In the book, A Gathering of Old Men, each chapter is expressed in first perspective through the eyes of all the characters, apart from the main characters. As the story progresses, the characters share a momentum of their meaning of justice. Each character is seeking justice and retribution for something that was done to them or their family and was never
During the sharing of stories, Tucker speaks about his reasoning for being there. He tells the story of how his brother, Silas, beat the white man in a race and “because he didn’t lose like a nigger is supposed to lose, they beat him.” Silas was a determined man who was tired of always having to lose to white folk, because they were supposedly better than him. And for winning against them, he paid with his life, and the law did not respectful take matters seriously. He asks Mapes “Where was the law? Law said he cut in on the tractor and he was the one who started the fight.” Which is clearly a twisted story of what really happened. His brother was killed for being better than a white man, which was seen as such a crime that he should be killed for it. And when he is killed the law says that it was rightfully so. Tucker refers to the misunderstanding as “nigger law” because if the situation were reversed, the black man would be executed. Tucker explains his involvement in the shooting is because Beau’s people killed his brother. He has waited all this time for justice in the killing of his brother, and he finally took it upon himself to get it, or at least, that’s what he claims. Even if he didn’t kill Beau, he feels as if standing up in protection of the man who did, and in claiming that he did it himself, he is getting justice enough. Because not only has someone paid for what happened to his brother, but now nothing can be done to the man who did, at least for now, just like how when his brother was killed, nothing was done to the men who killed him.
The next character is Yank. Yank tells the old members...