Novel through the eyes of individual narrators involved on the events of the day. The novel focuses on a group of cowardly black men who finally stop running and stand up for themselves and years of suffering. There is great difference between the narration of the black and white people. The black men grow through the novel and become individuals and depict their inner pain. The Cajuns do not see nor realize the years of pain and guilt that the black men have carried with them. The story illustrates two worlds, the inner world is the life in Marshall Quarters, the old black men and their family; the outer world being everything outside the Quarters, Fix, the Cajuns, and even the white people.

The blacks have an inner family that has experienced similar hardships and treats each other in ways that are considered offensive by those members of the outside world. One of the most prominent examples is his use of the Christian names, given by their ancestors slave owners; and their nicknames. Before each black person narrates they are introduced, "Grant Bello aka Cherry." Throughout the entire novel all black people have a nickname in which they only allow the "inne

Throughout the novel, the distinction of the two worlds become consistently more evident. The entire novel is based on these inner and outer worlds that separate the blacks and whites. These men were not violent, but on this day, they did not to return home without a battle. They were standing up for brothers and sisters, children, and their ancestors who had dealt with years of pain, oppression, and disgrace. On this day they were all men, men who were proud.

There are continuous examples through the novel that illustrate the presence and difference in the two worlds. Each of the old men tells a story of pain due to oppression by the white man. These stories automatically separate Mapes, Fix, or even Candy from the world and lives of the men. The common thread that unites these men is their story. Only on this day do they become individuals versus a group, a world with a common thread. They became individuals by telling their story that also depicted the difference in worlds. When Johnny Paul tells his story of the palm-of-Christians he tells Mapes, the outer world, "No, Sheriff, you don't see. You do not even know what I don't see" (89). The black men have different experiences and histories that separate them from the outside world. This is constant though the stories. To the Cajuns, the graveyard is more land, but to the blacks it's their ancestors and identity. Without the graveyar

Some topics in this essay:
Johnny Paul, Marshall Quarters, Ernest Gaines, Charlie Biggs, Mister Biggs, Fix Cajuns, Sylvester Battly, Lou Dimes, Fix Candy, Cherry Throughout, inner world, outside world, outer world, marshall quarters, worlds inner world, black people, entire novel, worlds inner, difference worlds, tells story, common thread,