45 pages • 1 hour read
Cotton Comes To Harlem
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Essay Topics
What different racial, ethnic, and religious groups make up Harlem? How do they interact with one another, and what does this suggest about the state of America in 1965?
Are Coffin Ed and Grave Digger “good” detectives? Do they truly do what is best for Harlem, or have they become too jaded and corrupt?
Describe the role of stereotypes in the novel. Which characters remain stock figures, and which ones turn the stereotype on its head?
How does Himes depict violence in the novel? How does violence shape Harlem and the events of the plot?
Religious hypocrisy plays a major role in the text, but are all depictions of religion negative? When, if ever, does religion play a positive role?
At the end of the novel, Lieutenant Anderson muses over Colonel Calhoun: “Was he a man with a cause or just a thief?” (117). Which do you believe is true, and why?
Iris commits many crimes, but she also has many crimes committed against her, some by the police. Is she a villain, a victim, or somewhere in between?
Grave Digger and Coffin Ed don’t blame the Back-to-Africa followers for giving their money to Deke because they know they need something to believe in. However, that same hope makes them easy targets for conmen like Deke. Is hope a positive thing in the novel, or a dangerous thing?
Uncle Bud fools everyone and escapes to Africa with the $87,000, but he is portrayed in a much more positive light than Deke, even though both are conmen. Why is Uncle Bud a comical figure and Deke a villain?
Why do Grave Digger and Coffin Ed allow Calhoun to escape at the end? What is the significance of Calhoun returning to Alabama and never being charged for his crimes?
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