Throughout The Cay, Timothy expresses himself through dialect. How was that both a negative & positive thing in the portrayal of his character &...

Although Timothy's West Indian dialect is somewhat
difficult for the reader to interpret at times--just as it must have been for
Phillip--it gives the story an authentic feel that would not have been found had the
author written Timothy's dialogue in plain English. Phillip didn't think much of
Timothy's dialect when they first met. Phillip's mother's negative attitude about black
people had influenced him somewhat, and he considered himself superior to the much older
and more experienced sailor. A native of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, Timothy's
language made him seem intellectually inferior to Phillip as well; and Phillip
discovered later that Timothy could not read or write. But Phillip came to love Timothy
and his speech, and at one point he even honored Timothy by mimicking him when he
said

     "Dis
is outrageous, hombuggin' good feesh 'ole."
     He (Timothy) laughed with
pleasure.

At the end of the
story, after he has been rescued, Phillip returns to Willemstad, where he spends as much
time as possible

readability="7">

... along St. Anna Bay, and at the Ruyterkade
market talking to the black people. I liked the sound of their voices... I felt close to
them.

And Phillip one day
hopes to return to the cay where Timothy is buried, so he can speak to him once
again.

I'll
say, "Dis b'dat outrageous cay, eh,
Timothy?"