outhern culture in this era. Black submission to the white man was accepted and expected every day, and by allowing himself to fight, Richard feels he has not only let down himself, but his entire dream as well. Throughout the book, Richard tries to change cultural standards, and in fighting Harrison, he has given up on those standards, if only for a moment, and allowed himself to help the culture he fights so hard to change.The cultures of black and white, in this scenario, are both in conflict and in support of each other. It appears that black culture is supporting white culture, in that the black boys participate in the fights staged by white men. However, these fights are, at the same time, degrade black culture further. As Richard sees it, blacks must escape from this kind of oppression, and for Richard, that escape is education, his key to freedom.The uncharacteristic fight that Richard takes place in is, indeed, not so uncharacteristic at all, once the ideology and culture of his surroundings are examined. Though Richard feels, perhaps, that he should not have taken part in the fight, the message he conveys in the book would not be quite the same. It is not one ideology or one aspect of his culture that led him to the decision to fight, but rather, it was many smaller sub-ideologies that brought him to the decision.Bastard Out of CarolinaLove is a word, a signifier, tied to many meanings, all different in context, cultures, and ideologies. Love is used numerous ways in Allisons Bastard Out of Carolina, by many characters. In the character of Bone, love is a confused thing, always changing, as Bone uses it to fit her life on the fly.In relation to parental love, Bone wants Daddy Glen to love her. However, early in the book, Bones conception of love is that of a child, obviously. On page 52, she says, I wanted him to love us. I wanted to be able to love him. I wanted him to pick me up gently and tell Mama again how mu...
