The+End+of+California

Ulrike, 03-08-2010
 * // Steve Yarbrough – The End of //****// California //**

Well, I know I was pretty much the only person that liked this book… but I still stand by it, I thought it wasn’t too bad. Although we’ve already discussed it, I thought I’d post something about it again here – what I really liked about the book in particular was how the issue of race was addressed. I thought I’d post some parts that I thought were interesting/significant concerning race in the novel, but also try and explain why I liked how Yarbrough dealt with the issue. I find it kind of hard to explain why I thought that the author’s depiction was so realistic, I just felt that even though no one (or almost no one) was explicitly racist, one could tell that race is still something that everyone is completely aware of. I feel like this is exactly how it is in a lot of places nowadays, people might not always be outwardly racist, but people still think about racial differences and it is a part of their daily life. Here are some of the passages I thought were really good at highlighting this.

Chief Henderson is the first Black police chief Loring has ever had, and it is pointed out that due to his promotion, he now lives in a “previously all-white neighbourhood” (186), which shows that inofficially, segregation still takes place in the little town. It becomes apparent that Chief Henderson seems to not really fit in – in the eyes of many blacks he is the “White Man’s Nigger” (253), but he still is the only black person living on his street.
 * Chief Henderson**

As already mentioned, there still is that “other part of town”, where most Black citizens of Loring live. There definitely still seems to be a clear distinction between both ethnicities. The author also notes that Mason DePoyster is the only white kid at school who eats lunch with the black kids (cf. 44). While attending a football game with D’Nesha and Essence, two black girls, Toni sits in the “otherwise all-black section” (248), near the top of the bleachers, and D’Nesha explains that this is how it used to be in movie theatres in the “good old days” (249). Although segregation has long been eradicated by the law, it clearly sticks in many peoples minds.
 * Segregation**

As already mentioned, Chief Henderson is the first black police chief. Rashad Killingsworth has managed to get the job of head coach, but as Yarbrough phrases it, “a lot of them were preconditioned to find fault with Rashad Killingsworth because he was black” (128). This highlights that those black people who manage to find themselves a good job often have to prove themselves more than a white person would have to. Additionally, it is mentioned that the night crew who works at the Piggly Wiggly is all black (cf. 13), which emphasizes that there is a clear difference between the jobs of white and black people in Loring. Reggie Bush for example has to go to school at day and work at night since his father died in an accident while trying to earn money to move to the better part of town with his family.
 * Labor**

It is mentioned that Chief Henderson’s father participated in the voter registration drive during the Freedom summer, and that his political activism had gotten him inot a lot of trouble with the all-white Loring police force (cf. 186). Steve Yarbrough also refers to important figures such as Billy Graham, Pat Robertson, Emmett Till, Robert E. Lee and Martin Luther King.
 * Historical references**

“Despite the fact that Alan was older and white, Reggie felt comfortable enough to take issue with him” (47). “Truman was sixty years old and had lived his whole life in Loring, and it didn’t matter how much he thought of his boss or how enlightened Alan might be, there was no way a black man his age could tell a white woman her husband was busy, then hang up the phone” (144). Chief Henderson: “Because racist elements are still present here in Loring” (203).
 * Important quotations concerning race from //The End of California//**

2/11/2010 General minutes for discussion

-Allen's bowtie, the one piece he forgot to replace. (patriotism, faith) -Susan's mannerisms, normal or genius? -Author's inability to relate to teenage characters? -Pete is a planet! "Gravitational pull" -"she's on a roll" type lines. Out of place? -Sex in the mop room? If so, significance? -Toni knew about Allen? How? Significant? -Pete knew about Tim and Angela -Pete and Nora vs Tim and Angela -Toni's nickname ("California") in the title. Read her as main character? By the end she's not "California" anymore. Loring is her home now. -Pete calls Nora "Edie." -Why did Pete leave California? Why did he return to Loring? Running home, Pete is a planet, Pete = catalyst (destructive, but everyone loves him) -Alan's distorted perception Does he really forgive his mother? -Men ruin everything. -Alan vs Nora's husband. -Hederson as an Anti-Alan Henderson- black, the black man all the whites trust, cool, in control, no one really accepts him. Alan- white, the white man all the blacks trust, confused, not self aware, everyone accepts him. Linked by Mr. Stewart. Why?