The Gilded Six-Bits by Zora Neale Hurston

Teddyrose@1

14 years ago

Last week I reviewed Sweat by Zora Neale Hurston. I had downloaded it along with The Gilded Six-Bits, so that’s what I decided to review here.

Missie May and Joe had only been married for less than a year but were very happy together. Every Saturday when Joe came home from work they played a little game. Joe chucked his entire weeks pay of 9 silver dollars at the door.

“Nobody ain’t gointer be chunkin’ money at me and Ah not do ’em nothin’,” she shouted in mock anger. He ran around the house with Missie May at his heels. She overtook him at the kitchen door. He ran inside but could not close it after him before she crowded in and locked with him in a rough-and-tumble. For several minutes the two were a furious mass of male and female energy. Shouting, laughing, twisting, turning, tussling, tickling each other in the ribs; Missie May clutching onto Joe and Joe trying, but not too hard, to get away.”

One day Joe met a new man in town who opened up an ice cream parlor. There had never been one in their part of town, the black part. The man,Otis D. Slemmons had gold practically dripping off him. He had a gold pocket watch and even all gold fillings in his teeth. He liked to show off his gold pieces and Joe decided he wanted to show off Missie May to him so he took her out for ice cream.

“A new man done come heah from Chicago and he done got a place and took and opened it up for a ice cream parlor, and bein’, as it’s real swell, Ah wants you to be one de first ladies to walk in dere and have some set down.”

Joe told her to dress up in her Sunday best. They had never seen a rich man in person before. They had seen Henry Ford but only in pictures. Slemmons let everyone who came by like at his gold coins and watch but they were never aloud to touch them.

One Saturday, Joe got off early from work. He thought he would surprise Missie May and sneak into bed with her. The surprise was on him.

I really enjoyed this story, despite being poor, Joe and Missie May loved each other and didn’t let his low pay bother him. They got by on what they had and enjoyed what they did have. Hurston started out with a playful story but then, like in Sweat, turned it around and packed a punch to her readers. Though a small part of it was predictable it was how she lead up to it and beyond that held my interest. Highly recommended.

You can read both Sweat and The Gilded Six-Bits, here.

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