Milkman's Maturing

Despite his slow development, Milkman started to show meaningful change in this section. His want to leave and create a life for himself, instead of living the life his family has given him was the first time he felt direction since he was a young child. This new desire is odd for Milkman because he does not know how to handle it. He has become so accustomed to his comfortable life that he is unsure of how to deal with consequences, such as being arrested. However, Milkman accepts that for him to find his own way in the world, he must be ready for these consequences, a choice which propels him to invite Guitar to steal with him. His informing of Guitar, despite his reluctance later, is the second time where Milkman makes a more mature decision. Milkman knows the risks involved with stealing from Pilate, but does it anyways. This act would allow him to make his own life and forge his own path, instead of his father’s. His readiness for this next stage of his life shows that Milkman is only starting to mature and come of age, despite being in his early thirties.

Milkman’s attitude changes even more after he is arrested. Prior to being pulled over, he greatly fears arrest. He is very accustomed to having his way and is intimidated by the idea of others limiting his movements. After he is arrested and then released, he is still fearful of the police, but it more disturbed by the humiliation of the ordeal, something that never occurred to him beforehand. His new perspective is much closer to Guitar’s feeling toward race relations: his fear is more overpowered by his anger. Milkman also begins to fear the literal arrest much less. His previous reluctance towards the law, his fear of lack of comfort, is overtaken by his feelings of embarrassment and anger. His new feelings further push Milkman to leave his father’s influence because he begins to disagree more with his father’s way of life and views of racism. Milkman used to share his father’s want for comfort and money, but once he experiences the problems that Guitar has tried to explain to him in the past, he no longer values comfort over dignity. He describes this feeling to his father by mocking him for only having influence over the police after he bribed them, not because of his reputation. Conversely, Milkman sees how Pilate’s experience and values in life have given her more power and success, despite her lack of ‘comfort’.