Chapter 7 Last American MAn

Eustace is first drawn to horses due to their natural beauty. He is naturally gifted with them, and he is so drawn to their beauty he purchases ten of them. He starts riding horses around the area of which he resides, and he suddenly stumbles upon a large, poorer, black family reunion to which he is invited. He is well received by the family and they treat him like a king. He realizes that the reason he was invited by this family, people who are almost the exact opposite of himself, because of his horse. The revelation to him is that, he needs the horse, as an “icebreaker”, for the reason it gives people that have little or nothing in common with each other, a starting point of getting to know each other. He rides his horse all over the south, and he comes into contact with people of all races in the south, telling him of some of their experiences of living in the south. Eustace realizes on the trip that that unique southern culture and drawl is beginning to disappear, to what he theorizes is the media and information being available everywhere. He notes that the generational gaps in southern society are beginning to become very distinct. It reminds me of the gap that Eustace has with his father. Both Eustace and his father, like the young and old, have a lot in common, but the little things, such as vocabulary or interests, are driving them further and further apart.