James: Part 2, Chapter 1 Summary & Analysis

Norman catches up with Jim in the woods, unable to stand the minstrels any longer. When Emmett discovered Jim gone, Norman says, he started cursing Black people like any other enslaver. While Norman sleeps, Jim concocts a plan. Since both he and Norman want to buy their families, Jim proposes Norman pose as a white enslaver, selling Jim repeatedly to make some money. It is the same plan the Duke and the King thought to enact. Though dangerous, Norman agrees their situation cannot get any worse. He estimates his wife will cost 1000 dollars, as she is “good breeding stock.” Jim reads a racist lyric from Norman’s notebook and shares his own desire to write. The men head south.

After a few days, the men stop in a town called Bluebird. Jim pretends to be Norman’s slave, calling him “Massa Brown.” They see some other Black people in town, like an old woman churning butter at the general store. An old white woman hears Jim talking, which alarms her. Norman assures her that Jim can only grunt and whine, like an animal. He is nervous talking to white people, even if he is able to pass. Jim wonders if Norman is just a crazy white man who imagines himself Black, or if he will abandon Jim to his fate after selling him, regardless of race. Jim gives Norman his notebook to carry, but he keeps his pencil safe in his pocket.