57 pages • 1 hour read
Friday Black
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“Things My Mother Said” Summary
The unnamed narrator’s mother frequently reminds him how lucky he is to have her since she herself grew up without a mother. The narrator and the mother live in a house that gradually loses access to utilities, which makes it difficult for the narrator to study.
One day, the hungry narrator comes home from school and smells freshly cooked chicken and rice. When he asks his mother where it came from, she refuses to answer, preferring to read her Bible instead. After he eats the food, he once again asks his mother how she made it without gas or electricity. She instead asks if the narrator has recited his psalms and blessed the food.
When the narrator discovers charred grass in the backyard, he feels a mix of pride and shame. He acknowledges how lucky he is, affirming his mother’s sayings.
“Things My Mother Said” Analysis
“Things My Mother Said” is a piece of flash fiction that uses the relationship between an unnamed narrator and his mother to depict The Transformative Power of Magical Thinking. To convey the story in a narrow narrative space, Adjei-Brenyah relies on figurative language and imagery to vividly render the circumstances in which the narrator and his mother live.
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