My First Zora Neale Hurston Story
Short Story Discussion - The Gilded Six-Bits (1933) by Zora Neale Hurston
before the clock strikes midnight, I thought I’d indulge in a short story; I.e. My computer didn’t want me to watch youtube videos, socials have been hella dry lately and my trackpad wasn’t working at all on my laptop, so i decided shut off the phone & computer and read one of the many books I have. I did go through some of my books and the one that stood out to me the most was; Centers of the Self: Short Stories by Black American Women from the Nineteenth Century to the Present.
The way in which I got this book was actually so cool. I was on a mission to go to the used book store on my break that’s a few blocks away from my job, to see what new black history/ black experience lead books they had. I get to the corner of one of the cross streets, My eyes light up when I see 3 stoops of books. Guys; THREE STOOPS OF BOOKS! In Nyc that’s kind of a big deal. people put their books out on the stoops when they wanna give them away but don’t want to throw them away (My issue with that is when it rains… what are you doing with the books? I’ve seen some books left out to get destroyed, that could have been put in the community book shelves they’ve started to put up or donate them; but I digress). I was on the phone with my boyfriend and I was like; what the fuck?! the universe really wanted me to get some knowledge today. I rummage through all 3 stoops, and I’m the only person doing it. I come across; A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle, Centers of the Self: Short Stories by Black American Women from the Nineteenth Century to the Present by Judith A. Hamer and Martin J. Hamer, Now Let Me Fly by Dolores Johnson (A children’s book about slavery), and The New Baby by Mercer Mayer (The children’s book with the little beavers, I got it for my niece). I think these were solid pick ups and especially for free and especially in a very white neighborhood.
So, I picked up this book and started flipping through it. stopped on a chapter called; The Gilded Six-Bits (1933) by Zora Neale Hurston. When I tell you I’ve been seeing her name and just people talk about her being an influential author. so many times I heard her name today. I was like, this is a sign. This is the story i’m going to read to occupy my mind.
SPOILERS - **My thoughts during this recap are in Italics
The story starts off with a black family. a wife; Missie May and her husband Joe. They live in a very white picket fence area in a nice house. They have a daily routine of chasing each other when he gets home after she tells him to stop throwing money at her front door. It’s very loving gesture with a pinch of lust. When she catches him, She takes the money from his pockets then everything else in the other pockets that he purposefully left for her. and honestly that was so cute, small gestures like that, I love. They end up eating dinner she cooked and joe brings up there’s a ice cream shop owned by a big black guy who just came down from chicago. He talk’s about his gold and how he flaunts it, all in hi teeth and watch. they ain’t never seen a negro with gold. talks about all the women he gets too. missie questions him, coz how u know this and you only had one conversation with him? she said, “His mouf is cut crossways, aint it? Well, he kin lie jes lak anybody else” (Pg 113). Of course we getting that black women intuition. on the next page she says, “ Joe, Ah hates to see you so dumb. Dat stray nigger jes tell y’all anything and y’all b’lieve it” (Pg 114). They still end up going to the ice cream shop, chopping it up. Missie ends up very enthralled with the gold he wore, saying it would look so much better on joe and they could go looking for some that some white people dropped. But they ain’t got none no ways. Joe says he’s fine with the way things are.
About a week goes by and Joe is coming home from work. This night he noticed the moon riding the river’s edge and it just reminded him of how much he loves Missie May and He wants kids soon. He wanted to surprise her with a hug from behind, he crept into the kitchen and knocked over some plates; but something was off… he heard rustling and then silence from his bedroom. IMMEDIATELY RAN TO ACTION!!! Thinking his wife was in danger. but caught the ice cream owner man with his pants at his ankles and his wife on the floor crying. Joe tells the man to pull up his pants and he beats him up and takes his gold watch/chain. not violently like he should have, but I assume he got away. we don’t hear about him anymore. Missie is sobbing talking about I know you don’t love me no more and joe is asking why. The man said he’d was gonna give her the gold money and kept after her. assuming He was trying to make her do things she didn’t want, but it’s never said they had sex. But I feel like she was tempted just to get her man what he deserves.
