Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Coming of Age in Mississippi, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
The Intersection of Racism and Poverty
Loss of Innocence
The Importance of Community
Gender and Racism
Religion and Hypocrisy
Summary
Analysis
Unable to handle the stress her job puts on her body, Mama quits working for the white family. As a result, Essie Mae and her family move once again. Mama begins working for another white couple, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson, who don’t pay her as well but treat her better. Mr. Johnson’s mother, Miss Ola, lives with the couple. The house on the Johnsons’ property is the nicest house that Essie and her family have lived in yet. Essie Mae takes pride in the fact that her family is the only Black family in the neighborhood. Essie and her siblings longingly watch the white children skate and ride their bikes.
Mama’s improved treatment at her new job with the Johnsons signifies a hopeful turning point. Essie Mae’s family’s proximity to whiteness is a point of pride for Essie Mae, suggesting that she sees a connection between whiteness and social status. This also highlights the segregation present in Mississippi, as Essie Mae’s family is the only Black family in their otherwise white neighborhood. Essie Mae’s longing for the white children’s bikes further defines the divide between their circumstances. Unlike Essie Mae and her siblings, the white children have freedom of movement and enviable toys. Despite their proximity to whiteness, Essie Mae and her siblings do not share these privileges.
Themes
One day, Essie and her siblings are playing “Indians” when the white children come and ask them to teach them their game. This exchange begins a friendship with the white children in the neighborhood. Meanwhile, Essie continues to envy their toys and playhouse. One Saturday, at the movies, Essie Mae, Adline, and Junior run into their white friend Katie. In their excitement, they follow Katie into the white lobby. Mama is furious, and she explains to them that they cannot do the things that white children can do. After the incident at the movies, Essie and her siblings’ friendship with the white children is not the same. Essie reflects that she “never really thought of them as white before. Now all of a sudden they were white, and their whiteness made them better than me.”
Essie Mae and her siblings’ game of imitating Native Americans shows that racism is present in many forms in their society. Though the children do not understand the ways their game may be problematic or offensive, their ability to connect with the white children through this game suggests the pervasiveness of racism as a means of defining oneself in society. After the incident at the movie theater, it becomes clear to Essie Mae that, despite their friendship, there is an extreme divide between her social status and that of the white children. Though she perceives them as equal, she begins to understand that society at large does not. This realization ultimately has implications for her self-image.
Themes
Essie Mae becomes obsessed with understanding why society perceives the white children as better than her and her siblings. She starts to wonder if, because it is the only part of the white children she had never seen, the secret is related to their “privates.” To test this theory, Essie has all of the children play “Doctor” with her so she can examine them. After this game, she still does not understand what is different about them. She asks Mama again about her uncles Sam and Walter, but Mama quickly ends the conversation.
Essie Mae’s obsession with understanding the concept of whiteness indicates the determination and curiosity that will define her later years, while her decision to investigate this question through a game of “Doctor” shows her current innocence. At the same time, her persistence in asking Mama about Sam and Walter indicates her growing awareness of the complexities of race in society. Mama’s refusal to discuss the topic hints at a deep sensitivity on her part, most likely due to the family’s fraught history.
Themes
While the Johnsons are off selling watermelons, Essie Mae stays with Miss Ola. Though she has many chores to do, Essie likes Miss Ola and often falls asleep while Miss Ola reads her stories. At the house, Essie Mae uses a bathroom for the first time. She falls in love with the Johnsons’ house and begins to hate her own family’s house.
Essie Mae’s proximity to the better circumstances of the Johnson family highlights their stark differences in quality of life. Her resentment of her own family’s circumstances shows Essie Mae’s longing for and determination for a better life for her family and shows how deeply racial inequality pervades her desires.
Themes
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While Essie Mae still wonders about “white folks’ secret,” she does come to one conclusion about why white women had Black women working for them: white women are lazy and don’t know how to cook. One day, she watches Miss Ola make soup while she has a cold. She is so disgusted by Miss Ola’s lack of cleanliness while making the soup that she never eats her food again.
Essie Mae’s conclusion that white women employ Black women because white women are lazy comes from a disillusionment with Miss Ola’s domestic skills. The experience challenges her assumption about the superiority of white women and thus further highlights the contradictions present in racist Mississippi.
Themes
The second year in their house, Junior and Adline start school. Raymond returns from his military service and begins to come to the house every other night and help the children with their lessons. Unlike her siblings, Essie doesn’t need the extra help. Because Mama cannot afford to support the family on her salary, she begins buying clabber milk from an old white woman for 25 cents a gallon. Mama, stressed about money, becomes depressed again. One day, Essie Mae begins working for the woman who sells the clabber milk, earning 75 cents and two gallons of milk per week. However, when Essie Mae sees the woman allow her cats to drink out of the milk supply, she stops drinking the milk. Seeing that the woman works Essie too hard and takes advantage of her, Mama tells Essie to quit the job.
Raymond’s return from his military service catalyzes yet more changes in the life of Essie Mae’s family. Mama’s decision to buy clabber milk highlights her resourcefulness, but it also reminds the reader of the intensity of the family’s economic challenges. Essie Mae’s decision to work for the white woman who sells the clabber milk shows her determination to help her family’s circumstances. However, Mama’s advice to Essie Mae to quit the job upon realizing that the woman takes advantage of Essie Mae suggests that Mama instills a sense of self-worth and standards in Essie Mae.
Themes
Once the school year starts again, Essie gets a job with Mrs. Claiborne, who is a teacher at the white school and whose husband, Mr. Claiborne, is a businessman. One night, they invite Essie to eat dinner with them. After that, dinner together becomes a regular occurrence. The Claibornes treat Essie very well.
The kindness that the Claibornes show to Essie Mae stands in stark contrast to her previous experiences with white employers. The singularity of her experience of dining with the Claibornes reminds the reader of the sharp divide between white employers and their Black employees. Furthermore, Essie Mae’s experiences at the Claibornes’ open her mind to a new perspective on the world around her.
Themes
Essie Mae realizes that Mama is pregnant again with Raymond’s child, although Raymond has stopped coming to the house. Mama cries every night, and Essie Mae fears that she will have to quit school to care for the baby. One day, Mama cheers up. Essie Mae is happy about this before understanding that Mama is happy because Raymond, whom Essie Mae dislikes for the way he has treated Mama, has returned. Mama tells her that Raymond has built a new house for the family which they will move into soon, meaning they won’t have to live on white people’s property anymore.
Essie Mae’s concern for Mama shows the significant role that she plays in the well-being of her family and, furthermore, the emotional responsibility that she bears as the eldest child. Essie Mae’s happiness at Mama’s happiness demonstrates her commitment to the well-being of her family. The fact that the family will no longer have to live on the property of white people marks a turning point in their circumstances and, by extension, leads to a sense of hope that they will someday no longer have to define themselves in relation to white people.
Themes
