Loretta And John Jr.: A Narrative Fiction

This way, if you looked at her face all you would see was a beautiful woman with piercing blue eyes and a warming smile.

An African American single mother raises two daughters that have different meanings of life and heritage. Maggie is the youngest daughter, the girl who is shy who is not attractive and is pleased with her culture and life. Then there is Dee the girl who is attractive, sophisticated and knows what she wants in life and wants to be something more than her family. Even though Dee is sophisticated she does not know the true importance of heritage. This is what starts struggle between mother and Dee, because Dee desires the quilt for decoration which her mother would not give it to her for that reason. The mother believes the quilt is not for ornamenting it is more meaningful and signifies the heritage of her family. Only Maggie can transmit

The warm sun beaming through the big window embraced my cousin Jasmine and I as were getting dressed to meet our grandpa. The draft slapped my face as my grandma came into our room to inform me on what not wear, “No sandals, little Jasmine”. Confused and upset all my “hard work” was done in vain I challenged her authority “Why? It’s hot outside and It’s not like I’ll step in anything”. There was a spark in her eye as those words escaped my lips, it was the same spark that occurs before she lays down the law. However, this time the spark appeared and vanished in a matter of nanoseconds, “Ok little Jasmine you wear what you want…” as she began to

In “Everyday Use,” Mama is excited her daughter’s coming home to visit, however, she finds herself making sure everything is perfect upon her arrival. She points out that her daughter, Dee, has nicer clothes and a more luxurious lifestyle, while her other daughter Maggie is on the reserve side, like herself. She doesn’t have fancy clothes and both spend every day and night together. Maggie respects her mother and the choices she makes. However Dee does not. Dee knows that she is able to obtain whatever she want because she has been told ‘no’ very few times in her life. In the Climax of the story Mama finally breaks from treating Dee as a royal princess and says no, Dee could not have the quilt she insisted taking when Mama already promised it to Maggie, who would cherish the family heritage. Mama had reached a point where inside she changes as a person after hitting her breaking point

Sally is not even eight grades and she gets married. Her husband is a marshmallow salesman that she meets at a school bazaar. She moves to another state where is legal their marriage. Sally tells Esperanza about her house and domestic objects that she owns. Sally says that she is in love, but Esperanza believes that Sally just gets married to escape. Sally 's husband gives her money to buy things, and she enjoys this aspect of being married. Sally claims to be happy, except when sometimes her husband gets angry and one time he kicked a hole through the door. Her husband doesn’t let her go out, talk on the phone, see her friend or even look out the window. Sally spends her day sittings at home, looking around at the pretty things she owns: the towels, the toaster, the alarm clock and the drapes.

Maria comes home one day earlier than usual. Her family, two daughters of age five and eight and a stay-at-home husband, is surprised to see her so early and unexpectedly. The tired look on her face reveals the experience she had at work. She brings out a sluggish smile as her daughters rush up to greet her with their warm embraces, reminding her of the happiness they constantly provide but also saddened by their questionable future. Quietly, she sits down in front of her anxious spouse as he patiently awaits the news, sensing the tension in the air.

It had taken some rearranging, but the Payne’s were going to have to share a room, with each of her sisters and their husband bedding in one of the girl’s double beds. Pa grumbled the most when he was sent out to the shed to share the space with his sons, who had been carried there earlier. Alma sensibly pointed out that the senior Paynes couldn’t be expected to sleep in the shed and Ma’s bed had taken over the parlor. Still, he took some persuading to go back out into the pounding rain and race to the barn. Finally, Alma propped her legs on the edge of the bed and slept the night away in the bedside rocker. The day had been long and hard and she was exhausted. She had planned to sit through the night with Ma anyway. But if Ma stirred, she didn’t call enough to wake

When Ann Fay’s father went off to war he bought Ann Fay a pair of blue overalls. He told her that she was now the “man” of the house because she was the oldest child and the only one able to do hard work. Her brother was 4 and she had twin sister who were 6 years old. Ann Fay had a friend named Junior who volunteered to help her family. Ann Fay’s daddy told Junior that he could drive the family’s truck. Ann Fay insisted that her sibling help in the garden and do chores.

