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Chapter 41
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
Mom knows that the food in the fridge is from Mrs. Winters and she knows that Jade isn’t telling her everything about what’s going on with Woman to Woman. Mom asks if things are going well and if Jade loves hanging out with Maxine. Jade says she’s thinking of quitting the program—she feels like Maxine’s charity case. Mom refuses to let Jade quit, reminding her of the scholarship. She also notes that not everyone has someone like Maxine to look up to. Jade says that she doesn’t look up to Maxine—Maxine is using Jade to feel better about herself and Mrs. Winters sent home the food because she feels bad. Jade insists that if people with money act like this, she’d rather stay poor.
Jade believes that in Maxine’s eyes, she’s nothing but a broken person to fix. Since Jade doesn’t necessarily feel broken until Maxine makes her feel that way, this shows that Maxine is way off base in how she’s thinking about the program. Even if Jade is justified in insisting she’d rather stay poor, she doesn’t entirely recognize that she’s coming from a place of privilege when she says this since she has many more opportunities than others in her neighborhood. Jade may be justifiably upset, but it’s still the case that more money would make her life better and easier.
Themes
This is the first time Jade has ever called her family poor. Mom tells Jade this is foolish, goes to her bedroom, and returns with a jar of coins. Jade can tell Mom is furious as Mom asks if Jade wants to grow up to save money in a jar. Mom says that Maxine isn’t perfect, but Jade is acting stupid. She says that Maxine learned to navigate the white world and now she’s is trying to teach Jade to do the same. Mom tells Jade to figure out a way to make this program work. In Spanish class the next week, Mr. Flores teaches phrases pertaining to going to doctor, like “I don’t feel well” and “I have pain.”
The phrases that Mr. Flores teaches mirror Jade’s internal pain as she navigates the aftermath of Mom’s anger. Mom essentially says that Jade doesn’t have choices when it comes to opportunities—she must put up with the casual racism and classism because that’ll get her to a better place in the future. While Mom may have a point, it’s important to keep in mind that Woman to Woman is taking a toll on Jade because it constantly makes her feel broken and lesser.
Themes
