Awareness and Good Sense of Humor

Lula seems to have studied a lot of characteristics of African American people as she manages to make Clay believe that she knows him by mentioning details of his life that applied in reality to many African American men of that era. Her statements of African American characteristics that she stereotypes towards Clay are the evidence of racial stereotyping that appears in the conversation between them. The evidence of racial stereotype that Lula says about Clay is LULA. You look like you been trying to grow a beard. That’s exactly what you look like. You look like you live in New Jersey with your parents and are trying to grow a beard. That’s what. You look like you’ve been reading Chinese poetry and drinking lukewarm sugarless tea. [Laughs, uncrossing and recrossing her legs. ] You look like death eating soda crackers. Baraka, p. 2 From the excerpt abpve, Clay seems embarrassed about what Lula states about his life, based on her knowledge about African American men’s life at his age. Lula finds a space to crawl deeper in revealing Clay’s real identity. Further statements from Lula make Clay astonished that he could not believe she knows what had happened in his personal experience, although Lula states that she lies. LULA. But it’s true, most of it, right? Jersey? Your bumpy neck? CLAY. How’d you know all that? Huh? Really. I mean about Jersey ... and even the beard. I met you before? You know Warren Enright? LULA. You tried to make it with your sister when you were ten. Baraka, p. 2 From that conversation, Lula stereotypes about Clay makes him amused. Clay does not believe that Lula seems “know” about his childhood memories with his sister and about his friend. It goes more and more stereotypes stated that “magically” makes Clay believes that she knows him very well. Indeed, he still could not be more amused that he states CLAY. What’re you talking about? Warren tell you that? You’re a friend of Georgia’s? LULA. I told you I lie. I don’t know your sister. I don’t know your sister. I don’t know Warren Enright. CLAY. You mean you’re just picking these things out of the air? LULA. Is Warren Enright a tall skinny black black boy with a phony English accent? CLAY. I figured you knew him. LULA. But I don’t. I just figured you would know somebody like that. [Laugh]. Baraka, p. 3 Clay still does not believe what Lula is saying about his friend named Warren Enright; she knows Clay is on the way to Warren’s house. Yet he puts such humor replies in responding Lula’s statement. Lula claims that she knows Clay because he is a merely a well-known type, the black man who repudiates his racial identity to adopt a white culture Diyaiy, 14: 2009. However, Lula’s racial stereotypes over Clay do not stop at that conversation and the writer finds that Lula is enjoying playing her “game” with Clay’s depiction as a naive man, and his “well-known” life.

2. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Clay’s Suit and his

G randfather’s Job Clay seems not to even take her statements seriously, yet that conversation is just a beginning of Lula’s generalizing about Clay in the play. The stereotype goes farther when they have conversation about Clay’s three button suit, his grandfather’s job, and suggesting that he is a murderer. Lula’s remark about Clay’s outfit and the general debilitating tone she addresses him with fully belong to this discourse LULA. Everything you say is wrong ... What’ve you got the jacket and tie on in all this heat for? And why’re you wearing a jacket and tie like that? Did your people ever burn witches or start revolutions over the price of tea? Boy, those narrow-shoulder clothes come from a tradition you ought to feel oppressed by. A three button suit. What right do you have to be wearing a three button suit and striped tie? Your grandfather was a sla ve, he didn’t go to Harvard. Baraka, p. 5 From the Lula’s statement above, Lula seems try to annoy Clay by speaking about the suit he is wearing and about his grandfather, which contain racial issues. She insults, embarrasses, humiliates, and blames him for repudiating his identity Diyaiy, 15: 2009. Yet she belittles and criticizes the way Clay wears the suit because the suit he wears belongs to White American people. It can also be concluded as the writer stated in the depiction scope that he has an identity issue. Hence, Clay’s answer in this monologue is “You don’t know anything except what’s there for you to see. An act. Lies. Device. Not the pure heart, the pumping black heart” Baraka, p. 9. Still in a hostile environment and with such a terrible heritage, the African American man of the 1960s while remaining in constant danger, was also starving for existence. He had to find a place in society in such ways.

3. Lula’s Statement of Racial Stereotyping Regarding to Plantation

The way Lula describes what Clay looks like, and another history of the suit he is wearing, are the evidence that Lula stereotypes Clay with racial issues