The novel is often considered an important literary work in the Harlem Renaissance. How does the culture of Harlem in the 1920s and 1930s shape the lives of the characters and the atmosphere of the novel?

Detective Sergeant Perry Dart is considered by many to be the first Black novel detective. He was inspired in part by Sam Spade from Dashiell Hammett’s The Maltese Falcon. What are some similarities between the two detectives? What are some differences?

The novel explores a complicated relationship between science and mysticism. How are the two connected? How does the novel explore the mystical and supernatural aspects?