With Eyes Wide Open is the story of Quentin Marshall, an African American man falsely charged with raping and murdering Carley Andrews, a young White woman. The action unfolds in a fictional town in the state of South Carolina in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Despite his protestations of innocence, Quentin is quickly tried, found guilty, and sentenced to death in the electric chair. With Eyes Wide Open, however, is not just another story about the wrongful conviction of an innocent Black man. It is a cautionary tale about the corrosive effects of systemic racism on the actions, beliefs, and decisions of oftentimes well-intentioned people. In the case of Quentin, it facilitates the transformation of an innocent Black man into a guilty rapist/murderer.
The story is told through a series of overlapping monologues delivered by individuals who report on the action as it unfolds. Some of the narrators are individuals who actively participate in the process of victimizing Quentin while others are passive victims whose lives are impacted by what happens to him. Collectively their points of view provide glimpses into the motivations of the different actors who either actively participate, vehemently oppose, or passively stand by with eyes wide open as an innocent man fights for his life within a system indifferent to his existence.
