Piecing Me Together

Piecing Me Together

by

Renée Watson

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Piecing Me Together: Chapter 39 Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
A symphony volunteer takes the Woman to Woman group on a tour backstage. Jade can tell that the volunteer’s spiel is memorized but she still looks passionate. When the group doesn’t look very excited, the volunteer says that despite what people might think, all sorts of people love the symphony. She says that she knows they’re into hip-hop, but she tells them that one of their music directors was one of the first African American conductors on the world stage. When she mentions this man’s connections to a famous black contralto, Maxine venomously replies that they know about this woman’s history.
When the volunteer brings up hip-hop, it indicates that she thinks the only way to reach the teens is to appeal to what she believes is the lowest common denominator. Putting aside the racist undertones of this—hip-hop is “real” music, just like classical music—the volunteer is wildly underestimating the maturity level and the interest of the Woman to Woman group.
Themes
Intersectionality, Identity, and Discrimination Theme Icon
Mentorship, Opportunity, and Dignity Theme Icon
At their seats, Jade hears Maxine whisper to another mentor that the volunteer thinks they’re uneducated “poor black heathens.” The mentor whispers that she doesn’t listen to hip-hop. Jade thinks that they aren’t just offended by the volunteer’s stereotypes—they’re offended that the volunteer grouped them in with the mentees. Jade fixates on the volunteer’s prejudice. She feels as though no matter how dressed up she and the other girls are, people still see what they want to see. Finally, Jade closes her eyes and tries to focus on the music. It sounds like a collage. She feels herself dancing with the black music director and the contralto in her head.
Jade again picks up on class anxiety here: the other mentor’s assertion that she doesn’t listen to hip-hop seems to imply that she thinks it’s for a lower class, and so she resents that the volunteer made assumptions about how much money she has and how “cultured” she is. This makes Jade feel even worse, as it heightens her sense that Maxine is ashamed of her or embarrassed by her because of Jade’s poverty. In this situation, Jade has no choice but to confront that even the mentors see her as lesser.
Themes
Intersectionality, Identity, and Discrimination Theme Icon
Mentorship, Opportunity, and Dignity Theme Icon