"We are all worthy of one another"

This quote, from Caldonia to Louis, was mentioned a few times in the book, and it really stood out to me, even as a possible theme of the novel. We are neither all good nor all evil. Regardless of experience or station in life, we are all human. We are all worthy of one another.

This makes me think, too, of how Jones seemed to indict not whites or slaveholders but slavery in general. It tainted everyone it touched. It corrupted slaveholders, even those who intended to be fair masters. It caused slaves to lie, cheat and bully each other, to betray each other for their own gain. Even people like Sheriff Skiffington, who made a decision not to participate in slavery, found himself hunting down runaway slaves and returning the "property" to its owner. There are good intentions but very little that is pure and good.

"Henry had always said that he wanted to be a better master than any white man he had ever known. He did not understand that the kind of world he wanted to create was doomed before he had even spoken the first syllable of the word master."