Forgotten People of the Blue Highways
Journeying along the back roads of the blue highways of the road maps, William Least Heat Moon discovers the forgotten people of America in Blue Highways. In the beginning, his trip seems to be motivated by anger and disillusion. But when readers look deeper into the story, they see that Least Heat Moon focuses the attention on how to "climb out of a world which he realized was impersonal and materialistic" (Lyons 63). By avoiding the large cities, he focuses his attention on the forgotten civilizations. His ability to convey feelings with his storytelling doesn't commercialize the people or the stories. According to one critic, "Least Heat Moon has the judgment to step aside and let them tell their own often remarkable stories in their own words" (Perrin, 858). By mapping out his route, Least Heat Moon goes full circle from his hometown of Columbia Missouri to Othello, New Jersey, and back. Feeling as if his life is going nowhere, Least Heat Moon starts his journey in the middle of America.
Throughout the novel, the reader encounters towns such as Nameless, Defeated, and Shake Rag. But Least Heat Moon's most compelling story springs from his stopover in Selma, Alabama. Here he encounters a part of life that never wants to change. At the beginning of the chapter Least Heat Moon comes to Selma to see whether Martin Luther King's famous march has changed anything. In a bar, he encounters a white woman and man, Bernita and Ray. When he asks them about the changes in Selma, Bernita tells him that the only thing that has changed is the way they do business. Their views on the changes in Selma are surprising, yet uncommon. White people still view black people negatively and say that ongoing problems are common. But Bernita gives the most truthful view of the problems by stating, "Don't get the wrong idea, Selma's a nice town...Only thing I don't like are two-faced - friendly at first, then you see the truth" (Least Heat Moon 96).
As Least Heat Moon travels through Selma, he encounters a black man, James Walker, on his way to Brown's Chapel, the site where King started his march. When Least Heat Moon asks him if anything has changed, Walker responds by saying "Ain't nothin' changed" (Least Heat Moon 98). Walker explains why Selma may not ever change. After their encounter, Walker and Least Heat Moon meet up again at a basketball court on King Drive.
Least Heat Moon also meets a friend of James Walker, Charles Davis, who gives his views on the changes in Selma. Walker also adds, "I know things ain't changed, but things gonna change" (Least Heat Moon 100). Davis shows his disbelief at this statement by saying, "Young, and mad, and believe so much" (Least Heat Moon 100). But Least Heat Moon soon realizes that being the "wrong color" on the "wrong side of town" makes him a target. As he is conversing with Walker and Davis, he finds out that he is being watched by the police. Least Heat Moon assumes that they are watching Walker and Davis, but he learns that he is being watched because of his skin color. As a white man with Northern license plates, he is pegged as being a drug dealer.
In this particular stopover, Least Heat Moon realizes his trip may have some negative aspects. Even though his trip to Selma seemed primarily to be a learning experience, he shows his frustration by finishing the chapter felling marked and paranoid. He had hoped this visit would answer his questions about change. Least Heat Moon finishes by saying, "I felt marked. I was suspicious. Just paranoia of course...And I hardly took my eyes off the rearview mirror. What a way to go" (Least Heat Moon 103).
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