Blackout

ENGLISH LITERATURE
A WORLD OF PROSE
Blackout (Pages 8-11)
BIOGRAPHY OF AUTHOR
Roger Mais – (11 August 1905 – 21 June 1955)

Jamaican journalist, novelist, poet and
playwright.
By 1951, he had won ten first prizes in West Indian literary
competitions.
He is known for his integral role in the development of political
and cultural nationalism, which earned him a National Award posthumously in 1978.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Mais
He worked at various times as a photographer, insurance salesman, and journalist,

launching his journalistic career as a contributor to the weekly newspaper.
He also wrote several plays, reviews, and short stories for journals and the newspa-
per, The Daily Gleaner; his topics most frequently were the social injustice and in-
equality suffered by black, poor Jamaicans. He appealed to his local audience on
grounds to push for a national identity and agitate against colonialism.
Mais published more than a hundred short stories.
SUMMARY
The story starts off explaining the blackout in the city and the general atmosphere
of being uncomfortable and tense over the city. At this point the story builds an ex-
pectation of some sort of conflict. An American woman was waiting at a bus stop.
Surprisingly, she was not bothered by the darkness, and she was not nervous.
A black man slowly approaches her and asks for a light for his cigarette. As she
does not have matches, she offers her cigarette and as he thanks her, she flicks the
cigarette away. She does that because she appears to be disgusted that a Black man
touched her cigarette and therefore, she doesn't want to smoke it anymore. After
the flicking, there's a moment of discomfort and she asks him why he was still
there. He replies with an apology as a comment on her action. He stays and keeps
talking about her apparent wealth and as he talks, she becomes more uncomfort-
able. The conversation between the two then focuses on gender and race. At that
moment the reader can sense that actually the woman is interested in the current
situation and she might actually be looking for an adventure, but he tells her that
she is not his type of women which undermines her. During the conversation, the
reader can also see that the woman has some very racist thoughts.
After a while he sees the bus coming and points at it. She gets on the bus and as it
starts moving, she urges herself to look back at him and challenge her prejudices,
but thinking of the society and worrying about how unacceptable it would seem
she can't succeed and doesn't look back while the man picks up the cigarette from
the gutter.
POINT OF VIEW:
The story is written from the third person limited omniscient point of view. This
means that the narrator is not a character but is narrating the story as if from the
outside. The narrator can only see into the mind of one character - the American
woman, hence the term, limited. By showing us the woman’s thoughts, we can see
into the mind of a racist and understand what she thinks of the man just because he
is black. We can see her change in emotion and opinion as the interaction contin-
ues.
SETTING:
This short story was set in a Caribbean island, most likely Jamaica since the author
hails from that country. It was set during World War II. The title, “Blackout” is given, refer-
ring to two things. It could be literal, referring to the city being in darkness due to
the policy of conserving electricity during the war. It could also be referring to the
woman being in a "figurative darkness, that is, that she cannot she the truth or the
“light” of all people being equal.
CHARACTER:
The American woman was waiting at the bus stop. She was calm despite the recent
attacks by “hooligans” on unprotected young women. She was positive and proud
of her American heritage, keeping up the tradition of not being easily scared.
The Jamaican man is bold, outspoken about his views…
THEMES:
Conflict
The woman at the bus stop is hesitant to give the man a light from her cigarette. It
is as though she feels that the man is infringing on her personal space. The woman
immediately notices the colour of the man’s skin. Mais (writer) may be highlight-
ing the inequalities that existed at the time the story was written with black people
being considered inferior to white people. The man tells the woman that there are
only two types of people (men and women) suggests that any inferiority that the
woman may be holding with regards to the man’s skin colour does not necessarily
affect him. The man is colour blind, something that is far different to the woman’s
personal view on skin colour.
Connection
The woman as she leaves to get on the bus is intrigued by the man. However, she
makes a point of not turning back to look at him. She may be concerned about
what others on the bus might think about a white woman turning around to look at
a black man., which may suggest that the social barriers that existed at the time the
story was written with regards to black and white people engaging with one an-
other has a strong hold on the woman’s consciousness. Despite her curiosity and
interest with the man, she is also fully aware of how any engagement with the man
might be interpreted by others. The woman does not allow herself to step outside
the preconceived and acceptable norms of the time.
The fact that the man is able to challenge the woman is also interesting as rather
than being intimidating he is actually asking the woman to look at her own values.
The writer (Mais) may be suggesting that society in general needs to look at itself
and to question its moral standards. (social commentary)
DEVICES
Symbolism:
1) The cigarette that the woman throws away could symbolise wealth or class espe-
cially if it is compared to the half cigarette that the man is smoking. Also the
woman may feel as though the cigarette has been tainted in some way because she
allowed the man to light his cigarette from it. This suggests that the woman is
racist or that she does not consider the man to be her equal. Through his skin
colour the woman may believe there is a fault. Something that would have been
widely believed among white people at the time the story was written.
2) The story is set during the war (WWII) might also be symbolically significant as
Mais could be using the setting as foreshadowing to the conflict that develops be-
tween the man and woman. The fact that the man also touches the woman’s hands
when he is lighting his cigarette could also be important as by doing so he is break-
ing down many socially accepted barriers of the time. That being a black man
touching a white woman.
Contrast: It is also possible that the woman is too proud to admit to herself and to
the man that what he has said to her is correct. That she is not above others based
on skin colour, gender or class. Something that might be difficult for the woman to
understand considering the environment that existed at the time.
The man picks up the woman’s cigarette - despite what he has said to the woman
the reality is that there are differences between social classes. The man is poor in
comparison to the woman and as such feels the need to pick up the woman’s ciga-
rette. The man is not too proud to admit that he is poor. The only difference be-
tween the man and woman may be their circumstances, with one individual being
considered to be more fortunate than the other.
The man uses words to make the woman uncomfortable - a new way of defense for
blacks because the expectation was for him to get mad and start shouting at her,
making a scene; but instead, he shows her that even though he is different, he is
more of a human than she is. (morally superior though socially inferior)TECH-
NIQUE:
Throughout this story, there is a feeling of menace or impending threat that is

created by both the blackout and the awkward conversation between the two
characters.
This creates a MOOD of apprehension.
At the beginning or introduction of the story, the writer describes the loneliness
and blackout using these phrases to create atmosphere and setting of the story:
wave of panic
bands of hooligans
roaming the streets after dark
assaulting unprotected women
slinking black shadow
Through the characters’ dialogue, issues of race and gender are presented.
KEY PHRASES
1) “The fact was she had no matches. Would he believe her, she wondered.”
2) “The thing that struck her immediately was the fact that he was black.”
3) “In this country, there are only men and women.”
4) “We seem to get along somehow without lynching and burnings and all that.”
5) “Perhaps she was thinking about what the people on the bus might think.”

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ENGLISH LITERATURE

Blackout (Pages 8-11)

Roger Mais – (11 August 1905 – 21 June 1955)

He worked at various times as a photographer, insurance salesman, and journalist,

Throughout this story, there is a feeling of menace or impending threat that is

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