The Man Who Was Almost a Man

The gun symbolizes ideas around masculinity, power, and violence. It is described as a “big gun, with a long barrel and a heavy handle” (18), reinforcing the gun’s status as a phallic symbol. Dave believes that the gun will provide him with everything he lacks, such as independence, a male identity, respect, and power. He feels that “if he were holding his gun in his hand, nobody could run over him; they would have to respect him.” (18) The gun directly connects to his experience as a Black man, alluding to the racial violence that Black men in the South were exposed to and how that has defined their perspective. Dave has experienced oppression, abuse, and humiliation in a society dominated by white men, and those social values have defined his ideas on male identity.

On another level, the gun represents general social views on masculinity and power. The narrative’s connotations around the gun demonstrate how society often associates masculinity with intimidation and violence. Dave’s world, the rural South, the plantation, and his household, are all male-dominated. His family is characterized by his father’s imposing figure, which makes Dave nervous and keeps his mother mainly a domestic character. The wider social world is dominated by Hawkins, the rich white man who has control and power. Those are the main male models in Dave’s life, and they impact his view of men and the world.

The gun, as an object of violence, leads to destruction. Dave is still unready to face the violent world a Black man has to navigate and accidentally kills the mule. When confronted with Hawkins’s house at the end of the story, the gun is empty, indicating that it is an ineffectual tool for claiming masculinity and effecting change. The gun’s permeating presence in the story highlights Dave’s aspirations to the masculine patterns of domination and violence, even if they are more harmful than transformative.