There Will Be No Miracles Here

Gerald’s connection to his family and larger community—first through his church and neighborhood, then through Yale and its alumni network—plays an important role throughout the book. This connection sometimes leads to disappointment, as with the opening scene before Y2K and with the disappearance of Gerald’s mother, but at other times Gerald’s community is supportive, such as when his family drives him to Yale or when other Yale alums resolve his conflict regarding his last football game. Despite this, Gerald essentially defines himself by his relationship with the family and community structures around him.

The book’s title immediately debunks any magical explanation for Gerald’s success. It reinforces the price he paid—in terms of lost identity and connection as well as significant effort and emotion—to lift himself out of poverty. The book also highlights the power of those who can make decisions, like scouting and selecting Gerald to play football for Yale, decisions that can seem like miracles to those who benefit from them. This motif identifies the role of power, the exclusivity and privilege of those in power, and their separation from the masses.

It also raises questions of religion, which is prominent in Gerald’s life. Clearly, Gerald does not believe in the type of supernatural God who performs burning-bush-like miracles. Yet, he seems to admire the community created by religion and to identify religion with hope, which is another motif in the book.

Despite a professed penchant for holding grudges, it is clear that Gerald is both optimistic and also deeply hopeful. He lived with massive challenges as a child, yet he never loses the sense that he can pursue whatever he wants (though he later enjoys advantages that make his pursuit of success much easier, such as the network of Yale alums). Gerald also acknowledges, with respect to his mother’s disappearance, the existence and social acceptance of anti-hope. Yet, despite his extreme pain over his mother’s neglect and absence, it remains plain that Gerald believes in the power of hope. This is apparent when he is strategizing to run for Congress: Gerald was a strong supporter of Barak Obama’s presidential campaign and its “Yes, We Can!” message, and he planned to build on it to express a similar hope during his own campaign.