Ventura 1

Jessica Ventura
Professor. De Angelis
Ethnic American Literature
March 30, 2015
Dutchman
Many people now underestimate the power of literature and question whether literature can
actually be dangerous. The reason we question this idea is because we believe our country has taken
such large strides towards becoming a better society. However, Dutchman was a play that was
considered dangerous in the 1960s and could still very well be considered dangerous today. During
the 1960s the play was considered dangerous literature because it sent a very strong message; Black
people could conform to white society or embrace their own culture, but regardless of the path chosen
they would always be judged and considered inferior. Lula is a character that represents white
privilege; she does as she pleases, says what she wants, and always gets her way. On the other hand,
Clay is character that has to withstand judgment and criticism from Lula for both being educated and
black. The ending makes it clear that the problem is the lack of acceptance that comes from white
society, and that regardless of the choices the black community makes they are still going to be
considered inferior. This idea is one that could still be dangerous today, because although we have
evolved a great amount since the 60s, black people still dont have complete acceptance in some
place in our society.
As the play begins, it is clear that Lula is a character that has an advantage on Clay for two
reasons. The first reason is because of the white privilege she represents; she expresses her privilege
in the way she approaches and speaks to Clay. Unlike Clay, Lula is accustomed to speaking her mind
freely and says things such as, I even got into this train, going some other way than mine. Walked
down the aisle searching you out (Jones. I. 6). In this monologue Lula admits to getting on the

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train and speaking to Clay because she assumed he was looking at her and was therefore interested in
her. If the roles would have been reversed and Clay was to have approached a white woman the way
Lula approached Clay, he would be looked at as menacing and threatening. Their conversation begins
to unfold, and Lula says to Clay, You look like you been trying to grow a beard. Thats exactly what
you look like. You look like you live in New Jersey with your parents and are trying to grow a beard
(Jones. I. 8). Clay is very well dressed and is educated, but Lula still manages to make assumptions
about him because she assumes that black men are all the same. White privilege is also represented
through her character when she goes on to say: I lie a lot. It helps me control the world (Jones. I. 9).
The fact that Lula is able to freely admit she lies often represents her ability to freely speak her mind,
and when she goes on to say, it helps me control the world the author is alluring to the idea that
white society stays in power due to their deceit.
The second reason that Lula has an advantage on Clay is because of her sexuality. In the
character descriptions Lula is described to be wearing skimpy summer clothes and is physically
described as tall, slender, and beautiful (Jones 1). Before both characters have even introduced
themselves to each other, Lula says things such as I bet you think Im exciting and Would you like
to get involved with me, Mister Man? (Jones 11). Not only does Lula use sexual language to entice
Clay, she also physically seduces him by grabbing his thigh, very sexually (Jones. II. 17). The way
that Lula is approaching Clay with her words and her body makes it seem as if Clay is prey she is
attempting to catch. Therefore, Lula is portrayed as the character that has the upper hand from the
very beginning of the play.
Although Clay is still young, he represents the potential of change in black society because he
is part of the generation that is improving intellectually and socially. Clay has gone to college and has
a social life, which expresses the idea that he is adapting to the culture the same way a white person
would. Therefore, his generation represents potential equality and unity instead of separation between

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cultures. On the other hand, Lula is a character that represents hatred toward the black potential that
Clay is representing because throughout the play she is aiming to judge, change, or destroy that
potential. For example she goes on to question Clay about his wardrobe: And whyre you wearing a
jacket and tie like that? Did your people ever burn witches or start revolutions over the price of tea?
Boy, those narrow-shoulder clothes come from a tradition you ought to feel oppressed by What
right do you have to be wearing a three-button suit and stripped tie? Your grandfather was a slave, he
didnt go to Harvard (Jones. II. 18). Not only does Lula represent white privilege, she also
represents the idea of hatred toward intellectual black youth because she dislikes the idea that Clay is
dressed the way a white man would be dressed. Lula also reminds Clay of his inferiority to her by
telling him that his grandfather was a slave, and that he has no right to be well dressed because there
are no similarities between him and that of a white person. It is clear that Lula is unable to see past
skin color because she dislikes the fact that Clay is well dressed, and she also goes on to call Clay a
murderer (Jones. II. 21). Lula calls Clay a murderer because that is a stereotype imposed on black
men, so even though Lula barely knows Clay she is placing him in a box with other murderers simply
because of his skin color.
Clays character is very calm for most of the play, and this is done in order to emphasize the
fact that he is well brought up and a huge contrast from what is expected of him. Lula in the second
scene asks Clay if he is scared of all the people on the train due to the fact he is an escaped nigger
that crawled through the wire and made tracks to my side (Jones. II. 29). Although Lula is being
blatantly racist Clays form of response is to educate her on the fact that people in the south where on
plantations and did not have wire (Jones 22). Any other person would have probably responded in a
cruel manner but Clay is letting her talk to him that way because she is white, beautiful, and because
he is well mannered. As the play progresses Lulas character is becoming more and more chaotic and
cruel because she begins to sing loudly on the train while shouting things such as, Clay, you liver-

