In the courthouse Dolphus Raymond reveals he is drinking from a brown paper bag with straws in it. He offers it to Dill saying that it will settle his stomach. As Dill prepares to take a sip Scout advises him to Drink slow and not Drink too much. When Dill is finished slurping up the liquid he remarks to Scout "Scout its nothing but Coca-Cola"(lee 267). Once Dill and Scout are finished talking he makes them promise not to tell anybody about his "secret'. When asked by scout why he pretends to be drunk all the time , he replies with "some folks don't like the way I live"(lee 268). Dolphus explains how he tries to give them a reason, Because of they can hold on to a reason they can understand why he lives the way he lives. Although he is a very wealthy man, Dolphus had an affair with a colored woman and had mixed children. Most people think that he is crazy for cheating on his wife with a colored woman, but for some reason if he offers them with the reason that he did it because he was a crazy alcoholic it seems to make him seem less crazy. I believe this is because there are many alcoholics, and in fact most of the adult characters in the book drink. However Dolphus is the only person mentioned in the book that has mixed children. This shows that it Dolphus feels he is more comfortable as an alcoholic, then he is as a crazy person who loves a black woman, because the group of alcoholics is larger.
Do you think this is the right thing to do, or do you think that Dolphus should take full responsibilities for his actions? Why or why not?
In response to your question, I do think that pretending to be an alcoholic is the right choice in this situation. Dolphus Raymond is taking responsibility for his actions by lying because in the south, people think that one of the worse crimes is to have children with a colored person, so most people obviously don't agree with his choice. If Dolphus Raymond, told people the truth about how he is not an alcoholic, and that he made a sober decision to have an affair, his life would be over. No one would socialize with him or even look at him because he did a terrible thing.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Lauryn that Dolphus Raymond is making the right decision in pretending to be an alcoholic. When Dill and Scout go out of the court house for a minute, Dolphus allows Dill to have a sip from the bottle from his brown paper bag. Dill likes it and starts to sip more. Scout is confused that Dill is enjoying the liquid. Dolphus explains that when he is drinking out of the brown paper bag he is just drinking Coca-Cola. Dolphus tells them the reason he pretends is because, “Some folks don’t like the way I live.” (Lee 286) He thinks that if he pretends to be drunk, people will think that the reason why he performs improper actions is because he is drunk. He also says that, “When I come to town, which is seldom, if I weave a little and drink out of this sack, folks can say Dolphus Raymond’s in the clutches of whiskey.” (Lee 268) I think that it is better option than drinking alcohol.
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ReplyDeleteI agree that Mr. Raymond is making the right choice because what he is doing is not respected. He acts like a drunk to justify his choices to others because they do not understand his actions in living with a black woman. Black people are discriminated against all over America but especially in the south. Raymond's actions were perilous and this is why he decided to act drunk all the time. Since he is living with a black woman and loves her his charade would make many people think that he is not right in the head. Because he pretends to be drunk this justifies the choices that he has made to those people who discriminate against blacks.
ReplyDeleteTo add on to what has been stated above, I think that Dolphus Raymond is taking the easy way out of the situation. He is pretending to be an alcoholic because that allows people to reason with why he made the decision to live and have kids with a black woman. He tells Scout and Jem, "It helps folks if they can latch onto a reason...folks can say...thats why he lives the way he does," (Lee 268). I think Dolphus Raymond needs to own up to his decision, and be proud of it because he is very happy with the way he is living. Pretending to be drunk is making Mr. Raymond look almost like a coward.
ReplyDeletePretending to be drunk just so he can have a black family shows his weak character. No matter which of the two choices he decides to choose, he will be disrespected. If he's an alcoholic, he will be disrespected for drinking a lot. If he likes blacks, he will be disrespected because most of Alabama in the 30's was pretty racist. I certainly would not want to pretend to be drunk over not being liked because nobody would believe anything I say and I would not be able to get a good job. He is just scared that he will be chastised for liking blacks and be treated the way Atticus is being treated now. All Mr. Raymond is doing with this decision is showing how weak and cowardly he is, if he really liked blacks he would stand up for them.
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