The Pain of Mortal Life Is Preferable to the Perfection of Heaven - Assignment Example

The only solution was to send this recalcitrant mortal back to the earth along with a Joshua Angel, whose only mission was to persuade Tempest to admit and accept his sin and the judgment passed by St. Peter.

The real suspense starts hence and throws a volley of questions in reader's mind. Among the entire set of questions, the prime query is about the fate of the Tempest. But Mosley’s black hero, free from all troubles takes the help of the street  smarts of his previous  life and takes the angel on a tour of mortal life that tests not only the notions of heaven  but also the poor angel’s own resolve

In this episodic battle of heaven and hell, petty mortal wins and also takes the reader to a philosophic journey where free will is pitted against class and race – setting the music of heaven pitted against blues. Mosley shows that virtue is subjective and the standards of sin might vary in blacks from whites to provide more food for thought.

ANSWERS

• Significance of Benji’s Code- Switching

Benji’s Code-Switching is quite significant because it is through Code-Switching, that Benji is able to adapt himself to various situations. Benji’s behavior changes accordingly with friends, parents, and at ice-cream parlor with a stranger or with people of New York City. And under such conditions, flexibility becomes quite crucial. Neither Benji is supposed to behave the same with his parents and friends nor can he afford to do so and therefore Code Switching of behavior is essential.

2) Code-Switching at the primary plane is one’s effective participation. If one does not participate in the process, then it is quite difficult to attain the changes taking place according to the environment and people but it at the same time involves observation to a great extent as one can learn the nitty-gritty of the process of Code-Switching by observing others.

3) Code –Switching determines the trends of Benji’s character. It is through Code-Switching that Benji appears to be an “African-American Male” when he is with his friends and Code-Switching helps him to divide his priorities and also determines his behavioral pattern at different places with different people and does not allow overlapping any facets in his character.