Quality Term Analysis

...aspirational figure. Still young, he is only just beginning to understand the distinction between the Quality and the Tasked, and dreams about the life of “splendor and regale” that the Quality... (full context)

...his position, there is something particularly difficult about being in such close proximity to the Quality and seeing the injustice so clearly as a result. That night, Hiram dreams that all... (full context)

...he insists that Sophia doesn’t live on his property. She dresses “like a lady of Quality” when she goes to see him, but still uses the back entrance. Nathaniel also keeps... (full context)

...Maynard to the races, Maynard talks the whole way. All the men and women of Quality are there, the men looking smart and the women glamorous. Hiram sees a few people... (full context)

...of the low whites in society. They accept horrific degradation at the hands of the Quality just so they can in turn oppress and degrade the Tasked. Hiram, meanwhile, goes to... (full context)

...he walks through town, he sees items of clothing strewn about, and a man of Quality lying face down in a pile of manure. He sees Maynard, very drunk and standing... (full context)

...his “genius must be kept hidden.” This surprises Hiram, who is not used to the Quality speaking like this. When Hiram attempts to make a polite comment about Maynard, Corrine interrupts... (full context)

...hour. The men who lead the agents through this training regime are all white, some Quality and some Low. Meanwhile, Hiram also resumes his studies with Mr. Fields, picking up where... (full context)

...recognizes some of his own loneliness in her. She reflects that as a woman of Quality, she was encouraged to have an education, but that any knowledge she gained was supposed... (full context)

...that time does not have a separate car for black people. This is because “The Quality [keep] their Tasked ones close the way a lady keeps her clutch, closer even.” The... (full context)

...watching. He sees two low whites going out for a hunt, and a mix of Quality and Tasked children playing together. Once night falls, he goes back to greet Harriet, who... (full context)

...Hiram to tell him a story, which Hiram does—a story about the esteemed families of Quality in Elm County back in the old days. The next day, Corrine comes for a... (full context)