White is all about his mind in The Sunset Limited, so he can't accept mercy and compassion because they don't make intellectual sense—they aren't just, and he thinks everything should be completely fair.
Probably the best example of this occurs when Black tells him about how he heard the voice of God after getting into a fight with a fellow prisoner, which left the other prisoner with permanent brain damage and Black almost dead. Instead of being awed by Black's conversion experience, White sees this as the story of how someone needed to become "a crippled one-eyed halfwit" so that Black could find Jesus. He feels no mercy for Black, instead honing in on the price his religious awakening cost—and when he weighs this out, in this case, it isn't just.
Questions About Injustice
- Is the suffering of human beings—considered in its entirety—unjust, in your view? How would White answer this? What about Black?
- How would Black define justice? What about White? What do you make of it? Use the text to support your response.
- Does White view himself as having done something unjust? Why does he say he might want forgiveness near the end? Does Black view White as behaving unjustly? If so, how?
Chew on This
This play argues that when it all boils down, life simply is not fair.
This play argues that when it all boils down, life, despite all appearances to the contrary, is completely fair.