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Chapter 34
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Piecing Me Together, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Intersectionality, Identity, and Discrimination
The Power of Language
Mentorship, Opportunity, and Dignity
Friendship
Summary
Analysis
Jade creates a collage of things that are black and beautiful. She lists things like onyx, clarinets, panthers, Afro puffs, and Michelle Obama. When Jade gets home, Mom is blasting gospel music and frying fish. Jade settles in with her math homework, but she’s frustrated and she closes her book. Mom comes to look, admits that she knows nothing about algebra, and apologizes that she can’t help. Jade says she’ll ask Maxine, which seems to offend Mom; she slams cabinets as she finishes cooking. When they both sit to eat, Jade compliments the fish and then she asks if Mom is going to come to the Healthy Eating, Healthy Living seminar.
Mom’s behavior when Jade brings up asking Maxine for help indicates that she’s having a hard time letting go and allowing Maxine to play a role in Jade’s life. Even if Mom is entirely on board with Jade getting the scholarship from the program, Woman to Woman is still pulling Jade away from her and highlighting all the ways in which Mom can’t help Jade. This likely has as much to do with Mom’s insecurities as anything else—it may drive home that she didn’t receive a full education.
Themes
Mom insists that she doesn’t have time for the seminar, and when Jade gives a quick overview on what they’ll talk about (such as grilling food instead of frying it) Mom huffs that she’s going to cook how she wants unless Sabrina or Maxine are going to cook for them or buy them a grill. She says that Jade liked her cooking until she started going out with Maxine and she insists that the “uppity” black women have forgotten where they come from. Jade lets Mom talk on and she makes sure to eat every bit of food on her plate.
Here, Mom makes it clear that being black doesn’t mean that all black people share the same ideas about food, culture, and language—women like Sabrina and Maxine have more money and are more integrated into white culture, something that Mom finds threatening. Jade is walking a fine line: Woman to Woman will help her succeed, but at the cost of potentially alienating Mom.
Themes
