The Color of Water by James McBride - Book Report/Review Example

Book project- The Color of Water: The color of water is a remarkable memoir written by James McBride. McBride is a black novelist who has attempted to pay a big tribute to his white mother through this memoir. It takes readers on a spectacular journey of how Ruth came to America as a Polish Jewish immigrant and how as an adult she moved to New York City (NYC) where she decided to marry a black man. Her first husband was Dennis. When Ruth was pregnant with her eighth child James, who is the author of this book, Dennis died of lung cancer. Soon after, she married Hunter and birthed four more children. Marrying a black man during 40s was a highly unusual thing for a white woman because interracial marriages were not as common at that time as they are now. But, Ruth strictly considered human life to be more important than insignificant issues of color and religion. She fiercely believed that a black man is no different than a white man because it is not in color, but in soul where the difference lies. The main settings in the story are Virginia where Ruth spent her time as a child. Then, she permanently moved to Harlem in NYC as an adult where she spent the rest of her life. The story is set in the early 90s and extends to 1980s. The main character of the story is James McBride himself who narrates the story. Another very important character is his mother, Ruth McBride. James and Ruth together form the two important voices of the complex narrative hidden inside the book (Geiger). Dennis is introduced as the biological father of James who was an extremely gentle and caring black man. Ruth’s mother, Mameh, is an important secondary character who was crippled, but highly loyal to her husband. Her Jewish husband on the other hand and Ruth’s father, Tateh, was a very cruel man who ridiculed his wife’s disability in public. Though Tateh was nonblack and a Jew, Dennis still turned out to be a very good husband to Ruth despite being black and non-Jewish. This demonstrates that goodness of character cannot be judged by color or religion. In this book, James demonstrates how he and his mother dealt with numerous conflicts throughout life. He claims that his life was very different from the lives of other people around him because he was a biracial child. Rejection by family due to abandonment of Jewish faith and marrying a black man was the main source of conflict which remained quite painful for Ruth throughout her life. Then, James himself had to deal with confusion as a child because he did not know if he was black or white. He found himself “often embarrassed, sometimes scared” (Hevesi). It was before Ruth told him that he should consider himself a human being first before every other label. Racism, tolerance, and acceptance are three major themes of this book authored by James McBride. At the time when Ruth moved to NYC or when James was a child, black-white relationships were frowned upon by society because they threatened the privileged lifestyle of the white capitalist class. The members of this class wanted to keep the black people in a disadvantaged position to enjoy premium advantages themselves. They promoted racist attitudes for this purpose and discouraged interracial marriages. Acceptance of one’s decisions and being comfortable with them is also an important theme. Tolerating others’ choices and respecting them for who they are is also an important subject which is touched in the book. One of the greatest strengths of the book is that it conveys messages of relentless bravery and perseverance. Marrying a black man was a life changing decision, but Ruth stood up to all consequences and always strived to defend her choice. This is quite inspiring for readers and motivates them to stand up to their decisions as well. The author also digs with acute intelligence into the subject of racism describing how his mother always considered issues of race and identity secondary. This take on life by Ruth, which was passed on to James, casted a huge influence on him. It is for this reason that this book is considered a classic in the study of racism and healthy interracial relations (Marcus). Interracial marriages are accepted more today in the 21st century than they used to be in the time period of the Color of Water because of a greater level of awareness. People are more aware today because they are better educated. Media is highly responsible for increasing awareness. Over past many years, media has taught people to be more open and receptive to the issue of healthy race relations. It has educated people on being more tolerant of others’ choices. The problems and conflicts which were encountered by Ruth and James are not entirely unheard of in the present times, but they are certainly reduced by a considerable degree. This is because more people know now that other races are not scary, but they are also normal human beings who should be respected as much as one likes to be respected oneself. It is due to this positive trend that the division between privileged white class and disadvantaged black class started to dissolve. This is how people from different races started to get closer and they began to realize that they are not really that much different from one another. Color or a certain race does not make a person superior to another because superiority lies in the way a person executes his/her virtues and talents. This concept forms the bedrock of many activist groups and media agendas which is how the thinking pattern of society began to shift and people started to inculcate new enlightened ideas in their lives. This shift permeated every societal level and revolutionized the way people approached the subject of interracial marriages. People on the whole are more broadminded and liberated today than they were a few decades back. This does not mean that racism has become obsolete because it is still there. But, there is a more liberated approach taken to interracial marriages by a giant population today. Works cited: Geiger, Jack H. “Rachel and Her Children.” New York Times. nytimes.com, 31 Mar. 1996. Web. 23 Jun. 2014. Hevesi, Dennis. “Ruth McBride Jordan, Subject of Son’s Book ‘Color of Water,’ Dies at 88.” New York Times. nytimes.com, 16 Jan. 2010. Web. 23 Jun. 2014. Marcus, James. “The Color of Water: A Black Man’s Tribute to His White Mother.” Barnes & Noble. barnesandnoble.com, 2014. Web. 23 Jun. 2014. Read More