“Sony’s Blues” is a short story written in first person in a narrative style. The narrator, who is Sonny’s older brother, provides the reader with understanding not only into Sonny but also into the society in which they are located that is ridden with problems. The narrator has achieved success, unlike the other men in his neighborhood in Harlem. He has a wife, two children, and is making a decent amount of money as a high school algebra teacher. However, he also recognizes Harlem’s dark and dangerous side. He is aware of his brother’s ongoing battle with the poverty, lawlessness, and drug abuse that infests all of Harlem. Though the narrator is fully cognizant of these problems within his own backyard, he deliberately attempts to keep these
