In Richard Wright's "Eight Men"", I enjoyed the themes that consistently referred to white supremacy and the never ending struggle that all African American's must endure in order to truly earn their freedom. The main story that caught my eye in reference to this theme was "The Man who saw the Flood"". The emphasis exhibited by Wright towards the black family's necessity to begin again even after all their struggles and successes is evident throughout the writing. This creates the theme that no matter the situation, white men remain supreme to African Americans.

             .

             Within the first two paragraphs on page 102 and leaking over onto page 103, Wright notes, "Every tree, blade of grass, an stray stick had its flood mark; cakey, yellow mud "(102-103). By writing this so early on in the story, I believe that Wright is simply making a reference towards the fact that no matter what color, shape, or even size the people living in this area are, they have been equally affected by this flood. The importance of this is to show that while, Burgess is a white man, has also been affected by this flood. The quote exhibits that while a blade of grass, metaphorically a black man, is affected by this flood and drenched in mud, so is the tree, a man of Caucasian decent. This represents that while the tree is indeed affected by the mud caused by this flood, it may be able to endure the circumstances more easily compared to the blade of grass, due to the amount of resources it has at its whim. In reference, the white man, who has possessed freedom his whole life, may lose everything, yet still have the ability to recover and make gains in life. On the other hand, the African American family is going to struggle to even return from debt, simply because they don't possess half the resources that the white man does. The recurring theme of white supremacy is evident within the entire story.

             .

             When Tom is contemplating on the next step his family should take, Wright leaves hints that make the reader think of slavery.