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Symbolism In James Baldwin's The Rockpile

251 Words2 Pages
In James Baldwin’s short story, “The Rockpile”, he uses an object, the rockpile, as symbolism for something bigger. Baldwin uses the rockpile to represent the dangers that come with freedom. The mother of the main character says to her sons, “Its a wonder they don’t kill themselves” (1). This illustrates that the rockpile and those who regularly go there are dangerous. The statement sets the idea that both John and Roy should not be going there. The author even goes to describe the rockpile as “Dangerous”(1) and “Reckless” (1). John goes as far to say, “You know Mama don’t want you going downstairs” (4). Both John and Roy know that their parents have restrictions on the places they can go. Their limitations set by their parents are there
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