The film “Glory” has the brilliance of a complex, interesting, and rounded character known as Trip. Every so often, Trip displays the harsh racial issues during the Civil War. Trip is a runaway slave who has immense anger toward his country and white men. Because of the anger, he speaks time after time with bitterness toward blacks and whites. Throughout the movie, Trip feeds off Robert Gould Shaw to become a man as well as to release all his anger toward the whites and the country. Trip has clashes with a number of characters including Thomas. In one scene, Thomas wants to be close to the opening on the tent and use it in the moonlight.
However, because Thomas is educated and behaves similar to a white man, Trip isn’t willing to give Thomas the spot. Trip also says that there will be no blue suit for the black soldiers because they are for the white soldiers. He means that blacks aren’t equal, even if they are fighting for the same side. Trip lets his comrades know from the start that even though they are at war for their country, not a single thing will change for the blacks. Trip is hard to work with, and this makes him have a variety of problems with other characters. Every so often, it just looks as if Trip has a score to settle with the world.
When Trip is able to resolve his anger with a higher purpose, he will be able to release all the pain and become a proud soldier who is fighting for what he knows is right. In the scene where Trip is given the honor to hold the country’s flag in battle, he declines it because he believes that either they lose or win the war. The blacks still gain nothing. Trip has prevailed over a few personal conflicts before the end of the film, most of which include his feelings to blacks. Trip realizes that he is full of hate and he has to “Ante up and kick in like men. LIKE MEN! ” He says this when Rawlins stops him and slaps him.
At this point, Trip changes because he understands that they are all fighting for a good cause. He is able to put his anger aside to reach the goal. Trip opens up later in the film as he feels a growing sense of family with the other black soldiers, and Shaw. During a spiritual Trip say he had never had a family before and his mother was killed when he was twelve. However the 54th became his family and he will give his life for the 54th. Bitterness was once Trip strength but no longer. Trip has changed the most from beginning to end then any other character in the film.
In the last remarkable scene, Shaw died facing the enemy head on to encourage the soldiers to fight till the end. As Shaw departed Trip become a man and takes hold of the flag to finishes Shaw wishes as well as breathing his last breath. This has not been intervened as the 54th rises to continue the battle to overtake the fort. Even though the fort wasn’t capture Trip shows that the power of a single black man voice can transform fear and death to bravely and hope. The bond of Shaw and Trip gave each others strength to become the person they wanted to be but when one courageously fell the other one bravely fell along for their goal.
Without Trip, Rawlins may not had become such a great leader and the true message, that black soldiers were able to come together for a cause along with proving themselves, may not have been so powerful. The ending was sad but it still gave a hopeful message and some of this is because of Trip who was able to settle some of his past for the future of African Americans. “Glory” is a great example of the wars during the Civil War and the reality of racism during that time. In a way, Trip is one of the film’s heroes and stands out as one of the most extraordinary characters in the film.
