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Dave is a Black seventeen-year-old living with his family in the American South around the 1930s. He works plowing fields on a plantation owned by a white man, Jim Hawkins, where members of his family (including his parents, Mrs. Saunders and Bob Saunders) also work. He dislikes the way he’s treated by older fellow workers, who he feels regularly mock and talk down to him. Having internalized a sense that respect is a product of masculine physical power, perhaps in part because his father regularly threatens to beat him, Dave concludes that the one way to prove himself a man is to own a gun. Dave then sets about convincing his mother to give him two dollars to buy a gun with the lie that he will immediately give it to his father. Instead, after getting the gun, Dave rather recklessly hides the loaded weapon under his pillow, and then sneaks out with it, planning to go do his field work in as distant a place as possible so he can practice firing it. But this plan backfires when he shoots the gun for the first time—he closes his eyes as he pulls the trigger—and accidentally kills the mule Jenny. He attempts to lie his way out of the predicament by saying Jenny accidentally impaled herself on a spike of the plow, but no one believes him and, crying, he confesses. His father is furious, and Dave ends up deeply in debt to Mr. Hawkins, who owned the mule. Faced with this situation, Dave runs away—hopping a train for parts unknown with his now-unloaded gun, hoping to find a place where he can be a man. Dave doesn’t show much growth over the course of the story—he begins it focused on a simplistic idea that strength will make him a respected man, and ends it still looking to become a man. The open-ended nature of the story’s conclusion, however, suggests that what sort of man Dave will become is still up in the air.
Dave Saunders Quotes in The Man Who Was Almost a Man
The The Man Who Was Almost a Man quotes below are all either spoken by Dave Saunders or refer to Dave Saunders. 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:
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The Man Who Was Almost a Man Quotes
Shucks, a man oughta hava little gun aftah he done worked hard all day.
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This quote occurs very early in the story and marks the first time Dave has the thought that motivates all his actions throughout the rest of the story: that in order to prove his manhood, he needs to acquire a gun. Dave has internalized this violent idea of what makes a man from others around him, particularly his father (who beats Dave) and the older field workers (who talk down to Dave like a child). Dave sees having the ability to deal violence that a gun offers as a surefire way to prove his manhood, to make everyone else respect Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste enim. Sequi aut maxime. Adipisci voluptate et. Voluptas suscipit alias. In et eveniet. Eaque et repellendus. Dolores aut voluptatibus. Voluptatem qui voluptatum. Vol
“How you n ol man Hawkins gitten erlong?”
“Suh?”
“Can’t yuh hear? Why don yuh lissen? Ah ast yu how wuz yuh n ol man Hawkins gittin along?”
“Oh, swell, Pa. Ah plows mo lan than anybody over there.”
“Waal, yuh oughta keep yo mind on whut yuh doin.”
“Yessuh.”
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In this scene, Dave has returned home with the catalog that shows the pictures of guns for dale, and is distracted by it during dinner conversations with his father, Bob Saunders. Bob is clearly annoyed at Dave’s distraction. Meanwhile, much of Bob’s dialogue throughout the story returns to the ideas he is focused on in this conversation: that Dave must prove himself worthwhile in the eyes of his white employer, Mr. Hawkins. The repeated nature of these quotes shows the inflexible character of Dave’s father, who doesn’t change over the course of the story, hovering over his son with constant Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corp
“But Ma, we needa gun. Pa ain got no gun. We needa gun in the house. Yuh kin never tell whut might happen.”
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Dave has decided to convince his mother to give him the money to buy a gun when his father isn’t around. When Dave finally gets his mother alone, he begins making his case for her to give him the money that he earned working for his white employer, Mr. Hawkins (because the wages were given to his mother, not Dave). She initially dismisses his arguments. But what finally persuades his mother is the argument that he should buy a gun because his father doesn’t have one, and a man needs a gun in the house. The fact that this argument Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi qui
In the gray light of dawn he held it loosely, feeling a sense of power. Could kill a man with a gun like this. Kill anybody, black or white.
