I don't like how much pride Milkman is finding in his father's success when he goes to Pennsylvania and meets the reverend and co. I can understand the feeling of pride that might stem from someone else's excitement with accomplishments that are sort of associated with you. But in my opinion Macon's accomplishments are nothing to be proud of. A new car every two years? That's a little bit despicable, honestly, especially if all you're doing with that car is taking slow show-off rides through town every so often.
They seem to think that he's fighting the good fight, representing black people in a positive way, and showing white people what-for. They say nothing can keep him down, and seem proud or inspired. And it sounded like Macon I was genuinely a good guy and a good role model for these men when they were kids. He represented real success that was maybe otherwise hard to imagine for them. But, especially given the ruthlessness with which Macon II obtains his wealth (see early parts of the novel from his perspective, like when he's dealing with Guitar's grandmother), I'd say that his need to possess isn't helping the black community at all. In fact, his monetary success has made him a total outsider to them.
And it's troubling how the Pennsylvania people's enthusiasm for Macon's wealth makes Milkman feel. He "grew fierce with pride" and had this burning desire to "grab every grain" of the gold. Whether this burning desire stems from a need to continue the family legacy, or is just inherited greed finally bubbling up inside him, was kind of unclear to me. Either way, burning desire in this book is rarely presented as a good thing (think Macon's desire for stuff, Hagar's desire for Milkman, Ruth's desire for love). It seems dangerous. And maybe it's good that Milkman finally cares about something, and is breaking free from the apathy that has characterized him thus far, but I'd feel better if he started caring more about other people and less about that gold. (Although he does feel real pity for Circe, which is, I think, the first empathy we've seen him express. So yay for that.)
This won't mean anything to most of you, but Pilate reminds me of older, narrating Ruth from Housekeeping (not to be confused with Milkman's mom). They're both tall and thin and vagabondish, unattached to material things, and seem to be very confident and comfortable in their strange, outsider roles. They even both have a sibling who leaves them for a more conventional (or certainly more materialistic--I don't know if I can call Macon "conventional") lifestyle. Macon choses to own as much as possible, and Lucille turns to clothes, school, and running a neat household.
Pilate's led a considerably more troubled life than Ruth, whose young adulthood was at worst extremely uneventful and lonely (excluding her mother's suicide, which was quite traumatic-- This is perhaps a large omission, but Pilate's parents also died, and their deaths were not the extent of her troubles), but all in all they're very similar.
Also, this is completely irrelevant, but it needs to be said: The main characters in english books are too tall. The following is a list of books I've read in English for the last two years with the heights of the main characters:
Native son-- not mentioned?
Their Eyes Were Watching God-- I'm not sure
Beloved-- I don't know about Sethe, but Paul D. was tall
Invisible Man-- I think it's noted that he looks like a runner which could imply tall and thin
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man-- I don't know
Sag Harbor-- uncommonly tall and thin (especially in contrast to his brother)
Black Swan green-- average? I think
Catcher in the Rye-- uncommonly tall and thin
White Boy Shuffle-- uncommonly tall and thin
Bell Jar-- uncommonly tall and thin
Housekeeping-- uncommonly tall and thin (especially in contrast to her sister)
The Mezzanine-- not mentioned, I think (probably average)
Mrs. Dalloway-- tall and thin
Sun Also rises -- not mentioned as far as I can remember
Metamorphosis-- not mentioned (though really tall for a cockroach)
the Stranger -- not mentioned I think
Wide Sargasso Sea -- tall (Antoinette was described as "tall and large". I don't know about Rochester.)
Song of Solomon -- tall (as are the older Macons, Pilate, and Guitar. But not Ruth. You go Ruth.)
Not that I'm bothered or anything, but I don't think there's been a single short main character.
