Joanne Haggar: Sula part 1

1. “If this tall, proud woman, this woman who was very particular about her friends, who slipped into church with unequaled elegance, who could quell a roustabout with a look, if she were really custard, then there was a chance that Nel was too” (22).

-This passage stood out to me because earlier in the book it was talking about how Helene was a strong, impressive woman. It talked about what all she did to be a respectable woman and how she “lost only one battle—the pronunciation of her name.” The people where she lived refused to call her just Helene, they had to call her Helen Wright. I found this sad because it was saying how she is such an impressive and independent woman, but the people associate her with her husbands last name which hints that people really don’t see her all that independent. And in the passage above, it is kind of the same thing. She was said to be impressive and a powerful woman, but when she makes a little mistake and smiles at the white conductor after he was rude to her she is compared to custard. I think it means that she is weak, because custard is soft and easy to scoop up. Just because she made a little mistake and smiled as a result of feeling uneasy, she is now seen as being weak. I think women today can relate to this passage. Women are always associated with their husband even if they are very independent women. Also, women, especially mothers, do so much for other people and are still seen as weak at times.

2. “He could say “shit” with a nastiness impossible to imitate. So, when he said “pig meat” as Nel and Sula passed, they guarded their eyes lest someone see their delight” (50).

-When Sula and Nel are being watched and harassed by the young boys and older men the common theme of women and meat comes up. I found it strange that Sula and Nel were pleased by the comment. Although it is degrading, I can only think that they liked it because they are started to grow up and maybe they took it as a compliment. However, later in the chapter when they are harassed again, Sula cuts off her own finger to show that she will defend herself and Nel if the boys harass them again. She says, “If I can do that to myself, what you suppose I’ll do to you?” I liked this because the girls are standing up for themselves and are telling the boys they won’t take the harassing anymore. I think this is common for all girls. When I would run in my neighborhood, construction workers would whistle and yell things at me when I ran by. I find it very degrading and do not take it as a compliment. I should be able to run in my own neighborhood without being worried about what the construction workers might say or do. I think all women have to worry about this or have to worry about being harassed or assaulted in everyday life, which is not fair for us to always have to worry about or keep in the back of our minds.