# Ray — Home to Harlem character guide

> Ray in Home to Harlem by Claude McKay.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Raymond

**First appearance:** 0013-x-the-railroad

## Snapshot

A Haitian intellectual and writer working the dining car, Ray is Jake's delicate-fibered friend, too sensitive for the world he moves through and too thoughtful to rest in it.

## Who they are

Ray returns to New York after a diner run and goes straight to check on Jake, alarmed by the relapse in a way that reveals how easily his fine-strung nature responds to sensations Jake barely registers. Where Jake laughs off the doctor and the landlady's warnings, Ray absorbs them, caught between a world of rough vitality and his own searching, bookish mind. His tenderness and introspection give the novel its counterweight, a man whose body rides the rails while his thoughts reach for something Harlem's fever can't satisfy.

## Relationships

### [Ma Lawton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/characters/ma_lawton)

_friendship_

Ma Lawton treats Ray with warmth and respect, offering him a home and a listening ear.

### [Ma Lawton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/characters/ma_lawton)

_friendship_

Ma Lawton treats Ray with warmth and respect, offering him a home and a listening ear.

## In the story

### [X: The Railroad](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/x-the-railroad)

A waiter on the train, well-read and Haitian. Educates Jake about Haiti, Toussaint L’Ouverture, and Sappho.

### [Snowstorm in Pittsburgh](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xi-snowstorm-in-pittsburgh)

Struggles with profound thoughts about race and identity, is disgusted by the filthy quarters, and takes cocaine to escape his tormenting thoughts.

### [The Treeing of the Chef](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xii-the-treeing-of-the-chef)

A waiter on the dining-car, called 'Professor' by others. He reads Dostoevsky and encourages the fourth waiter to stand up to the chef.

### [One Night in Philly](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xiii-one-night-in-philly)

Reluctantly accompanies Jake; feels out of place and disgusted by the presence of Laura's young son; reflects on his own alienation.

### [Interlude](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xiv-interlude)

Visits Jake and tries to convince him to take better care of himself, but Jake dismisses his advice.

### [XV: Relapse](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xv-relapse)

Visits Jake after his relapse, advises him to be careful, and offers him a room in his building. Reflects on literature and his own creative ambitions.

### [XVI: A Practical Prank](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xvi-a-practical-prank)

Visits Jake with his friend James Grant, expresses weariness with railroad life, and engages in a philosophical discussion.

### [A Farewell Feed](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xviii-a-farewell-feed)

Leaving Harlem for a freighter job; reflects on his fear of settling down and his complex feelings about Harlem.

### [Third Part](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/third-part)

Decides to leave for the sea, seeking a new direction in life.

### [XX: Felice](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xx-felice)

Mentioned by Jake as the one who found him his room when he was sick.

### [The Gift That Billy Gave](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/chapters/xxi-the-gift-that-billy-gave)

Mentioned as having quit the railroad for the sea.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/characters/ray
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/home_to_harlem_se/characters