Susie’s mother opened the door to let Molly, Susie’s babysitter, inside. Ten-month old Susie seemed happy to see Molly. Susie then observed her mother put her jacket on and Susie’s face turned from smiling to sad as she realized that her mother was going out. Molly had sat for Susie many times in the past month, and Susie had never reacted like this before. When Susie’s mother returned home, the sitter told her that Susie had cried until she knew that her mother had left and then they had a nice time playing with toys until she heard her mother’s key in the door. Then Susie began crying once again.

Maggie unlike her sister Dee never went to school beyond school grade. Maggie was self conscious because she had scars from a house fire. She was always jealous of her sister Dee’s easier life. She was angry when Dee asked for the quilts, because her mother had already promised to give the quilts. Maggie knew how making another quilt in case the quilt was destroyed. Afterwards, she tried to make peace so that her sister would have the quilts, but the mother snatched it out of Dees hands and gave the quilts Maggie, because she knew Maggie was more deserving and understood the value of the quilts to her mother.

When the climactic scene occurs and Dee asks “Can I have these quilts?” (145), Maggie’s first implied reaction is one of surprise and anger; “I heard something fall in the kitchen, and a minute later the kitchen door slammed” (145). But as someone “never used to winning anything, or having anything reserved for her” (146), Maggie succumbs and offers to let Dee have them. Although “Maggie knows how to quilt” (146), she is able to comprehend the deeper personal value of the quilts, and states that she “can ‘member Grandma Dee without the quilts”(146). Despite their value as an item of everyday use, the quilts are meaningful to Maggie, much in the way they are to her mother who remembers having quilted them with Big Dee. The scraps, the bits and pieces and “one teeny faded blue piece, about the size of a penny matchbox, that was from Great Grandpa Ezra’s uniform that he wore in the Civil War.” (145) hold deep significance to Maggie.

An hour after the moving van parked in the driveway of 406 Clybourne street in Clybourne Park the younger family waved at the van when it slowly moved away and they went inside when the van was out of view. The family worked together to put away their belongings and they stood hand and hand and they took a breath of fresh air. Beneatha went first to her room to put away her stuff then Ruth and Walter went next and Travis left to go hunt for his new room. They all left until Mama was left there alone looking out the big window. Mama gingerly stepped to the window and put her plant down smiling in thought. When the door bell rung she jumped and went to the door. At the door was a white woman and when the door opened and saw mama she flinched and said “Hello, I’m your neighbor it’s nice to meet you.” She said “I’m Susan it’s nice to meet you.” She said this slowly, deliberately like she’s talking to a foreign person and Susan put out her hand and mama did not reach for it her face was just a blank stare. Then after a while mama stammered “h-hello I’m Lena Younger its very nice to meet you.” And she reached out and shook Susan’s hand and Susan quickly took it away. Then she said “Well I just came to say,” Susan took mama’s shirt and pulled her face so close to mama’s that their noses were touching. “stay out of our way, we will stay out of your way if you stay out of ours.” She shoved mama into their brand new house and slammed the door so hard that

The narrator described herself as large, big-boned woman with rough, man-working hands. She said she can kill and clean a hog as mercilessly as a man, and her fat keeps her hot in zero weather (444). She seemed to be a hard working woman, who differently from Dee is proud of her heritage and where she came from. It is understood she knew she may not have had the best life possible, but made the best of it. She knew Dee was the successful, popular child, but once Dee returned home with a changed name she saw her in a different light. She realized Dee’s doings were from throwing out the cultural heritage she belonged to into the new, hip black movement. She seemed to appreciate Maggie more after Dee tried to remove things from their house to show off. When Dee argued with her about giving the quilts to her instead of Maggie who was used to never winning, or having anything reserved for her the mother grabbed the quilts from Dee and handed them to Maggie. The mother is very grateful for her children, but is not going to let Dee, the daughter who has “made it”, take over the quilts meant for Maggie once she married.

This case study will discuss the dysfunctional relationship of John and Sarah. By having a hypothesis in place and using the family systems theory concept further applying circular questioning to test the hypothesis will help determine where the issues started in their relationship (Burnham & Harris, 1992).

On Christmas Eve, we huddled around our "tree" and exchanged memories about our lives in the city and our visits to Grandpa's farm. Mama cried and I cried with her. "I loved Grandpa so much," I whimpered.