The Man Who Was Almost a Man

The Man Who Was Almost a Man is a story of a young, black plantation worker named Dave. He was seventeen years of age, but feels he needs to prove to those around him that he is a man. He thinks to himself that if he had a gun, others would respect him. He begs his mother to allow him to purchase a gun with his earned wages. She finally allows him to do so, …

…the mule out of his wages. He realizes that this would take him two years of work to make that amount of money, so he jumps on a train in the middle of the night and leaves without a trace. The irony of this story is that in the process of trying to prove his manhood, Dave shows his immaturity and inability to handle adult situations. In the end, he is still a mere boy.