In the Heat of the Night

Virgil has spent most of the novel calm and collected, despite how racist Wells is, demonstrating his deft detective skills, but revealing less about his character than the world around him. In Chapters 11-12, Virgil finally snaps, showing more of his personality. When Delores tries to make Virgil enter through the back of the house, Virgil demands respect and goes through the front. Inside, Mr. Purdy treats Virgil derogatorily, but Virgil puts the man in his place: ”‘I’ve had about all I’m going to take of ignorant back talk from you or anybody else. You came in and filed charges; I’m here to talk about them’” (118). Earlier in the story, Virgil often responded to racism quietly and passively, choosing to take the higher ground. The Purdys’ low socio-economic standing allows Virgil to react more naturally to their racist comments and behavior—he has leverage and power in this interaction.

The novel further develops several minor Black characters, giving a slightly fully picture of the Black community in Wells. We encounter the helpful and cooperative Reverend Whiteburn, a Black authority figure who acts as a foil for the obstructionist white council members and mayor. We also see the domestic life of Jess, a car mechanic who introduces his son Andy to Virgil in an attempt to give the boy a heroic, upstanding example of Black excellence. This family is functional, loving, and deeply empathetic, coming to Virgil’s aid when two white men attack him. As father and son, Jess and Andy provide a useful counterpart to the Purdys, the racist, dysfunctional family eager to entrap Sam into marriage. These two families also develop Ball’s commentary on class. Jess and his family are welcoming to Virgil. Despite not having much money or food, they’re hospitable and welcoming. The Purdys, another impoverished family, are bigoted, spiteful, and superstitious.

The novel is less nuanced in its treatment of women. There are only two somewhat substantial female characters—Delores and Duena—young women who almost literally fall into the virgin/whore dichotomy. Duena is pure, beautiful, and classy; Delores is slutty, conniving, and sexually tainted. Both function primarily to ensnare Sam in different ways, and have little of their own agency, inner life, or purpose outside of being a target for Sam’s appropriate or inappropriate sexual desire.

Ball continues utilizing dramatic chapter breaks to maintain the story’s momentum. Chapter 11 ends with Virgil heading toward the police station, ready to prove Sam is innocent, leaving the reader to start the next chapter to see if Virgil can pull it off. Chapter 12 ramps up the drama even more, ending with Virgil stating that they’ll catch the killer tonight: “Unless something radical happens, before morning Mr. Wood will arrest the murderer of Enrico Mantoli” (135). The closing lines of each chapter promise that, soon, the mystery will be solved.