The first line of James by Percival Everett is a clever reference to Huck Finn
A quick deep dive into the novel's illuminating first line.
SPOILERS FOR THE TWIST IN JAMES IN THE FOOTNOTES ONLY
James by Percival Everett starts off with a loaded opening line that is an inside joke for Twain fans.
“Those little bastards were hiding there in the tall grass.”
When James says the boys are “bastards,” he’s not just talking about behavior. He’s being literal, pointing out a quiet fact about the boys’ parentage from Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Both Tom and Huck are born out of wedlock.
Tom and Huck’s bastardy is hinted at in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in “The Coat of Arms” episode. Tom absolutely insists on having a “bar sinister” on a coat of arms he’s imagining, which is the insignia mark of bastards. (Tom is unaware of the symbolism, but we readers are not.)
The bastard discussion goes deeper, as there’s another layer of bastardy Twain is referring to in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Tom and Huck are engaged in an elaborate scheme (at Jim’s great expense) based on their favorite story: The Man in the Iron Mask by Alexander Dumas. Through the boys choice of play, Twain is making an allusion to the likely bastardy of “the man in the iron mask,” a much-discussed detail of the book.
The Opening Line is Foreshadowing
P.S. This line is major foreshadowing for the big twist in James.1 (avoid the footnote below, if you don’t want the spoiler!)
MAJOR SPOILER ALERT [It’s revealed in James that Huck is a bastard as well. James is Huck’s biological father.]