Tayo’s friend and a fellow war veteran. Harley is an alcoholic who tries to find the joke in every situation, which the novel portrays as an attempt to hide from the emptiness of his life. Harley loved being in the military because when in uniform he was respected by white Americans, and has trouble adjusting to the “normal” discrimination against Native Americans that he once again faces after the war is over. Harley continues to drink because the alcohol gives him a brief respite from the pain and anger of his life after the trauma of war, even though the drink itself is a self-destructive practice. Harley is murdered by Emo after Harley fails to betray Tayo to Emo.
Harley Quotes in Ceremony
The Ceremony quotes below are all either spoken by Harley or refer to Harley. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Section 4
Quotes
He was thinking about Harley and Leroy; about Helen Jean and himself. How much longer would they last? How long before one of them got stabbed in a bar fight, not just knocked out? How long before this old truck swerved off the road or head-on into a bus?
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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Harley Quotes in Ceremony
The Ceremony quotes below are all either spoken by Harley or refer to Harley. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Section 4
Quotes
He was thinking about Harley and Leroy; about Helen Jean and himself. How much longer would they last? How long before one of them got stabbed in a bar fight, not just knocked out? How long before this old truck swerved off the road or head-on into a bus?
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
