Who gets to make choices?
How far can you run from your father?
The Sport Of Kings is a sprawling, lengthy novel that follows several generations of two families across time. As the book unfolds, the reader notices that many of the plotlines following the two families (the Forges and Scipio's descendants) seem to repeat themselves with two main characters from the respective families, Henry and Allmon. Henry's story echoes that of his father John Henry's through the parallels between Henry's relationship with his daughter, Henrietta and John Henry's relationship with his wife, Lavinia. Both women are sexually and romantically involved with black men that work for their respective Forge, both women feel understood and comfortable with their black partners in a way that neither has felt with either Forge, both women are caught during copulation with their partners. Both Forge men dismiss their black workers from their staff, both Forge men remove the workers from the women's lives, both Forge men assert their dominance over the women by having sex with them after they send the black partners away. Though at the beginning of the novel Henry wishes to separate himself from his abusive father - Henry sobs to his mother "'When I have children, I'll never be mean to them.....Never'" (13) - ultimately into adulthood, how far has Henry run from his father? Henry loves his daughter Henrietta, but just like his own father John Henry, he has not been a good father. Henry has isolated Henrietta from the greater world, raised her with racist and ignorant ideas, and even pursued a sexual relationship with her. Is Henry fated to the destiny of becoming his father, or is he able to break free and make his own choices?
Similarly, Allmon's story echoes that of both his deadbeat father Mike and his dignified forefather Scipio. Like Mike, Allmon is not present in his son's life - however, the difference is that Allmon was lied to about the paternity of his son. However, they are similar in other ways: Mike and Allmon both had mixed race children with women of different races, Mike and Allmon both are disliked by the fathers of their respective "baby mommas", Mike and Allmon both do morally questionable things regarding their children (Mike abandons his son, Allmon signs a deal where he agrees to leave his unborn child alone in exchange for a horse). And in the end, Allmon is like his forefather Scipio: both men take their own lives after being faced with a traumatic incident that reminds them of their past. How far has Allmon run from his father? Was Allmon fated to become his father, or could he have made different choices?
Allmon has far less freedom of choice than one would imagine. In a discussion with jockey Reuben about Allmon's abandonment of his son, Allmon proclaims "'I made a choice'" (514). Reuben replies "'Learn your history!....Your only choice was no choice!" (514). Allmon is a poor black man with nothing to his name, and furthermore he is a felon. How much choice does he really have in this society? Did his fathers have the freedom of choice? One can assume the answer is negatory - Scipio is a runaway slave, and Mike is poor. Their family legacy is destitution and oppression. When faced with stark injustice under the society one lives in, can one really make the choice to leave? During the trial that puts Allmon away as a felon while he is a minor, the judge announces "....I'm sentencing you as an adult. You made your choice, Mr. Shaughnessy. You made all your choices a long time ago" (524). At this point, Allmon is still a child, and dealing with the aftermath of the loss of his mother. Would there be all this talk about choice and being sentenced as an adult if Allmon was a rich white boy like Henry Forge in his youth? Certainly not. Allmon didn't make these choices - society did.
Can Henry Forge make choices? Though Henry's story echoes that of his father, ultimately his story ends differently from John Henry's. Henry chooses to raise racehorses rather than continue the agricultural legacy of the Forges; Henry chooses to raise his black grandson, which John Henry would be horrified at. What is the difference between Henry and Allmon? Why can Henry make these choices, while Allmon dies in a similar situation to his forefather Scipio? Henry has a far higher standing in Kentucky society than Allmon does, so this does allow him more freedom of decision.
Alternatively, how different are the choices Henry makes to those of his forefathers? Ultimately all the decisions Henry makes are in the interests of the Forge family and name. Perhaps neither Allmon nor Henry, despite the endless privilege Henry wields, are able to carve out their own destiny. Perhaps both men are from fated families.
I think you’ve done a successful job at pointing out the many parallels seen throughout the novel and why the main characters may be stuck in a situation with no control. You are right in saying that throughout the novel many of these characters do not have a choice. However, there are crucial points throughout the piece in which the characters do have a bit of agency in their own lives and, almost always, they make the morally wrong choice. For Allmon this comes when he has his one on one meeting with Henry. He is given the choice to remain on the farm with a woman he (most likely) loves and his unborn child he has yet to learn about, or he can leave and eventually get a true racehorse out of it. It had long been established why Allmon had come to the farm, when asked earlier by Henry his response was, “I want what you got” (Morgan 321), so when given the choice, he chose the path most likely to lead him to what Henry had. He abandoned Henrietta, who he knew loved him, for the promise of a racehorse and a possible future of prosperity. Greed over love. Henry has points of choice too, however Allmon’s is more notable, and has far more recognizable impacts. So while I do agree that often times these characters were in positions without agency, there are some moments where I must disagree.
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