The Piano Lesson

by

August Wilson

Cleotha Holman Character Analysis

Cleotha, who died recently at 46, was Wining Boy’s ex-wife. At the time of Cleotha’s death in Kansas City, Wining Boy was living elsewhere and hadn’t known she was sick. They first met when Cleotha was 16. After they got married, Wining Boy’s tendency to wander and cavort with other women persisted, and the two fought until Cleotha asked Wining Boy to move out. Even then, she told him she loved him.

Cleotha Holman Quotes in The Piano Lesson

The The Piano Lesson quotes below are all either spoken by Cleotha Holman or refer to Cleotha Holman . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Racism and Self-determination Theme Icon
).
Act 2, Scene 1 Quotes

That’s how the whole thing come about between me and Lymon’s mama. She knew me and his daddy used to run together and he got in jail and she went down there and took the sheriff a hundred dollars. […] The sheriff looked at that hundred dollars and turned his nose up. Told her, say, “That ain’t gonna do him no good. You got to put another hundred on top of that.” She come up there and got me where I was playing at this saloon…said she had all but fifty dollars and asked me if I could help. […] I will give anybody fifty dollars to keep them out of jail for three years.

Related Characters: Wining Boy (speaker), Lymon Jackson, Cleotha Holman
Page Number: 63
Explanation and Analysis:
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The Piano Lesson PDF

Cleotha Holman Character Timeline in The Piano Lesson

The timeline below shows where the character Cleotha Holman appears in The Piano Lesson. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 1, Scene 1
Racism and Self-determination Theme Icon
Boy Willie and Doaker then discuss Wining Boy, Doaker’s brother. Wining Boy’s wife Cleotha died awhile back. Wining Boy visited Doaker and Berniece a year ago and didn’t offer... (full context)
Act 1, Scene 2
Love, Relationships, and Independence Theme Icon
...be the right man for her. Then they shift to talking about Wining Boy’s ex-wife, Cleotha, who recently died. Wining Boy was living in Kansas City and received a letter from... (full context)
Act 2, Scene 5
Spirituality and the Supernatural Theme Icon
Grief, Hope, and History Theme Icon
...Boy also comes in and begins drunkenly playing and singing a song he wrote for Cleotha. Grace shows up in search of Lymon. (full context)