Summary

Marcus – Narration describes how Marcus, the son of Sonny (Part 2, Chapter 5) hates water, partly because of what his father has always said about how “black people didn’t like water because they were brought over on slave ships. What did a black man want to swim for? The ocean floor was already littered with black men.” (284) Narration goes on to describe Sonny’s deep hatred for how whites both made and wrote the history of blacks. Narration also describes Sonny’s regular routine (which keeps him off heroin) and sets this final chapter at the beginning of the new millennium, early in the 2000’s, when Marcus is in graduate school.

As it describes Marcus’ experiences, narration comments on his anger and frustration with his studies (specifically, how much he learns, and wants to say, about how black people have been treated in America...