Piecing Me Together: Chapter 39 Summary & Analysis

A symphony volunteer takes the Woman to Woman group on a tour backstage. Jade can tell that the volunteer’s spiel is memorized but she still looks passionate. When the group doesn’t look very excited, the volunteer says that despite what people might think, all sorts of people love the symphony. She says that she knows they’re into hip-hop, but she tells them that one of their music directors was one of the first African American conductors on the world stage. When she mentions this man’s connections to a famous black contralto, Maxine venomously replies that they know about this woman’s history.

At their seats, Jade hears Maxine whisper to another mentor that the volunteer thinks they’re uneducated “poor black heathens.” The mentor whispers that she doesn’t listen to hip-hop. Jade thinks that they aren’t just offended by the volunteer’s stereotypes—they’re offended that the volunteer grouped them in with the mentees. Jade fixates on the volunteer’s prejudice. She feels as though no matter how dressed up she and the other girls are, people still see what they want to see. Finally, Jade closes her eyes and tries to focus on the music. It sounds like a collage. She feels herself dancing with the black music director and the contralto in her head.