James Baldwin (1924-1987) wrote his first novel, Go Tell It
On the Mountain, when he was only 29 years old. This research is an analysis of John, who is Baldwin's alter ego in this autobiographical work. By exploring the character of John, concentrating on his relationship to his father, it is possible to see how the author grew up in Harlem, and how he gained his maturity.
"Everyone had always said that John would be a preacher when he grew up, just like his father" (11). A good part of John's persona in the early section of the novel is his coming to grips with his father's religious beliefs. Since John is a surrogate for the actual Baldwin, it is not difficult to see in the young boy the growing intellectuals rejection of the church's beliefs, and how this affects the rapport with his father.
"When he was young, John had paid no attention in Sunday school, and always forgot the golden text, which earned him the wrath of his father" (13). Baldwin is very skillful at recreating John's decision to follow his own nature, and it is clear that this behavior incenses the father. The book examines the oedipal struggle as John attempts to "murder" his father by rejecting the values that have been accepted by the older generation.
There is a very poignant segment early in Go Tell It On the Mountain that shows that John needed an authority figure, even if he did not conform to his own father's wishes. In school, John demonstrates his quick mind to his teacher, and she rewards him by saying: "You're a very bright boy, John Grimes" (21).
In the paragraph that follows there is one of the best descriptions of John's awakening. He knows that his powers of the mind are his ticket out of the ghetto. Even though he understands his plight as a black boy, and he sees that his father has been discriminated against, John resolves to work hard with his intellectual gifts so that he can transcend both his environment and his fat...