charts the course of their friendship through everyday incidents.

There are two other characters in the play, Idella, the housekeeper, and her daughter-in-law, Florine, who are so often alluded to, and in such vivid manner, that the audience feels their presence. Uhry shows the bond strengthening between Hoke and Miss Daisy by showing how she gradually takes him into confidence and feels comfortable enough to make derogatory remarks about Florine. When Idella dies, Miss Daisy and Hoke feel her absence, and Miss Daisy remarks that Idella is lucky, thus revealing her innermost fears about her own future. Idella and Florine serve as catalysts in strengthening the bond between Hoke and Miss Daisy.

Near the end of the play, Miss Daisy is in her nineties, slow in her movements, but with her characteristic pride and independence intact. However, she suffers an attack of senile dementia one day, and Hoke encounters a distraught Miss Daisy desperately looking for her students’ papers, thinking that she is still a teacher. Hoke warns her assertively that if she does not collect herself together she may end up in an institution. Miss Daisy then admits to Hoke that he is her best friend. Boolie sells the house two years after Miss Daisy’s admittance to a nursing home, and the play ends on a very tender note: Affirming their long-lasting friendship, Hoke feeds Miss Daisy her Thanksgiving pie.

Driving Miss Daisy is a one-act play with scene shifts occurring about twenty-four times throughout the play. The play spans two and one-half decades. The structure of the play is episodic and moves chronologically forward, providing insight into characters’ lives through simple events and incidents like a trip to the cemetery or to Alabama to attend a birthday celebration, a Christmas party at Boolie’s home, an ice storm, a celebration of Martin Luther King, and a visit to a nursing home. The plot and action are deceptively simple while the dialogue slowly unravels key information about the main characters. When Boolie appraises Hoke of his mother’s “high-strung” and independent nature and wonders if Hoke would be able to handle her, Hoke’s pithy response is “I use to wrastle hogs to the ground at killin’ time, and ain’ no hog get away from me yet.” Uhry creates a charming lyrical rhythm by using southern dialect punctuated with colloquial expressions. He is a master of understatement, and it is what the play does not say that actually enhances its appeal.

Issues concerning ethnicity and race, conflicts between the young and old, rich and poor, Jew and Gentile are all addressed with subtlety and economy. The exposition, besides introducing the conflict, also imparts necessary information pertaining to the geography, economy, and time through dialogue about cars, insurance, and the churches that people attend. The climax is very restrained and refined, with Miss Daisy simply saying to Hoke, “You’re my best friend.” At the heart of the play is the value of human dignity, integrity, and humans’ inherent dependence on one another, which becomes the pervasive motif throughout the play. The characters, their actions, and the dialogue highlight this theme. When Boolie insists on hiring Hoke to drive Miss Daisy around, she responds,I am seventy-two years old as you so gallantly reminded me and I am a widow, but unless they rewrote the Constitution and didn’t tell me, I still have rights. And one of my rights is the right to invite who I want—not who you want—into my house. You do accept the fact that this is my house?

Humor is another significant device that Uhry uses to underscore the personalities of the characters and make them come alive without elaborate descriptions or scene settings. One example is Hoke’s summation of his achievement, at the beginning of his tenure as Miss Daisy’s chauffeur, driving his reluctant passenger to the local Piggly Wiggly: “Yassuh, only took six days. Same time it take the Lawd to make the worl’.”

The 1940s
Following the conclusion of World War II, the United States experienced significant shifts in both society and the economy. During the conflict, numerous women, Mexican Americans, and African Americans found employment in defense factories. However, once the war ended, government policies that promoted hiring veterans led to many of these individuals losing their jobs. Congress also disbanded the Fair Employment Practices Committee, which had previously protected African Americans from workplace discrimination. Despite these changes, unemployment rates remained low, and incomes grew. Although the economy faced substantial inflation, many Americans, who had saved diligently during the war, were eager to spend their money. This surge in consumer spending ushered in a new era of prosperity.

In 1948, President Harry S. Truman campaigned for reelection, with civil rights becoming a pivotal issue. Two years earlier, in 1946, African-American civil rights organizations had called on Truman to take action against racism. African Americans were subjected to segregation and discrimination in both housing and employment. In numerous regions, African Americans continued to be victims of lynching, a crime often ignored by the courts. Additionally, Southern African Americans were disenfranchised through the use of poll taxes.
In 1948, Truman issued an executive order to end racial discrimination in the military and federal employment. In reaction, Southern Democrats formed a separate party advocating for continued racial segregation. Despite these internal party conflicts, Truman secured the presidency.

