Jazz

This chapter examines the history of Dorcas’s aunt Alice Manfred and how she copes with the death of her niece. Alice Manfred recalls an uncharacteristically cold day in July 1917. Alice held the hand of her niece as she watched the marching band pass and thought about the fear that had followed her from Illinois to the city. Alice had been afraid her entire life, and she transferred her fear to her orphaned niece whose parents were murdered during the riots in East St. Louis. Alice tried to protect her niece by concealing the girl’s feminine features from the gaze of white men and reminding her to remain chaste.

Despite Alice Manfred’s attempts to hide Dorcas away, the city had taken ahold of the young girl. Dorcas was hungry for love. For her, the drums in the parade marked the beginning of a new life. She felt alive and emboldened by the city and its music. She was sensual and drawn to sex, fully immersed in the carnal culture of the city. Dorcas and her friend Felice attended parties, but Dorcas was aware that she did not yet look grown up.