Biloxi Blues | Themes

Biloxi Blues Themes

Prejudice and Anti-Semitism

One of the most important themes in the play is prejudice. Many of the characters show prejudice toward other groups of people. Wykowski is the most obvious, openly expressing his derogatory feelings toward Jews and African Americans. His prejudice toward Jews is more obvious as Jewish soldiers are in the company, providing Wykowski with an outlet for his feelings. By contrast, in the early 1940s, white and African-American soldiers were segregated, thus there are no African-American privates to incite racial slurs. A brief dialogue points out the segregation of the U.S. military as well as some of the feelings of the privates about it. When Hennesey claims to be "Half mick, half nigger," Selridge protests, "You can't be colored. They wouldn't let you in with us." Wykowski, on the other hand, rushes to this opportunity, ". . . I guessed it. It was something I couldn't put my finger on...
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