Caucasian man, wearing black knitted cap with a red Canadian flag, Sony headphones, brown cords, green plaid dress shirt and a black West Beach jacket.
Slaughterhouse-Five, Kurt Vonnegut (Dial Press Trade Paperback)
Page 48:
Somewhere the big dog barked again. With the help of fear and echoes and winter silences, that dog had a voice like a big bronze gong.
In the dream he's a boy, about ten, riding his bike down his hometown street, around the block and to his friend's. The dog catches up, nipping at his heels. He pedals faster, losing his grip and chafing his ankle. He kicks at the gnarling dog, coasting onto the sidewalk toward a yard. He looks down at the wheels, now threaded with raw meat flapping in the wind. The dog snaps at it, slick strands of drool hanging from its jaw. With a sudden lunge the dog rips at the meat sending the bike off balance. The boy recovers and puts his heel to the beast's forehead. It falls back onto the gravel, left behind. The boy looks down again. The dog's teeth chatter loose in the spokes, embedded in the shredded flesh.
2 comments:
Love your blogs! Question: does the race of the person you've spotted add anything to the prose or is it simply slavish attention to detail? It's somewhat of a distraction to me to read "Caucasian ____" every blog, sprinkled with the odd "Asian __" "Black __" "Native Canadian ___" - why not just "Man" or "Woman"?
I've long questioned that and made a conscious decision not to address it. I do think it adds, race is a hugely significant locater. All I can offer is that I'm working with a specific demographic, mostly on transit, mostly en route to work, in the core of downtown Toronto. The simple fact is, there are more Caucasians reading in these places at these times. Because, believe you/me, I want this blog, this world, to be as diverse as humanly possible.
Thanks for commenting. I appreciate the feedback.
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