This Morning, This Evening, So Soon
Encyclopedia
"This Morning, This Evening, So Soon" is a 1965 short story by James Baldwin
, taken from the short story collection, Going to Meet the Man
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with his family and his sister, who is visiting.
He then thinks back to the time he returned to America after his mother's funeral, and the way the Statue of Liberty
made no sense to him, and people were treating him differently there.
He goes on to think back to the time when he was shooting Les Fauves Nous Attendent, and how the director had upbraided him for not playing it real. He then told him of the way a black man in America feels ostracised.
Back to his last night in Paris, the protagonist and Vidal go to a jazz joint, where his music is being played and a group of black Americans entice them to join them. They then all move to a pavement cafe, where Pete starts singing, and Boona joins them. As Vidal suggests moving to another club and thus discarding Boona, Ada invites him along. Later, Talley informs the narrator that he saw Boona steal ten American dollars (in francs) from Ada's handbag. After the unresolved accusation, they all return to their houses. The Narrator picks up Paul from Mme Dumont, looking towards their voyage towards the United States.
James Baldwin (writer)
James Arthur Baldwin was an American novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic.Baldwin's essays, for instance "Notes of a Native Son" , explore palpable yet unspoken intricacies of racial, sexual, and class distinctions in Western societies, most notably in mid-20th century America,...
, taken from the short story collection, Going to Meet the Man
Going to Meet the Man
Going to Meet the Man, published in 1965, is a short-story collection by American writer James Baldwin. The book is dedicated "for Beauford Delaney." It covers many topics related to anti-Black racism in American society, as well as the creative process, jazz, drug addiction, family relationships,...
.
Plot summary
The Narrator is spending his last night in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
with his family and his sister, who is visiting.
He then thinks back to the time he returned to America after his mother's funeral, and the way the Statue of Liberty
Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...
made no sense to him, and people were treating him differently there.
He goes on to think back to the time when he was shooting Les Fauves Nous Attendent, and how the director had upbraided him for not playing it real. He then told him of the way a black man in America feels ostracised.
Back to his last night in Paris, the protagonist and Vidal go to a jazz joint, where his music is being played and a group of black Americans entice them to join them. They then all move to a pavement cafe, where Pete starts singing, and Boona joins them. As Vidal suggests moving to another club and thus discarding Boona, Ada invites him along. Later, Talley informs the narrator that he saw Boona steal ten American dollars (in francs) from Ada's handbag. After the unresolved accusation, they all return to their houses. The Narrator picks up Paul from Mme Dumont, looking towards their voyage towards the United States.
Characters
- The Narrator, the protagonist. He is a jazz singer and actor in a movie (played Chico). He lives in France with his family.
- Paul, Chico and Harriet's son.
- Mme Dumont, the concierge
- Harriet, from SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. - Louisa, Chico's sister. She is from AlabamaAlabamaAlabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. - Uncle Norman, Chico and Louisa's uncle, from AlabamaAlabamaAlabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. - Jean Luc Vidal, a film director
- Ada Holmes, the African American girl who invites Chico and Vidal to join her and her friends in the jazz joint.
- Ruth, one of the African Americans.
- Talley, one of the African Americans.
- Pete, one of the African Americans.
- Boona, a prize fighter, originally from TunisTunisTunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
.