Razorblade Tears

Like Ike, Buddy Lee begins the novel with anti-gay bias and intolerance. By the end of the novel, he accepts his son Derek for being gay. Initially, Buddy Lee doesn’t recognize his racism. As the novel progresses, Ike teaches Buddy Lee to see this. Like Ike, Buddy is a round character who changes throughout the novel.

Buddy describes himself as a “whiskey-drinking, hard-loving redneck son of a bitch. Most nights I sleep like a baby. I ain’t ashamed of who I am” (270). He is a flirtatious, fun-loving man with an alcohol addiction, who hides his cancer from Ike for most of the novel. He is well-acquainted with lying and has a talent for spotting “tells”—the signs that someone is being duplicitous. This allows him to be cunning when he thinks he must: He defaces Isiah and Derek’s gravestones to bring Ike into the investigation.

Buddy Lee is resistant to change. This echoes in his remarks at Derek’s grave: “This is who I am. I can’t change. I don’t want to, really. But for once I’m gonna put this devil inside me to good use” (96). Despite his insistence that he is not a good man, Buddy Lee helps achieve some form of justice for their sons. Initially, Ike does not like Buddy Lee. However, Buddy evolves enough that Ike grows fond of him and honors his memory by paying for his tombstone.

Mya is Ike’s wife and Isiah’s mother. Her primary role in the novel is to highlight the depths of Ike’s grief. When Isiah is killed, Ike and Mya can’t find a way to comfort each other. She feels alone in a marriage, and grief also consumes her. Mya plays an important narrative function when she approves of Ike’s return to violence to avenge their son. Some of his ambivalence initially arises from his concerns about how she will react. Once Mya supports him, he can do whatever he feels he needs without fear of alienating her.

Tangerine is a character, a plot device, and a symbol. She is a transgender woman who has not yet completed her physical transition. She loves—and is used by—Gerald. Through Tangerine, Cosby illuminates the difficulties and prejudices that trans people face. When the reader first meets Tangerine, she is naive and doesn’t question Gerald. By the end, she is disillusioned. Through Tangerine, the reader also sees Ike’s growth, as he is empathic and protective toward her.

Grayson is the local president of the Rare Breed motorcycle gang. He exemplifies intolerance and hate for people who aren’t white and straight. Most of his interactions with Ike, Buddy Lee, and his own men are interlaced with racial and anti-gay slurs. He is ignorant, vicious, cunning. He takes orders from Gerald as long as he thinks he can benefit, but eventually he grows tired of being controlled and takes matters into his own hands. Grayson is a flat character. Though his external behavior changes, he remains internally the same.