a file, toiling up the path. They walked erect and slow, balancing small baskets full of earth on their heads, and the clink kept time with their footsteps. Black rags were wound round their loins, and the short ends behind waggled to and fro like tails. I could see every rib, the joints of their limbs were like knots in a rope; each had an iron collar on his neck, and all were connected together with a chain whose bights swung between them, rhythmically clinking." I was swirled into a flash back of Roots and was expectant of the author to call African Americans wide nosed and big lipped beasts of burden since ultimately this was where the text was going. His deeply racially charged descriptions devalued the story and made it seem like the race of persons or characters was more important than the content of what was actually going on. His contrasts between African American's and Whites as far as description goes furthers the idea that the man is racist. "They passed me within six inches, with- out a glance, with that complete, deathlike indifference of unhappy savages" In comparison to his description of a white man which was completely positive according to the text. He was "I in such an unexpected elegance of getup that in the first moment I took him for a sort of vision. I saw a high starched collar, white cuffs, a light alpaca jacket, snowy trousers, a clean necktie, and varnished boots" He did not go into detail about any negative aspects of this mans appearance, but proceeded to paint him as some sort of pseudo saint among savages. I do have to agree with Achebe. oN the other hand the fact that so much racism is used in the text could just be the authors way of being controversial or colorful, however with the extremes and extents that the text goes to that theory wears thin.