The Civil Rights Movement
In the 1950s, African Americans began to take a more proactive role in fighting discrimination in the United States. During this decade, the Supreme Court mandated the desegregation of schools and public transportation. President Dwight Eisenhower enacted the Civil Rights Act of 1957, the first civil rights legislation since Reconstruction. This law made it a federal offense to prevent any qualified individual from voting. The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. emerged as a key civil rights leader, advocating for nonviolent resistance to end racial discrimination. Tragically, King was assassinated in 1968.

Throughout the 1960s, civil rights activists continued to oppose racist policies related to interstate transportation and voter registration. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was enacted, prohibiting discrimination in employment and public accommodations, and granting the Justice Department the authority to enforce school desegregation. Additionally, Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which placed the voter registration process under federal oversight. Within three years, over half of all eligible African Americans in the South had registered to vote.

Despite these achievements, many African Americans began to doubt the effectiveness of nonviolent protest. Some believed in using violence for self-defense, while others rejected the idea of integrating into white society. These individuals embraced the slogan “Black Power,” which gained popularity by the late 1960s. They sought greater economic and political influence and, in some cases, complete separation from white society.

During the 1970s, African Americans and other minority groups continued their struggle for equal rights. President Richard Nixon, however, pledged not to propose any new civil rights legislation. When the Supreme Court decided in 1971 that busing could be used to integrate schools, he criticized their ruling. By the mid-1970s, more African Americans were attending college, holding professional positions, and serving in public office. African-American political leaders established strong alliances and effective lobbying groups.

Women and Society
While 1950s popular culture portrayed the ideal woman as a full-time suburban homemaker, many women of that era worked outside the home. By the 1960s, the women's movement was seeing a significant resurgence. Betty Friedan's 1963 book The Feminine Mystique strongly opposed the popular belief that women were satisfied with their roles as wives, mothers, and homemakers. Friedan argued that many women felt trapped by this domestic life. The National Organization for Women, a women's rights group, was established in 1966, and more women joined the movement throughout the 1970s.

The National Women's Political Caucus, founded in 1971, encouraged women to pursue political office. Women's leaders believed that having women in public office would help shape public policy to support equal rights. In 1972, Congress passed the Education Amendments Act, which banned sexual discrimination in higher education. Many all-male schools began admitting women. However, the women's rights movement did not succeed in passing the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), a constitutional amendment prohibiting sex-based discrimination. Although Congress approved the ERA in 1972, it did not receive enough state ratifications to become law.

The Aging Population
Several initiatives contributed to changing lifestyles for elderly Americans. President Lyndon B. Johnson launched the Medicare program in 1965, providing national health insurance to individuals over the age of 65. As Americans were living longer, the aging population led to a significant increase in U.S. healthcare spending—from $74 billion in 1970 to approximately $884 billion in 1993.

Symbolism
Daisy's numerous cars serve as significant symbols in the play. For Daisy, driving her own vehicle signifies freedom. This freedom is curtailed when Boolie hires Hoke. For Hoke, Daisy's cars—like the Oldsmobile he buys used from the dealer after Boolie gets Daisy a new one—symbolize a step up in social status. "Keep them ashes off my 'polstry," he cautions Boolie as they drive to the dealership. Conversely, for Boolie, the car is merely a large, dangerous object in his mother's hands, which he prefers to place under the control of a trustworthy driver.

Even when Daisy concedes and lets Hoke drive her car—essentially surrendering some of her freedom—she strives to maintain her authority. On their first trip together, Daisy attempts to dictate the route. "I want to go to it [the Piggly Wiggly] the way I always go," she insists, reflecting her need to stay in control. However, Hoke disregards her directions, choosing a better route to the store. This interaction highlights their fundamental traits: Daisy's stubborn refusal to accept change and Hoke's quiet yet firm approach to guiding her toward it.

Daisy's house also carries symbolic weight. Much like the car, it represents her independence. She believes she should manage her own home, so when Boolie hires Hoke, her control over this domain is diminished. The other characters understand the house's significance to Daisy. Boolie refrains from selling it until she has been in the nursing home for several years and will not return. "It feels funny to sell the house while Mama's still alive," he confides to Hoke, "I know I'm doing the right thing." He seeks Hoke's approval, which he receives, but he also admits he won't inform his mother about the sale. Hoke concurs with this choice. Both men realize Daisy would not passively accept losing the last symbol of her independent adulthood.

Setting
The majority of the play is set in Atlanta, Georgia. Daisy has spent her entire life in this city, though she was raised in a much poorer neighborhood. She is an active member of Atlanta's Jewish community, attending temple and participating in Jewish cultural events. Boolie has also lived his life in Atlanta. He has inherited his father's printing business and has become a prominent figure among the city's businessmen. Although his wife, Florine, is Jewish, she engages with the Christian community for the social status it affords her.

