“As a child Cora had no playtime. She always had a little brother, or a little sister in her arms. Bad, crying, bratty babies, hungry and mean. In the eighth grade she quit school and went to work with the Studevants.”
Cora factually ‘fell from her childly innocence’ when she was constrained to forfeit typical childhood undertakings such as playing to nurture her siblings. Cora’s calamitous childhood is somewhat ascribed to paucity and race. If Cora were entirely white and born in a well-to-do household, her gambles of relishing an orthodox childhood devoid of adulthood weights would have been astronomical.
“She never saw the Greek boy anymore. Indeed, his father lost his license, "due to several complaints by the mothers of children, backed by the Woman's Club," that he was selling tainted ice-cream. Mrs. Art Studevant had started a campaign to rid the town of objectionable tradespeople and questionable characters. Greeks were bound to be one or the other. For a while they even closed up Pa Jenkins' favorite bootlegger.”
Mrs. Studevant’s fortitude in subverting a matrimonial between Jessie and her Greek partner enthuse the predisposed campaigns that render the ‘Greek family’s ice creams’ insalubrious. The ice creams are a pretext that Mrs. Studevant exploits to warranty that other mothers would endorse the Greeks’ eviction. Explicit assaults on all Greeks are an exhibition of passionate racism at Melton.
“Cora got up from her seat by the dining-room door. She said, "Honey, I want to say something." She spoke as if she were addressing Jessie. She approached the coffin and held out her brown hands over the girl's body. Her face moved in agitation. People sat stone-still and there was a long pause. Suddenly she screamed. "They killed you! And for nothin'... They killed your child... They took you away from here in the Springtime of your life, and now you'se gone, gone, gone!"
Although Cora is a deprived servant she parades a hearty poise that would not have been projected. Her zealous contentions are proofs of her solid fondness for Jessie. Although unschooled, Cora champions instinctive acumen that lays bare the unfortunate context of Jessie’ departure. Besides, Cora retorts ardently because she senses that she has been deprived of another daughter. Cora considers that Jessie’s passing would have been obviated had her mother not meddled in her love.
“Since I’ve begun to pass for white, nobody has ever doubted that I am a white man. Where I work, the boss is a Southerner and is always cussing out Negroes in my presence, not dreaming I’m one. It is to laugh!”
Jack detects that skin color is an unqualified meter for race. His avowal deduces that race is molded based on the outlying aspects which do not ineludibly hint at the blood, which is internal. Although Jack has some black genes, the genes are not chiefly appraised when cataloging his race. Jack’s familiarities regarding idiosyncratic skin color echo the paltriness and vainness of racism.
“Well, ma, I will close because I promised to take my weakness to the movies this evening. Isn’t she sweet to look at, all blonde and blue-eyed?”
Here, Jack blatantly preaches the omnipotence of whites that is epitomized in the ‘blonde’ hue and ‘blue eyes.’ The ratification recapitulate Jack’s creed vis-à-vis the incongruity between ‘blackness and whiteness.’ Had Jack undeniably transcended white supremacist acclimatization, skin color would not have been the unrestricted rationale for what he looks as ‘sweet to look at.’
