Ruby Character Analysis in Dreams from My Father

Ruby is a Black woman whom Barack meets during his interviews with people in Chicago. Barack takes a special interest in her teenage son, Kyle. Ruby initially gets involved with organizing after Kyle experiences a brush with gang violence, and she stays dedicated to the efforts even after experiencing many failures. She and Barack have a brief falling-out when Ruby wears blue contacts, something that Barack sees as a reflection of Black self-hatred, but they make up and remain friends.

Ruby Character Timeline in Dreams from My Father

The timeline below shows where the character Ruby appears in Dreams from My Father. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Finally, during an interview with a woman named Ruby, Barack starts to get it. Ruby talks about her son, Kyle, and his brushes with... (full context)

...commander cancels. Barack spends his time directing elderly people to the Bingo game upstairs while Ruby sits sadly. Marty arrives halfway, helps Barack clean up, and takes Barack for coffee. He... (full context)

...one digs for it. Barack also learns things that are less cheerful, however. For instance, Ruby throws herself headlong into organizing after the botched police meeting, and Barack takes an interest... (full context)

...Barack recognizes that while self-esteem might help, poverty does more harm than poor self-esteem. But Ruby makes him question this, as does hearing Black people speak poorly about other Black people... (full context)

Several weeks later, Barack invites Ruby to come to a meeting with him on the north side. They eat at a... (full context)

...dictate their own futures. He also thinks about Kyle, who’s 16 and whose antics frighten Ruby. One day, Barack takes Kyle to play basketball and asks if he’s still thinking about... (full context)