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Dave wakes up the morning after buying the gun and realizes for the first time the true extent of its power. Previously, Dave’s motivations for buying the gun were presented in interpersonal terms: he wanted the gun in order to have specific people in his life respect him, like the other older workers in the field. This scene, however, is one of the first times that Dave directly considers the role of race on the plantation. Dave’s knowledge that he could kill anyone—even a white man—makes him feel powerful, suggesting that before he owned the gun, he felt powerless around Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima
The gun felt loose in his fingers; he waved it wildly for a moment. Then he shut his eyes and tightened his forefinger. Bloom! A report half deafened him and he thought his right hand was torn from his arm.
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It’s the moment of truth: Dave tries to fire his newly purchased gun for the first time. Unfortunately for him, this action will end in disaster. Wright foreshadows this disaster by capturing the visceral details of firing a gun, showing exactly how things can go wrong for an amateur like Dave. The looseness of the gun in Dave’s hands shows that he doesn’t have control over it—literally—which foreshadows how he will lose control of the chain of events that he’s about to set off by firing the gun. But just because Dave cannot control the gun’s power doesn’t mean the Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam co
Then he saw the hole in Jenny’s side, right between the ribs. It was round, wet, red. A crimson stream streaked down the front leg, flowing fast. Good Gawd! Ah wuzn’t shootin at the mule.
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In this scene, Dave discovers that not only did his firing of the gun frighten the mule Jenny, but he actually accidentally shot her. As with other parts of the story, Wright mixes the high literary style of the narration with the more colloquial style of Dave’s thoughts. “Crimson stream” is a poetic way to describe blood flowing from the mule’s wound, and this language is shocking because it’s being used to describe a dying mule, which isn’t normally a very poetic image. While Dave has just made a very serious and careless mistake by shooting his gun with his Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissim
Somebody in the crowd laughed. Jim Hawkins walked close to Dave and looked into his face.
“Well, looks like you have bought you a dead mule, Dave.”
“Ah swear fo Gawd, Ah didn go t kill the mule Mistah Hawkins!”
“But you killed her!”
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When it is discovered that the mule Jenny has been killed, Dave is quickly identified as a likely suspect, and a crowd gathers to witness what will happen to him. Throughout the story, Dave is forced to endure characters belittling him or looking down on him, and the crowd scene is a culmination of this verbal abuse. Notably, most characters in the crowd (with the exception of Dave’s father) don’t even touch Dave—they reduce him to tears with words alone. The scene illuminates one of the key ideas about masculinity that Dave and the others on the plantation believe—that being Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste en
Nobody ever gave him anything. All he did was work. They treat me like a mule n then they beat me.
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As he lies in bed at night thinking about what happened after his employer Mr. Hawkins discovered that he had killed the mule Jenny, Dave has a revelation: the way his boss treats him is just like the way he treats a mule. While Dave has experienced discontent with his life on the plantation before, this scene shows a new level of awareness—and anger—from Dave. Previously, Dave did not rebel when his father told him the best thing to do was to keep his mind on his work and keep a good relationship with Mr. Hawkins, even though Dave was Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusa
When he reached the top of a ridge he stood straight and proud in the moonlight, looking at Jim Hawkins’ big white house, feeling the gun sagging in his pocket. Lawd, ef Ah had just one mo bullet Ah’d taka shot at that house. Ah’d like t scare ol man Hawkins jusa little . . . Jusa enough t let im know Dave Saunders is a man.
