The Reckoning

The Banning farm represents the Old South, steeped in racism and the corruption that comes with it. The family takes pride in the belief that they are farmers, not plantation owners, but the distinction is more in name than practice. The field hands on their land aren’t enslaved, but most of the hands are Black people, and their relationship to the Banning family is like the slavery of the forebearers, so much so that Jackie Bell's lawyer describes the Banning family as effectively owning their field hands. They are dependent on the landowner to supply needs such as homes and education.

For the Banning family, the land represents stability, security, and history. Joel and Stella initially look at the farm as a source of security and income to support them as they forge their own lives, but as the prospect of losing the land looms closer, they realize how much of their own history and identity is also wrapped up in the land and the responsibilities that come with it. Errol McLeish highlights that heritage for Joel when he sees how McLeish treats the field hands as profit objects rather than a protectorate of the family.

The family burial plot is located on the land (on Florry's half, which remains in the family), and Joel reflects that at least that much of their history will still be accessible.