Explore the many examples of characters’ racist behavior in the text. Why do these characters feel so empowered to behave as they do, and how does this form part of the novel’s social commentary?

What clues does the text contain as to the nature of the coming Roaring ’20s? How does it foreshadow that decade and its excesses?

George Santayana, a philosopher, once said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” (The Life of Reason, 1905). To what extent do you think the text supports this claim? Why or why not?