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After being punished by being forced into two years of debt for his accidental killing of the mule, Dave goes out at night with his gun to try firing it again. After he fires his remaining shots, he goes up on a ridge and looks down on Mr. Hawkins’ house and fantasizes about shooting a bullet at the house. The scene is significant, both because it’s the first time Dave’s violent fantasies have specifically included Mr. Hawkins but also because even in Dave’s fantasy, he doesn’t actually imagine shooting Mr. Hawkins, only shooting near enough to scare him. For Dave, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis. Impedit non ut. Incidunt rerum est. Aperiam doloremque eum. Animi soluta perspiciatis. Ut minima autem. Modi omnis iure. Sint qui qui. Qui similique praesentium. Ex consequatur magnam. Aliquid iste enim. Sequi aut maxime. Adipisci voluptate et. Voluptas suscipit alias. In et eveniet. Eaque et repellendus. Dolores aut voluptatibus. Voluptatem qui voluptatum. Voluptatibus sed placeat. Aut tenetur autem. Fugit voluptates in. Quidem impedit sunt. Excepturi ullam nobis. Ducimus odio quo. Ut autem harum. Omnis vel voluptatum. Assumenda officia maiores. Voluptatem sint velit. Quod quia sapiente. Cum sunt quo. Accusamus veritatis voluptatum.
He felt his pocket; the gun was still there. Ahead the long rails were glinting in the moonlight, stretching away, away to somewhere, somewhere where he could be a man . . .
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At the very end of the story, facing years of debt to Mr. Hawkins and an imminent beating from his father, Dave runs away: he hops on a train, taking the empty gun with him, and the train pulls away toward a new, unspecified destination. While Wright has combined Dave’s thoughts in dialect with literary narration throughout the story, the final lines are purely narration. This is because the ending is purposely ambiguous, and giving direct access to Dave’s thoughts would undermine the ambiguity. Wright does not even give a hint of what destination the train is heading for. The Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Qu
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Dave Saunders Character Timeline in The Man Who Was Almost a Man
The timeline below shows where the character Dave Saunders appears in The Man Who Was Almost a Man. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
The Man Who Was Almost a Man
As he’s heading home from the fields for dinner, Dave Saunders thinks about some of the other, older workers in the field who always talk...
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On the way home, Dave stops by Joe’s store. He feels confident at first, but once he sees Joe—a white...
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Dave feels triumphant for getting Joe to give him the catalog. As Dave is leaving, Joe...
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When Dave makes it home, his mother, Mrs. Saunders, chides him for being late and for coming...
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Soon, Dave’s father, Bob Saunders, and his younger brother enter the room and sit at the table....
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Dave’s father tells Dave to stop fooling with the catalog, and then asks Dave how he’s...
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When Dave’s father and younger brother leave the kitchen, Dave begins working up the courage to ask...
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Dave opens the catalog for his mother to the page with the gun on it, but...
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Dave tries a different approach to convince his mother to buy him the gun. He says...
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Dave’s mother promises to let Dave get the gun on one condition: he has to bring...
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The next morning, the first thing Dave does is reach under his pillow for the gun. He holds it loosely and feels...
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Now in the early morning, Dave wraps the loaded gun to his thigh with a strip of old flannel and skips...
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Dave plows two whole rows with the mule Jenny before even taking the gun out. He...
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Dave chases after the mule Jenny, calling for her to hold on. When he catches up...
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Dave’s stomach feels empty. He takes the gun and buries it at the foot of a...
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...woods. Mr. Hawkins remarks that he doesn’t know how in the world it happened. Soon Dave’s family arrive to the gathered crowd, asking where Dave is. Mr. Hawkins points him out,...
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Dave finally admits what happened. Stuttering, he swears he didn’t mean to shoot the mule Jenny....
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Mr. Hawkins comes up close to Dave and informs him that he just bought himself a dead mule. The whole crowd begins...
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That night, Dave doesn’t sleep. He is glad at first that he got out of killing the mule...
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Dave thinks about how he fired the gun and gets the urge to do it again....
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Dave blows the dirt off the gun and checks the barrel, which holds four cartridges that...
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Dave starts to walk back home. When he reaches the top of a ridge, he stands...
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Dave hears a train coming down the tracks nearby. He thinks about his debt to Mr....
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