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The narrator meets Young Emerson during the job search he pursues upon arriving to New York, and he hopes to get in contact with his father, businessman Mr. Emerson. Contrary to almost every other white character who appears in the novel, Young Emerson brings an authentic, genuinely concerned perspective to his conversation with the narrator. He may struggle to express himself eloquently, especially when the narrator refuses to listen to him, but the fact that he even makes an attempt to discuss the realities of working for his powerful father makes him a unique character. Through his close association with the family business, Emerson knows that his father does not treat his Black employees fairly, and he believes that the narrator would be better off making his own path through life. The fact that Emerson, a white man, has such a clear understanding of the barriers that work to keep African Americans from social and economic advancement makes the narrator’s naivety even more apparent. Establishing this stubborn, metaphorical blindness early in the novel ultimately amplifies the character development that the narrator undergoes throughout his time in New York.
While Emerson’s conversation with the narrator establishes him as honest, sympathetic figure, he also seems motivated by his own antagonistic relationship with his father. He readily admits that he wishes he were not Mr. Emerson’s son, and he describes himself as a “prisoner” fighting a “battle.” This tension impacts the tone that Emerson uses as he tries to convince the narrator to abandon his job search, especially as he reveals that Dr. Bledsoe used the reference letters to betray him. Emerson discusses this turn of events in a particularly blunt manner and uses his personal experiences to convince the narrator of just how much is at stake. Although they find themselves in very different circumstances, Emerson’s strained relationship with his father drives him to invest himself in the narrator’s journey.