Despite Atlanta being a bustling city, it retains a small-town feel. Within Daisy's social circle, everyone is quite familiar with one another. Even Hoke has a prior connection to the Werthans before becoming Daisy's chauffeur; he previously worked for a Jewish judge known to Boolie.

Although Daisy leads a somewhat isolated life, she does venture outside the city. Boolie also travels to New York. However, Hoke had never left Georgia until he drove Daisy to a funeral in Alabama. Hoke hails from a farm near Macon, and his memory of his friend's father's lynching serves as a stark reminder of the racial violence prevalent in the rural South. While his family resides in Atlanta, they are part of the generations of African Americans who either leave the South or choose to stay. His daughter, married to a train porter, has visited northern cities like New York and Detroit and encourages her father to do the same. His granddaughter, who still lives in Atlanta, is an educated scientist teaching at an African-American college.

Structure
The play is not divided into specific acts and scenes. Instead, it is segmented, with some parts flowing seamlessly into others and some not. Spanning twenty-five years, the play sometimes skips large periods between segments. This structure liberates the play from time or plot constraints, allowing Uhry to focus on the most evocative incidents. It also underscores the compactness of the characters' lives. While the fluid structure might suggest minimal change over twenty-five years, this is not the play's reality.

1950s: In 1955, the U.S. population was nearly 164.3 million, with approximately 7.4 million people aged between 65 and 79, constituting 4.5 percent of the population.

1990s: By 1998, the U.S. population had grown to 273.9 million, with just over 18 million individuals aged between 65 and 79, making up 6.6 percent of the population.

1950s: In 1956, the Supreme Court declared that segregated transportation systems were illegal.

1960s: In 1960, the Supreme Court ruled that segregation in certain public facilities was unlawful.

1970s: In 1971, the Supreme Court upheld affirmative action programs in educational institutions and businesses.

1990s: In 1996, the Supreme Court heard a case involving claims that federal prosecutors in Los Angeles selectively targeted and charged African Americans in crack cocaine cases. The Court determined that the African-American defendants could not substantiate the allegations, so the convictions were upheld.

1950s and 1960s: African Americans organized numerous boycotts, marches, and sit-ins to protest segregation laws in the Southern United States.

1990s: Since the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was enacted, discrimination in employment and public accommodations has been illegal.

Mid-1960s: In 1964, less than 6 percent of eligible African Americans in Mississippi were registered to vote.

Late 1960s: By 1968, 59 percent of African Americans in Mississippi were registered to vote.

1990s: In 1990, 31.5 percent of African Americans of voting age in Mississippi were registered to vote.

1960s: In 1969, only about 1,500 African Americans held elected office.

1970s: By the end of the decade, more than 4,500 African Americans held elected office.

1990s: In 1997, there were 8,617 African-American elected officials across the United States.

1960s: In 1964, only about 200,000 African Americans were attending college.

1970s: By the end of the decade, over 800,000 African Americans were enrolled in college.

1990s: In 1994, approximately 36.7 percent of African Americans, out of a total population of 32.5 million, were attending two- or four-year colleges.

Uhry crafted the screenplay adaptation for the 1989 film Driving Miss Daisy. The movie featured performances by Jessica Tandy, Morgan Freeman, and Dan Aykroyd, and it was directed by Bruce Beresford. Warner Home Video issued the film in 1990.

Sources

Brustein, Robert, Review of Driving Miss Daisy in New Republic, Vol. 197, No. 13, September 28, 1987, pp. 28-30.

Canby, Vincent, "‘Miss Daisy,' Chamber Piece from the Stage" in New York Times, December 13, 1989, p. C19.

Gussow, Mel, Review of Driving Miss Daisy in New York Times, April 16, 1987, p. C22.

Oliva, Judy Lee, "Alfred Uhry: Overview," in Contemporary Dramatists, 5th ed., edited by K. A. Berney, St. James Press, 1993.

Shewey, Don, "Ballyhoo and Daisy, Too" in American Theatre, Vol. 14, April 1997, pp. 24-27.

Uhry, Alfred, Preface to Driving Miss Daisy, Theatre Communications Group, 1986.

Further Reading

Shewey, Don, "Ballyhoo and Daisy, Too," in American Theatre, April 1997, pp. 24-27.
This article features a conversation between Shewey and Uhry about several of his plays, offering a unique insight into Uhry's perspective on his work.

Sterritt, David, "A Voice for Themes Other Entertainers Have Left Behind," in Christian Science Monitor, July 29, 1997, p. 15.
This article explores Uhry's work in the context of contemporary attitudes toward morality in the United States.