Headeye By Gertrude Character Analysis

Fish-hound, the main character, is in the Mississippi River. Headeye, another significant character, is trailing him through the river. Fish-hound thinks Headeye is here for finding his prime fishing locations and then tries getting away. Turns out, when Headeye catches up to Fish-hound he tells him that mojo bone is the key to the black experience. Headeye then starts to tell Fish-hound about the story of Ezekiel in the valley of dry bones. The story tells, the bones should be bound up and shall rise again. Fish-hound thinks it is unbelievable and just keeps fishing until a giant boat appears behind him. Henry Dumas uses African American culture to explain how Headeye had a rough childhood and did not get a good education. “Rhythm and idiom of Southern Black dialect and to emulate the syntax and digressions of an uneducated black youth” (May). This explains how Headeye was very true to himself while learning. Growing up Headeye taught himself everything he could know. After becoming an adult and becoming the “chosen one” for the prophecy the story explains how he is now smart. “Headeye, he hard to fool” (Dumas). When Headeye became the “chosen one” it was because of his uneducated youth and how he wanted to become a stronger and smarter person while growing up. By Dumas putting in this “flashback” so to speak it

“Dumas again addresses the question of spiritually by explaining the lives of a group of urban youths who have lost their leader. The spiritual power of music also the focus in “will the circle be unbroken,” but this time the religious ritual portrayed is not one that shares any connection with Judeo-Christian religion origin: it is a purely African American rite that draws and the cosmic forces of balck music to build a protective wall for African Americans against the cultural aggresions of nonblacks”