“Get back there,” he yelled at me, “and watch that white boy
till I get out o’ here. Get back there,” he hollered, “or I’ll knock
your livin’ gizzard out! I don’t know you.”
I got back. And there me and that white boy was standin’ in
a strange coalbin, him lookin’ like a picked chicken—and me
feelin’ like a fool. Well, sir, we both had to laugh again.
“Say,” said the white boy, “is he gone?”
“He ain’t here,” I said.
“Gee, this was exciting,” said the white fellow, turning up his
tux collar. “This was thrilling!”
“What?” I says.
“This is the first exciting thing that’s ever happened to me,”
said the white guy. “This is the first time in my life I’ve ever had a
good time in Harlem. Everything else has been fake, a show. You
know, something you pay for. This was real.”
“Say, buddy,” I says, “if I had your money, I’d be always having a good time.”
“No, you wouldn’t,” said the white boy.
“Yes, I would, too,” I said, but the white boy shook his head.
Then he asked me if he could go home, and I said, “Sure! Why
not?” So we went up the dark hall. I said, “Wait a minute.”
I went up and looked, but there wasn’t no cops or nobody
much in the streets, so I said, “So long,” to that white boy. “I’m
glad you had a good time.” And left him standin’ on the sidewalk
in his stocking feet, waitin’ for a taxi.
I went on up the street hongrier than I am now. And I kept
thinkin’ about that boy with all his money. I said to myself,
“What do you suppose is the matter with rich white folks? Why
you reckon they ain’t happy?”
In "Why, You Reckon?" what argument does the other man use to convince the narrator to team up with him? What lesson do you think the narrator learned by the end of the evening?
The other man convinces the narrator to team up with him by appealing to his sense of adventure and the opportunity to have a genuinely exciting experience in Harlem. The white boy argues that everything else he has ever done in Harlem has been fake and merely a paid-for show, but this encounter with the narrator has been real and thrilling. He suggests that by joining forces, they can have a unique and authentic experience.
By the end of the evening, the narrator seems to have learned that money does not guarantee happiness. He reflects on the white boy's wealth and questions why rich white people may not be happy. This suggests that the narrator has gained a deeper understanding of the complexities of happiness and that material wealth does not necessarily equate to fulfillment.