Super Short Summary

The Conjure Woman by Charles W. Chesnutt, published in 1899, is a collection of seven folktale-style stories narrated by Julius McAdoo, a formerly enslaved man, to John and Annie, a white couple from Ohio who move to North Carolina post-Civil War. Using these supernatural tales—including "The Goophered Grapevine," "Po Sandy," and "Mars Jeems' Nightmare"—Julius subtly manipulates the couple for his benefit while exposing the harsh realities of slavery and contrasting their naive idealism with his lived experience. Topics include explicit content regarding slavery and its impacts.