homework #1 "the sky is gray"

In the story, The Sky is Gray by Ernest J. Gaines, there are many references to color. I noticed a trend in the appearance of certain colors. With the color red, it seems as if it occurs when it has affected James or it was something he has directly experienced, such as when his mother forced him to kill the red birds (Gaines 89), when he notices the little girl on the bus, she happens to have on a red coat, and when he passes by the "...big old red school..." (Gaines 93). For James, I think the color red shows emotion he has for things. From the examples, you can see how these three incidents impact him.Other colors apper often too such as black and gray. I think with the color gray, it is used to show things James cannot explain such as "the river is gray" and "the sky is gray" (Gaines 91). The color black is used as something that is common because James says "...I'm go'n get her a red one..." (Gaines 99) referring to buying his mother a new red coat.