In Baldwin’s “Sonny’s Blues”, a particularly important passage that Baldwin draws closely from the biblical story of Cain and Abel is near the beginning of the story when the older brother (narrator) and one of Sonny’s friends are having a conversation. This passage is important because Baldwin plays off the exact same conversation between Cain and God in Cain and Abel. In both stories, the older brother’s do not feel a sense of responsibility for their younger brothers. In Genesis, after Cain kills Abel, God confronts Cain about his brother’s whereabouts. Cain answered, “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis four, verse 9). This is very similar to what Sonny’s brother says when confronted by Sonny’s friend, “I haven’t seen Sonny
