Her Quaint Honor by Caroline Gordon
**Overview of "Her Quaint Honor" by Caroline Gordon**
"Her Quaint Honor" is a narrative centered on Jim Taylor, who returns to his family's ancestral home, Taylor's Grove, after a series of business failures. As he attempts to establish a tobacco farming venture, Jim faces challenges including low crop prices and the need for cooperation from family members and former servants. The story delves into Jim's relationships with his formidable grandmother, Miss Jinny, and Tom Doty, a former family servant with whom he seeks to partner. The racial dynamics of the South are intricately woven into their interactions, revealing both affection and the lingering effects of past inequalities.
As Jim navigates his responsibilities towards Miss Jinny, he grapples with his feelings about Tom's wife, Frankie, who plays a pivotal role in maintaining household harmony. The narrative explores themes of loyalty, ambition, and the complexities of race relations, particularly highlighted during a tense encounter involving Frankie and another man, Bud. The story culminates in a conflict that not only tests friendships but also impacts their tobacco harvest, leading Jim to reflect on the consequences of these interpersonal dynamics. Through its richly drawn characters and setting, "Her Quaint Honor" offers a poignant exploration of life in the South during a turbulent historical period.
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Her Quaint Honor by Caroline Gordon
First published: 1945
Type of plot: Psychological
Time of work: The 1930's
Locale: Kentucky's tobacco-growing region
Principal Characters:
Jim Taylor , the narrator, a white man who returns to his family home to grow tobaccoTom Doty , an African American sharecropperFrankie Doty , Tom's wife, the great-granddaughter of a white plantation ownerMiss Jinny Taylor , Jim's seventy-five-year-old grandmotherBud Asbury , an alcoholic tobacco expertUncle Phil , Miss Jinny's seventy-year-old brother and manager
The Story
After Jim Taylor's business in the city failed, he returned to Taylor's Grove, his family's home for generations. Soon discontented there, he moved to Louisville, where he ran a gas station until the Great Depression brought financial ruin. Now he is home again, trying his hand at tobacco farming. As his narrative begins, he expresses his disappointment at earning only fifteen cents per leaf on his first crop instead of the thirty cents that he expected. Jim's latest venture depends on the cooperation of other people. Although he has no hesitation about living with his grandmother "Miss Jinny" again, it is risky to approach her with his idea of using her land. He must also get permission from his uncle Phil, who he expects to teach him how to cure tobacco. Before approaching his relatives, he asks Tom Doty, a former family servant, to work with him in return for a share in the profits.
Jim calls Tom "the smartest nigger and the fastest worker I ever knew." Their affection for each other is genuine, although the racial caste system left over from the days of slavery inhibits their relationship. Tom agrees to sharecrop with "Mister Jim" if they can keep the volatile "Miss Jinny" at bay. Notoriously difficult to deal with, Jim's grandmother is the last person in the county who can remember growing up with slaves. The black residents in the county know her best, as virtually all of them have worked for her family. Tom started working in her house when he was a young boy.
In addition to their having shared their early years on the farm, Jim and Tom now share the desire to work for profit together, and they recognize the need to handle Miss Jinny carefully. With this end in mind, Tom introduces his wife, Frankie, to the old woman, suggesting that Frankie can help her with housework and keep the atmosphere pleasant.
Jim has ambivalent feelings about Tom's attractive wife. A member of a respected African American family that has inherited land, Frankie has some financial security. Jim thinks that he dislikes her because, with her light skin and makeup, she appears "sassy." However, Frankie seems to be sufficiently good-natured to serve his and Tom's purpose, and Jim feels reassured by the love that Tom and Frankie demonstrate for each other. Jim also has ambivalent feelings about his grandmother, who is weakening physically but not mentally. She puzzles him with her interest in radio broadcasts, especially the news of Soviet Russia and China. She took care of him after his mother died when he was young, so he feels responsible for her now. Although everybody agrees that Miss Jinny is cantankerous, the reader sees her only as a generous and accommodating woman.
As Jim and Tom work the land, Frankie ingratiates herself with Miss Jinny, as planned. Tom and Frankie grow more loving, and Frankie keeps everybody happy. However, curing tobacco is an art that neither Jim nor Tom has mastered, so Uncle Phil sends Jim to Bud Asbury to gain the necessary expertise. At this moment, Bud happens to be in jail for taking a friend's automobile during a drunken spree. Jim gets Bud out of jail and brings him home for one of Frankie's delicious suppers. Everyone enjoys the food, but Bud especially enjoys Frankie. His obvious flirtation angers Tom, who must remain quietly in his place in the white household. Uncomfortable with the tension, Jim leads the men down to the barn to start the fires for curing tobacco. Bud shares his knowledge but leaves at intervals for solitary drinks.
Later the three men return to the house for a midnight snack. Emboldened by liquor, Bud dominates the gathering. He lustfully grabs Frankie's ankle, but she tactfully pretends to have stumbled. Though horrified by what is going on, Jim remains quiet until Bud asks Frankie to go outside with him. At that point Tom, who has never been impolite to anyone, reclaims Frankie from Bud and flashes an old-fashioned straight-edged razor. Jim now takes charge, ordering Tom and Frankie to stay inside as he reprimands Bud. The two white men get into a fight, which ends only when Jim hits Bud with an oak stick several times. After Bud leaves, Tom and Jim return to the untended fires in the cold barn. Although they resume the curing process, the tobacco leaves have passed their peak, resulting in a major loss of profits. As he had hinted at the beginning, Jim blames Frankie for their problem.