What Music Means to Benji
Music plays a very important role in Sag Harbor. Different songs and artists are constantly brought up throughout the book. It seems that Benji uses music to explore his racial identity, attaches it to a memory, and as a way to socialize. Whether Benji is using music to create a feeling of nostalgia or attending a concert, it's clear that music has a major influence on the development of Benji's identity and his coming of age. As Benji drove to his parents' Sag Harbor home in the beginning of the book, his dad would switch between two main radio stations: one entitled "Easy Listening" and one "Afrocentric Talk Radio". On the latter radio station Benji was exposed to music which encapsulated the black struggle in the city (primarily police brutality). The unfiltered depiction of life displayed in quotes like "these white people think they can kill us in our homes" opened Benji's eyes to a desperate reality, which was reaffirmed by...