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lipped white man. You would-be Christian. You aint no nigger, youre just a dirty white man (Jones
31). In the beginning of the play Clay is being judged by Lula for being black and wearing a suit, and
now she is telling him that he isnt black and instead is a dirty white man. This alludes to the idea that
because Clay is normal, educated, and black he is judged for not being his stereotype and instead is
seen as a fake or lesser version of a white man. To this backlash from Lula, Clay simply replies
Lula! Sit down, now. Be cool. And because of his calm attitude Lula says, Be cool. Be cool.
Thats all you know shaking that wildroot cream-oil on your knotty head, jackets buttoning up to
your chin, so full of white mans words Get up and scream at these people (Jones 31). Lula wants
to remind Clay that he is black by calling his hair knotty and she also wants him to act as his
stereotype by getting up and yelling at people and embracing his stereotype. It is clear that Lula is
unhappy with Clays calm attitude, and because of this she keeps trying to provoke him in order to be
the stereotype she expects of him.
After so many troubling words coming from Lula, Clay finally acts enraged and angered.
Lulas words provoked him enough that Clay begins to become the stereotype expected of him, he
says, Ill rip your lousy breasts off! Let me be who I feel like being. Uncle Tom. Thomas. Whoever.
Its none of your business I mean if I murdered you, then other white people would begin to
understand me. You understand? (Jones 34, 35). Clay is angered and becomes threatening, which is
something expected of him due to the fact that hes black. He later on goes on to say that he would
finally be understood if he were to murder Lula because it is another stereotype that is expected from
him. Due to the fact that he is black he is expected to be angry, and yell, and kill and now that he is
embracing this stereotype he ends up being stabbed by Lula and killed. In the play his death is
perceived as unimportant because she stabs him and has him thrown out of the train, as if the murder
was normal or common. Lula then sets her eyes on a much younger black male, readdressing the idea
that shes aiming to kill young black youth due to the potential they represent. The reason the death is

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perceived as unimportant is because it expresses the idea that black lives mean less then white lives.
In the end the play, in its entirety, expresses clearly that as a black person there is no way to win in
this society; They could assimilate into white society or embrace their own culture, but they will still
be seen as less important with lives that are much less meaningless. In other words, your damned if
you do and your damned if you dont.
The reason that Dutchman could still be considered dangerous today is because it is a play
that offers no solution to the problem it exposes. Sadly, Lula is a character that portrays attitudes and
opinions that are still very strongly believed by many. The fact that Lula in the end of the play has
simply shrugged off the murder of Clay and is already setting her eyes at an even younger character
demonstrates the idea that the author thought there was no real solution. Although a lot has changed
since the 1960s when the play was first published, there is still a lot going on in our society that
leads to question whether black people are even viewed as equal today. Trayvon Martin was a
teenage boy that was shot and killed for simply looking suspicious, yet his biggest crime was to
have gone out to purchase skittles and iced tea at the wrong time. This infuriated the black
community because it was clear that Trayvon Martin was not at fault of anything, but the murderer
was let free of any charges regardless. Many at that moment began to realize that the scales of justice
were weighed in the favor of the privileged white community. Eric Garner was also a black male
whose life was ended wrongfully due to his skin color. Eric Garners death extremely shocked the
black community because it was published online, and in this video it was clear that he wasnt at fault
for anything. In this video Eric Garner is being harassed by cops and is put in a chokehold, which is
illegal, as he is put in this situation he screams I cant breathe eleven times, but his cries went
unheard. Although the murder was ruled as a homicide, the cop was never put in jail for what was
clearly his fault. These two situations demonstrate a glimpse of the racism still forcefully endured by
the black community, and it sadly hasnt been the only encounters of unfairness since there have been

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many more deaths since. A play such as Dutchman can simply add more anger to what many in the
black community already feel, and instead of expressing a possible solution; the play is simply saying
that it is the white society as a whole that is the problem. Sadly the black community already has
reasons to believe this idea is true, therefore this play could simply be adding fuel to the fire.
Dutchman is a play that demonstrates blatant racism in a way that is almost hard to read
through. As I stated earlier it is also a play that exposes a problem without adding a solution, which is
why the play was considered dangerous then and could still be dangerous now. Clay endures
criticism when he isnt embracing his stereotype, and then is killed once he finally does.
Demonstrating that in the end it was nothing that he did wrong that led to his death, it was simply the
failure of acceptance from the white community. This message is one that could still very well be
applied to our society now since many black males have lost their lives, simply because of their skin
color. Even though it is many years later, the black minority is still forced to endure a lot of hardships
due to the lack of acceptance coming from the white community. Therefore the play sent out a
dangerous message then that could still very well be applied to the society we live in now.