Color of Darkness by James Purdy
**Overview of *Color of Darkness* by James Purdy**
*Color of Darkness* is a poignant exploration of familial disconnect and emotional alienation, centered on a father and his son, Baxter. The narrative reveals the father's struggle with memory and emotional engagement, particularly as he grapples with the absence of his wife and the fading recollection of her features, including the color of her eyes. Baxter, seeking his father's affection and attention, finds himself largely ignored, as the father is absorbed in his work and psychologically distant even when present at home. The housekeeper, Mrs. Zilke, plays a dual role in the story; she serves as a maternal figure to the father while inadequately filling the void left by Baxter's mother.
As the father reflects on his relationships, he realizes he cannot connect with either his son or Mrs. Zilke, leading to an increasingly complex dynamic marked by neglect and misunderstanding. The narrative builds toward an intense climax when Baxter's frustration with his father's emotional unavailability culminates in conflict, symbolized by a wedding ring that represents both loss and disconnection. The story ends on a note of physical and emotional turmoil, leaving readers to contemplate the deep-seated issues of identity and connection within familial structures.
On this Page
Color of Darkness by James Purdy
First published: 1957
Type of plot: Psychological
Time of work: 1956
Locale: United States
Principal Characters:
The father , twenty-eight years old, a successBaxter , his young sonMrs. Zilke , a housekeeper, past middle age
The Story
The father in "Color of Darkness" is disconcerted because he cannot remember the color of his wife's eyes. She left him and their son, Baxter, some years back, and her features have almost entirely slipped from his memory. Eager for his father's attention, the child stays as close to him as possible and attempts to draw him into conversation. The father's work requires that he be absent most of the time; even when at home, however, he seems to be psychologically absent. The housekeeper, Mrs. Zilke, is not an adequate replacement for Baxter's mother; indeed, she is more a mother figure for the father than for his son. To the father, Mrs. Zilke appears as a repository of wisdom, as someone secure in her relationship to the world about her, as someone for whom the world was "round, firm, and perfectly illuminated," as it was not for him. His world is as amorphous, unstable, and hazy as the pipe smoke that swirls around his head. His inability to remember the color of his wife's eyes reflects not only his lack of connection with her but also his inability to achieve any vital emotional connection with anybody. He soon realizes that he cannot remember the color of Baxter's eyes, either.
When Mrs. Zilke tells the father that Baxter is lonely, he confides to Mrs. Zilke that he does not know children, that he does not know what they know, so he does not know how to talk to them. She reassures him that because he is a success at work, it is not necessary that he worry about anything else. In effect, Mrs. Zilke mouths the platitudes of society that endorse the public life at the expense of the private or personal life. As a token of his appreciation of her support, he invites her to join him in a glass of brandy. This symbol of communal understanding fails, however, as she does not drink. When he closes his eyes, he realizes that he does not remember the color of her eyes, either.
One night, the father becomes uncomfortable when he discovers that Baxter sometimes sleeps with a stuffed crocodile; consequently, he readily agrees when Mrs. Zilke suggests that Baxter needs a dog. Baxter does not take to the puppy; he especially does not want to sleep with it, for he needs a father, not a dog. Baxter has become to the father like "a gift someone has awarded him," rather than as someone intimately connected with his own being. In addition, "as the gift increased in value and liability, his own relation to it was more and more ambiguous and obscure."
Baxter tries to find a connection between himself and his father by asking him whether he had a dog when he was young, but the father's responses are, as usual, vacuous. In response to his father's absentmindedness, the boy begins to retreat into himself, declaring that he does not want anything. Noticing that Baxter has something in his mouth, Mrs. Zilke and the father demand to know what it is. For the first time Baxter allows himself to feel resentment toward them, and defiantly lies about the object and refuses to spit it out. When the father touches Baxter in his attempt to remove the object, Baxter declares that he hates him and swears at him. The object the father forces from his son's mouth turns out to be the wedding ring the father took off his finger the previous night for the first time since his marriage. As they stare at the ring, Baxter sharply kicks his father in the groin, and runs upstairs, calling him an obscenity connected to his conception. The story ends with the father refusing Mrs. Zilke's offer of help as he writhes on the floor in pain.
Bibliography
Adams, Stephen D. James Purdy. New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1976. Provides detailed interpretations of Purdy's work. Analyzes his use of character and theme, as well as his distinctive characteristics of symbol and style, placing him in the tradition of Herman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Describes Purdy as a Christian existentialist.
Chupack, Henry. James Purdy. Boston: Twayne, 1975. Excellent introductory source. Presents Purdy's use of gothic devices to portray a cold, barren world centered around loveless families. Clear analysis of each story, discussing character and exploring the collection's basic theme of tragic incompatibility. Extremely helpful annotated bibliography.
Malin, Irving. New American Gothic. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1962. Discusses Purdy's use of misfits as heroes, analyzing the symbolism with which he illustrates the horror in his characters' everyday lives. Focuses on "63: Dream Palace," "Why Can't They Tell You Why?" and "Man and Wife."
Peden, William Harwood. The American Short Story: Continuity and Change, 1940-1975. 2d ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1975. Evaluates Purdy's ruthlessly honest portrayal of emotional or physical grotesques. Discusses his use of paradox and contrast in "63: Dream Palace," "Color of Darkness," "Why Can't They Tell You Why?" and "Cutting Edge."
Schwarzschild, Bettina. The Not-Right House: Essays on James Purdy. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1968. Interesting collection of essays discussing Purdy's use of setting and atmosphere and his uniquely accurate portraits of physically or psychically wounded characters. Good analysis of "63: Dream Palace" and "Don't Call Me by My Right Name."