Our way of life is precious. It's the way I live, the way my daddy lived, my granddaddy, and his daddy before him. It's going to be the way you live, if I have anything to say about it.
-- Grampa (chapter 2 paragraph 9)

Importance: Grampa Hillburn has high emotions when it comes to the way of life in the South. Grampa believes that whites and African Americans are not equal, that whites are meant to be the bosses and that the African Americans are meant to be the obedient and hard working people. This is a racist view that goes back several generations in his family and he intends to raise Hiram to be as racist as he is as Grampa finds that there is nothing wrong with this way of thinking.

Son, you don't know some of the uglier things about the South. I want you growing up understanding that all men are free...
-- Harlan Hillburn (chapter 3 paragraph 49)