Sugar

Sugar is set during a specific period in history that saw a great deal of change in America, especially in states like Louisiana where slavery was built into the people’s livelihood. Plantations that required masses of people to work the land had the same problems River Road has in Sugar: “Since Emancipation, there’re not enough workers. Almost everyone young enough, without gnarled, crinkly brown hands, has gone north” (7). The mass exodus of younger, healthier Black workers opened up many labor-intensive farming jobs in the south, particularly the states of Louisiana and Mississippi. These jobs were eventually filled by Chinese immigrants fleeing their own hardships. These immigrants faced horrific discrimination from white Americans, and laws were passed specifically to prevent them from becoming citizens.

The abolishment of slavery meant plantation workers were no longer considered property, making their cooperation essential to those used to demanding work. Thus, the dichotomy between characters Mister Wills, the owner of River Road, and Tom, the overseer. Mister Wills asserts, “Slavery isn’t returning, Tom. Like it or not, times are changing. Can’t make a living without willing workers” (100). He understands that Reconstruction is a time of change, and through his (and his son’s) friendships with Sugar and Beau, begins to understand why change is so important.

Jewell Parker Rhodes treats historical details with care in Sugar, most notably the Br’er Rabbit stories and the Dragon tales. In her note at the end of the novel, Rhodes writes that “Br’er Rabbit was a trickster—a heroic, wily figure for [people who were enslaved] because he outwitted the hyena/fox, which was symbolic of white slave owners” (277). Likewise, Chinese stories about Dragons were “equally inspiring to the Chinese. Dragons are spiritual figures who promote peace, justice, and plenty” (278). These tales are woven throughout Sugar and help instill unity between the two different cultures.