King of the Bingo Game

“King of the Bingo Game” is a highly symbolic story about the fate of African Americans in the United States. Though New York was not segregated by law under Jim Crow as Southern states were, New York enacted a number of voting and housing laws that restricted full participation of African Americans in the political process and prevented them from acquiring homes and wealth. Like many cities (though not all) in the North, New York was de facto segregated, meaning that Black Americans faced exclusion and violence if they violated the unspoken understanding that they were not to enter white mainstream society. In New York, antidiscrimination laws were not passed until the 1960s. Even though the story’s location is unspecified, the same discriminatory conditions prevailed in many cities in the North throughout the first half of the 20th century.

Themes of insanity, isolation, urban poverty, and desperation appear early and are developed throughout the story. The main character experiences intense feelings of shame and isolation, even among his fellow African Americans. Laura is depicted as the only person who understands and supports him, though she does not appear in the story. Their inability to afford her medical care may mean that she will not be with him much longer, leaving him completely alone in the world.