From here the relationship is not the same. missie feels like she need to disappear coz she is not worthy, she doesn’t even get up to make breakfast until Joe says something. She believes he never coming back. but they never left each other. He was still kind and aloof in Missies Eyes. 3 months go by and Joe starts to complain about his body hurting and this is the first time they’ve touched each other since the day of the incident. Baby, they was getting at it after that, In very few words; “Youth triumphed and missie exulted” (Pg 118). the next day Joe left the gold piece he took on the bed, missie finally gets to see it though she was scared to. Devils gold. She found out it was a gilded half dollar. relieved and feeling like her punishment was over. Though, she thought he tried to pay for her love and prove he can pay better than the icecream man…
Maybe 9 months go by Missie gives birth to their child. Joe seems distant and not ecstatic Like I would assume men would be for their first child, giving very nonchalant. He ends up going to the market to the candy store to get molasses kisses. he pays it with the four bit coin; The gilded half dollar. the clerk asks him how he got it, he tells him a stray negro had on his watch chain, tellin everyone it’s gold, trynna steal ppls wives from their homes. the clerk asks if he got him and joe responds; No sirr, he tried to come with his smart talk and he knocked him down and took his four bits. and that he’s gonna by his wife kisses, then asks for 50 cent worth of them. when joe leaves. the clerk says he wishes he could be like those “darkies”, laughing all the time with no worries. Joe goes home to throw 15 cents at the door.
That is where the story ends
When I tell you this story made me feel love, confusion and sadness. The beginning showing their relationship. Happy to be together and making it fun for them. It really showed the type of love blackness is, sweet and simple. Something I strive for in my own relationship, and it actually made me think about my interactions in my relationship. Joe didn’t do too much and she took care of him when he got home from work. He wanted to show her off. Tho I think for the wrong reasons right, Male ego… Showing your wife off to a man that claims that women are all over him. I think that’s extremely weird, to be honest.
But let’s be honest Missie Called it from the jump. How you know he ain’t lyin joe? You just met him; it feels like a pissing contest amongst men.. but the next thing that got me was Missie saying they could go out there and find some gold coz she just wanted he man to have some gold. Yes we want our men to look good, but at what cost? She kinda fumbled, instead of talking with joe. She went behind his back to talk to that man and try and get some and he was willing to slut her out, knowing she’s a married woman. Though he’s obviously did this several times before. It is not written whether or not Missie took part in the sexual acts so that was a little confusing. but whether she did or didn’t Joe stayed. Why tho? He never speaks up after this incident. Does he not want to go back to his mother’s house? or it’s the black reality of shoving things under the rug to appear like a happy family? which I think might be the main theme. Sweeping things under the rug so people don’t tell you I told you so? His mother didn’t really like missie but was there for the birth of their child. saying I didn’t like her much coz of her momma but she turned out great and gave you a baby. which also brings to question are you just like your parents? can you ever shake that image? but hiding struggle from the public coz you don’t want that srutinity, people already don’t like black folk and they hear a story about them being weak and getting their woman stolen from them? Laughing stock…
This story is so interesting and complex. The way Hurston Write dialogue?! Like I literally was there in the 1930s. The timeline is a little confusing coz sometimes its 3 months then a few weeks or next saturday. but that’s my only gripe. But this story, I could see myself in missie. The love that showed at the beginning was my favorite, hands down. but the conflict of men ego and missie just wanting more for her man. I get it, but you should have trusted that intuition and tried to figure out how to get it another way, but again, he was the only flashy negro around. taking advantage of that woman who just wanted to give something to her man, disgusting… Actually, Off With His HEADDD!!!!! I think joe should have killed him. but that would have been more trouble than what it was worth coz he’s just a honest man who loves his wife. But I think after that point Joe is broken in so many ways but can’t express that or feels like he shouldn’t. Black men that have a hard time speaking up, this is for you. We want to know how you are feeling, the more you hold it in; you start cracking from the inside. Feel your feelings; DO NOT ACT UPON THEM. Black men, we Love you.
Also, I’m not too sure what rekindled their relationship… I think it was just sex but he was still acting weird till the end. sex was definitely the gateway but I don’t think they even had a conversation about it they just kind of assumed everything was better after the sex and they began to have sex more frequently… Sex does not fix all wounds and neither does having a child… hiding behind a mask doesn’t help either. Tho, I digress. But it was so cool just seeing a black family dynamic, tho it got kinda messy in the middle. was the message love survives all? I def can get behind that. But that underlying sadness of a broken relationship kinda sticks with you… and I can relate to that.
solid 8 1/2 outta 10 honestly.
This sounds like the beginning of a long toxic relationship as you said, everything was thrown under the rug, both Missie and Joe moving on as if nothing happened.