How do Moss and Reg differ in their beliefs about race relations in America? Whose belief system did you think more accurate, and whose did you relate to personally, if either?

How do Moss and Reg differ in their beliefs about race relations in America? Whose belief system did you think more accurate, and whose did you relate to personally, if either?

Moss, a white privileged male believed that people were basically good and would see the errors of the way Black people were being treated. They really should be equal. Reg saw the world as it was, still hating anyone non-white; this hate is still alive a well in this country. The frustration is felt by all. I doubt I'll see true equality before I die. Hate just can't seem to die...it goes from generation to generation despite efforts to move forward.

On the surface Moss wanted to see the good in all. There a few times when his upbringing was reflected. Reg, on the other hand, saw things as they were.

I agree with Tired Book reader - and I would add that no one can truly understand the experience of another, and even now, when many consider themselves "woke', it is not the same to learn about an experience vs. actually experiencing itself oneself. Moss is hopeful, Reg is not.

Moss was an idealist. His heart was in the right place, but he was neither realistic nor practical. Moss was dealing with suffering he could only imagine. Reg, on the other hand, was a victim of prejudice and angry. I think he understood the nature of racial prejudice better than Moss.

Moss and Reg come from 2 vastly different backgrounds, solely based on their race. Moss wanted desperately to believe the races could come together and live in harmony during those tumultuous times. Reg knew they could not.

I think Reg's was most accurate. I don't think Moss could see the reality of race relations at the time. I think he was ahead of his time & didn't understand that change isn't immediate but rather occurs in increments and takes time. Since Moss wasn't on the receiving end of discriminatory behavior, I don't think he noticed it like Reg did. Moss seemed kind of like a dreamer who thought a song or a sound could change the world. He was incredibly naive.

I agree with Tired Reader (you don’t seem tired!) and ruthiea, Moss had the idealism of a rich white boy and while he was very optimistic he was naive. Sadly, Reg was more realistic and accurate about the way things are. I definitely thought like Moss and wanted to believe the goodness and underlying similarities in all people, I was clearly misinformed. After reading the book “ Waking up white” by Debbie Irving (I highly recommend it!), I had to call several black friends to confess how clueless I was.

I concur with Best Martin and others that Moss was idealistic and frankly naive. Reg could be talking about the world in 2019 not 60 years ago. It is pathetic that we haven’t crossed the divide but we have actual gone backwards. Reg is right today and yesterday.

Moss is an idealist and rather naive whereas Reg knows that he is not really accepted even with his good manners and Harvard education. The family is all cooly polite because they are too well mannered to be otherwise.

Moss was an idealist living in a less than ideal time for most Americans. Reg lived the reality of blacks in America then and probably now. Moss, a privileged member of the white upper class, could not relate to what America felt like to minorities.

Moss didn't seem to relate to life as it was around him. He had little regard to what others thought or felt. Reg, having traveled, saw it for what it was and had to navigate his world the best he could.

I agree with ilenem. However, I think even today, unless one is a minority, one cannot fully understand what it's like, no matter how informed or enlightened one might think they are. We are, after all, still experiencing the world through our own skin and frame of reference.

I think it's easy to dismiss Moss as a clueless optimist, especially alongside Reg who has the personal experience that Moss lacks, but Moss was courageous to some extent in stepping outside of his family's belief system. Also, it's important to remember he was young, naive, and passionate. I know when I was his age I thought I had it all figured out!