As the IM drives Mr.Norton around on a campus tour, they encounter many different African Americans, one of which was Jim Trueblood. Spotted by his lone cabin, Mr.Norton goes to inquire him and finds out he’s been exiled for raping his own daughter (supposedly). And they meet another later on when Mr.Norton falls ill; the IM takes him to The Golden Day where he meets Big Halley, the bartender. He refuses to serve Mr.Norton unless he comes in himself due to fear of getting into trouble. In Anthony van Dyck’s painting Marchesa Elena Grimaldi Cattaneo, we see what appears to be a princess outside of a palace with an African American servant following behind, shading her from the sun. Vanneman and Cannon elaborate on how “class consciousness—not to mention class warfare—required a stable working class stuck in its position with little hope of escape.” Going back to van Dyck’s painting, we see that “class consciousness” in the contrast between the focus on the princess and the meek demeanor of the insignificant servant. The IM’s experiences with Mr.Norton and other African Americans like Trueblood and Big Halley reveal the “class consciousness” integrated into the Southern society they are in, contradicting what the American Dream stands for; they show how African Americans, despite the abolishment of slavery, have acknowledged the racism still prevalent and its inhibition of their rise in social status.
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The IM’s actions leading up from The Golden Day ultimately result in our first true impression of Dr.Bledsoe. After Bledsoe finds out about the IM bringing Mr.Norton to both Trueblood and The Golden Day, he calls him to his office and releases his rage. Bledsoe reveals how he also is a steward of the “kill ‘em with yeses” ideology; he will do anything to stay on the good side of the White man and keep his position of power, even if it means “[having] every Negro in the country hanging on tree limbs by morning.” Similarly, Vanneman and Cannon explain how “the rags-to-riches story has become the central element in the American Dream ideology,” which is exactly what we see in the introduction of Bledsoe: an African American who supposedly worked his way up from rough roots to his currently powerful position. Enchanted by his own success, Bledsoe views himself as one of, if not the, most powerful person in the nation. If we look at George Bellows’ painting Both Members of This Club, there’s an African American and a White man in a ring together, and the African American appears to be dominating the fight, but his achievement is being judged and enjoyed by an entirely White audience peering in on the fight. This parallels Bledsoe's story. While seemingly powerful, he only became the esteemed individual he is now by giving the Whites what they want: a good fight, or in context “killing ‘em with yeses.”
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