In the short story On the Road written by Langston Hughes, the main character's name is .
Sargeant, a tall eccentric black man. He resides in a racist community where black people do .
not have rights. Sargeant is compared to Billy, also a main character in the short story Drummer .
written by Guy Vanderhaeghe. Billy is a young man with principals and morals, what does these .
characters have or don't have in common to their personality? What makes them so significant .
in these pieces of literature? .
Sargeant, in the middle of winter is looking for shelter in his racially challenged .
community. He is freezing so he decides to go in a whites only church of course he gets .
rejected. But Sargeant has no intention of leaving, otherwise if he did he would nearly freeze to .
death. He says to the reverend of the church, "I know it's a white folks church, but I got to sleep .
somewhere" (Hughes, Langston. On the Road. 484). So he clutches his hands to the door of the .
church he was going against the authority that told him he was not welcome but he put his .
principals in perspective. .
Billy shares the same rebellious attribute but he is more subtle about it than Sargeant is. .
When his father condemns him from going to the Baptist church. He does not go on Sunday's .
when his father will not let him out. But he does go on Wednesdays where his father doesn't .
know there are services being held. Billy's father says to him, ".You marched into that .
collection of religious screwballs.Stay away from the Baptists." (Vanderhaeghe, Guy Drummer .
598) . Billy also rebels against his brother Gene but this time he is nowhere near being subtle .
about like he was to his father. Gene wants his date Nancy Williams to try some alcohol. But .
after she refuses numerous times, Gene gets frustrated and almost forces her too. Billy doesn't .
S.
