Small Great Things

Many aspects of the novel hinge on what can be seen and what cannot be seen. The most obvious form of this comes from the novel’s examination of racism in America. The most visible version of this comes in the form of Turk Bauer, an avowed and open white supremacist. However, all throughout the novel, Ruth Jefferson faces a number of implicitly-racist actions, such as micro-aggressions and people making assumptions about her.

Within these there are further gradations. Turk Bauer and Francis Mitchum have worked hard over the past several years to move the white supremacist community underground, so that they are less visible, and thus will be more accepted, banking on the desire within the country as a whole to avoid the topic of race and instead assume that nothing is wrong. However, in the face of his son’s death, Turk is devastated, and he and Brit both feel the need to no longer have their identities remain hidden. Turk first reveals a Confederate Flag tattoo when trying to get Ruth off of Davis’s case, but then, after Davis’s death, he shaves his head, revealing a swastika tattoo, making what had been partially visible truly front and center.