Ma'Dear
by Terry McMillan
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At a glance:
- Author: Terry McMillan
- First Published: 1990
- Type of Plot: Impressionistic
- Time of Work: The 1980’s
- Setting: The southeastern United States
- Characters: Ma’Dear, Jessie, The caseworker, Clarabelle, Gunther, Thelma
- Genres: Short fiction
- Subjects: African Americans, North America or North Americans, United States or Americans, South or Southerners, Twentieth century, 1980's, Landlords or tenants, Widows or widowers, Mortality, Isolation
- Locales: United States, North America, Southeast (U.S.)
The Story
In a grammatically incorrect narrative that ambles through the past and the present, Ma’Dear, the principal character who is not otherwise identified by name, justifies renting rooms in her house to supplement her income and explains that her present single state is not intentional. She introduces herself as a widow of thirty-two years whose husband Jessie was and is without peer. She tried to find a replacement for Jessie but was unsuccessful. Whimpy Davis was crazy, Chester Rutledge was boring, and Bill Ronsonville was a rough lover. She has reconciled herself to...
(The entire page is 1588 words.)
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