A Story in Harlem Slang Essay Sample
“It must be Jelly. ’cause jam don’t shake” . A Narrative in Harlem Slang. by Zora Neale Hurston. Sweet Back and Jelly are two wanna-be procurers that are lost in a universe full of wants merely fighting to acquire by. Though Jelly and Sweet Back claim they have game. the adult female that walks by. schools them both. yet she is non the 1 with the most game. Jelly and Sweet Back do hold some game they both assume that they are better than one another. When Jelly remarks about a adult female he was with the dark before. “…You must of non seen. me. ’cause last dark I was siting unit of ammunition in a Yellow Cab. with a xanthous gal. imbibing xanthous likker and disbursement xanthous money…” Sweet Back replies with stating. “Git out of my face. Jelly! Dat wide I seen you with wasn’t no pe-ola. She was one of them coal-scuttle blondes with hair merely every bit close to her caput as 99 is to a hundred. She look-ted like she had 75 lbs of clear bosom. backbones in her pess. and she look-ted like six months in forepart and nine months behind. Buy you a whisky still! Dat wide couldn’t make the down payment on a brace of sox. ” Sweet Back is connoting that Jelly is a prevaricator and that he was with a round and broke misss.
This was an first-class catch because Jelly did non hold anything to come back with. As they continue speaking Jelly claims. “Know what my adult female done? We hauled off and went to church last Sunday. and when they passed ’round the home base for the penny aggregation. I throwed in a dollar. De adult male looked at me existent difficult for digital audiotape. Dat made my adult female mad. so she called him back and throwed in a 20 dollar measure! Told him to take digital audiotape and travel! Dat’s what he got for looking at me ’cause I throwed in a dollar. ” When the adult male looked at Jelly for throwing dollar in the penny aggregation. his reaction was surprised ; we know this because his “woman” called the cat back to throw in $ 20 to turn out that they could afford it. Sweet Back answers and merely says that he is a prevaricator. Both Jelly and Sweet Back have great catchs. but I believe that Sweet Back has more game than Jelly. Jelly does hold catchs. but they are non every bit good as Sweet Back’s. Jelly gets offended by things that Sweet Back says. yet Sweet Back has no emotion to what Jelly says. Soon the adult female starts to walk by. Jelly and Sweet Back both see the day of the month and notice it is pay twenty-four hours.
When Jelly and Sweet Back start to near the adult female. she plays along. They are congratulating on her expressions and form saying “Dat form you got on you! I bet the Coca Cola Company is paying you good money for the patent! ” When Sweet Back asks to travel indoors and acquire have dinner. she says. “You got any money? ” the miss asked. and stiffened like a ramrod. “Nobody ain’t pimping on me. You dig me? ” naming both Jelly and Sweet Back out. she knew that they were broke. Sweet Back repeated the inquiry. the adult female replies with. “You frying pans is seeking to advance a repast on me. But it’ll ne’er happen. brother. You barking up the incorrect tree. I wouldn’t give you air if you was stopped up in a jug. I’m non seting out a thing. I’m merely like the cemetery? I’m non seting out. I’m taking in! Dig? ”
The adult female does non like procurers. and does non hold with what they believe. adult female should supply for them. and she was non traveling to take part in their actions. Moments subsequently. Sweet Back tried to take her pocketbook. he was so despairing to acquire a repast he tried to stead the money she earned. she instantly stepped off and said. “How much split you want back here? If your efforts don’t travel rapidly up and take you ‘way from here. you’ll sit off. I’ll spread my lungs all over New York and name the jurisprudence. Go in front. Bedbug! Touch me! And I’ll bellow like a pretty white adult female! ” Alternatively of the adult female naming the bulls like she ssaid. she walked off. while dissing them naming them bed bugs. which no 1 truly wants. The adult female has more game so Jelly and Sweet Back because she left both of them speechless at minutes. and she was merely messing around with them.
The existent procurer is in fact the narrative Teller. Zora Neale Hurston. She is the 1 who is making the whole narrative. which includes all of the catchs and characters. In the beginning when she describes Jelly. he does non sound like a bad cat. though she calls him a “Zigaboo” . but as she continues the narrative. he starts to portray a character that many people do non like.
