Shades of Gray: The Introduction of Walter Harrison
Michael Johnson
- Walter
- Harrison
- is
- a
- twenty
- something
- owner
- of
- an
- apartment
- building,
- Harrison's
- Palace,
- which
- he
- inherited
- from
- his
- father,
- as
- a
- patronizing
- gift
- to
- remind
- Walter
- of
- the
- disappointment
- he
- has
- become.
- Walter
- carries
- the
- burden
- of
- feeling
- ostracized
- by
- his
- fellow
- African
- Americans
- and
- internalizes
- a
- toxic
- combination
- of
- anger,
- self-pity,
- and
- resentment
- towards
- black
- people.
- Walter
- views
- himself
- as
- a
- victim
- of
- racism
- from
- his
- own
- people,
- but
- his
- self-indulgence
- of
- sorrow
- does
- not
- permit
- him
- to
- see
- that
- his
- tormentors
- are
- also
- victims
- of
- racism.
- Convinced
- he
- will
- never
- find
- acceptance
- from
- African
- Americans,
- Walter
- forces
- himself
- to
- find
- love
- and
- acceptance
- outside
- of
- his
- race,
- to
- the
- dismay
- of
- those
- around
- him.
- The
- simultaneous
- abandonment
- of
- his
- parents
- and
- his
- first
- love
- drive
- Walter
- to
- the
- brink
- of
- madness.
- As
- he
- struggles
- to
- get
- his
- life
- in
- order,
- the
- shocking
- suicide
- of
- his
- tenant,
- and
- mirror-image,
- James
- Saint,
- another
- black
- male
- coping
- with
- loneliness,
- threatens
- to
- unravel
- Walter
- all
- over
- again.Shades
- of
- Gray:
- The
- Introduction
- of
- Walter
- Harrison
- is
- a
- colorful
- and
- honest
- representation
- of
- how
- mental
- slavery
- affects
- the
- lives
- of
- African
- American
- men.
- The
- 95,000
- word
- novel
- focuses
- on
- the
- life
- of
- Walter
- Harrison
- and
- his
- curiosity
- with
- his
- tenant,
- James
- Saint.One
- of
- the
- unfortunate
- consequences
- of
- American
- slavery
- is
- the
- that
- the
- spirit
- of
- Africans
- and
- their
- descendants
- had
- to
- be
- broken
- in
- order
- for
- the
- system
- to
- flourish.
- The
- stigma
- of
- slavery
- manifests
- itself
- daily
- in
- the
- minds,
- words,
- and
- actions
- of
- African
- Americans.
- Like
- many,
- Walter
- fails
- to
- recognize
- the
- connection
- between
- his
- predicament
- and
- the
- plight
- of
- his
- people.
- Walter's
- obsession
- with
- how
- his
- life
- and
- the
- life
- of
- James
- intertwine,
- through
- the
- reading
- of
- James'
- diary,
- lead
- Walter
- to
- discover
- he
- and
- James
- are
- closer
- than
- he realized.
