Isabel Wilkerson’s work is one of the most iconic in the history of America and other countries. This is primarily due to the fact that it deals with history and America’s tremendous change. The change had to do not only with Americans themselves but additionally with their beliefs. The work is about the Great Migration when large numbers of people left their homes in search of happiness in the New World.
The American dream was emerging, and Isabel Wilkerson, with her book The warmth of other suns, has clearly demonstrated this process, which changed the lives of the people and the whole continent’s history. Robert Joseph Pershing Foster, George Swanson Starling, and Ida Mae Brandon Gladney are three people who decided to move to a liberal state and were forced to deal with the challenges of living in the new world while fighting for success and their dreams.
Key Points of the Plot
At the heart of the work are the stories of three people, Robert Joseph Pershing Foster, George Swanson Starling, and Ida Mae Brandon Gladney. The narration illustrates how they discovered a new world that is quite different from the way they were used to living. Each finds their own peculiarities and difficulties, which he will encounter as the story progresses. Therefore, this story is valuable in terms of plot and has historical value underneath. An important aspect is that all of these people are entirely different, each with their own destiny and line of work. Aside from two men, the introduction of a female character in the story was done in order to show different perspectives and how the lives of both men and women were influenced.
Robert Joseph Pershing Foster
Robert Joseph Pershing Foster is a driven physician who flees from a southern state to California in order to avoid the stringent class hierarchy. The story begins with his feelings of bewilderment when he sees that “white-only and colored-only signs were all over town” (Wilkerson, 2020, p.173). The indication of segregation made Pershing Foster both frustrated and angry. The man grumbles that he can operate on soldiers for the American Army and yet cannot conduct a straightforward tonsillectomy in his medical centre. The author emphasizes the difficulty of moving to a more liberal state. On the one hand, Pershing Foster was eager to open his personal practice where he would not be judged based on his skin color. On the other hand, the young man was told that “running away meant Jim Crow had won” (Wilkerson, 2020, p.175).
Still, the decisiveness of Robert to still leave on a specific date indicated his unwillingness to deal with the inequality. While travelling, being in Texas, Robert faced discrimination yet again, which made him decide to keep looking for the state where he would be safe.
George Swanson Starling
George Swanson Starling is a brazen university student compelled by the necessity to labor in plantations. He must flee because of the possibility of being lynched, and he travels to New York. The reader sees him being on a train headed to New York and being around other people who faced the same destiny. The young man was belligerent since he did not understand why he would need to be travelling anywhere, “thinking why he was on that train in the first place” (Wilkerson, 2020, p.192). This moment illustrated how people of color were disrespected and put in the dirty and noisy car of the train while white people were in the “quieter rear” (Wilkerson, 2020, p.192). The thoughts of George Swanson Starling show his liberation, though before it he had to endure discomfort.
Ida Mae Brandon Gladney
Ida Mae Brandon Gladney is a free-spirited young woman who relocates to the North from Mississippi after seeing a close relative being nearly killed. Ida and her close ones escape Mississippi and run “away from the Pearson Plantation and the arbitrary rules they had lived under” (Wilkerson, 2020, p.197). In the story, the author accentuates that Ida Mae was both “wide-eyed” and “home-sick” (Wilkerson, 2020, p198).
This illustrates that the young woman was rather forced to leave her home, similar to many people of color who wished to feel safe. Later in the story, Ida Mae and her family cross the border to Illinois, and it is mentioned that “crossing the line was a thing of spiritual and political significance” to people of color. Therefore, this moment meant the beginning of Ida Mae’s transformation after the inner pain.
Conclusion
Hence, three individuals—Robert Joseph Pershing Foster, George Swanson Starling, and Ida Mae Brandon Gladney—made the decision to go to a liberal state and were thus confronted with the difficulties of adjusting to a foreign environment while pursuing their goals and aspirations. For example, the first man was forced to battle with the inner struggle of leaving and giving up the fight for the south. Meanwhile, George was angry with his people and the necessity to flee, while being excited to be liberated. Lastly, the woman experiences inner challenges due to homesickness and yet crossing the border meant she would be safe.
Reference
Wilkerson, I. (2020). The warmth of other suns. Random House.