Alice Walker is In Love & Trouble

There was no better name for this collection of short stories written by Alice Walker
than In Love & Trouble. Every single one of the thirteen stories in this book have to do with
love and the troubles that come with it. The thirteen short stories in this book are Roselily,
Really, Doesnt Crime Pay? Her Sweet Jerome, The Child Who Favored Daughter,
Eveyday Use, The Revenge of Hannah Kemhuff, The Welcome Table, Strong Horse
Tea, Entertaining God, The Diary of an African Nun, The Flowers, We Drink the
Wine in France, and To Hell with Dying. However, before getting into the stories
themselves, it is always important to know a little bit about the author who wrote them. By
know the author, a reader can gain new understandings of why the story was written from a
certain perspective, or why certain things are mentioned at all in the story.
Alice Walker (1944- ) is the author of In Love & Trouble. But what does this mean to
the book itself? According to Bio, Walker was born in Eatonton, Georgia, about an hour and
a half southeast of Atlanta, in 1944. She grew up very poor living with her parents and seven
older siblings (New Georgia). Since they lived in the racially divided south, her and her
siblings attended a segregated school, after which she received a scholarship to Spelman
College. According to New Georgia Encyclopedia while Walker was at Spleman, she became
active in the Civil Rights Movement. She became so active, that she was invited to meet
Martin Luther King Jr. in 1962. After two years at Spelman College, she transferred to Sarah
Lawrence College up in New York, and through Sarah Lawrence she was able to studyabroad in Africa. Upon returning from Africa, Walker found herself trapped in an unwanted

pregnancy, which she openly in her later works. Two years after graduating she married a
white civil rights attorney named Melvyn Rosenman Leventhal, however the two divorced
after 10 years of marriage in 1977. After the divorce Walker and her, then 6-year-old
daughter, Rebecca, moved to northern California where she still lives to this day.
In Love & Trouble, which was first published in 1967, is Walkers first book to be
published. To Hell with Dying, which is the last short story within In Love & Trouble, was
Walkers first published short story. Her first volume of poetry, Once, was published in 1968.
It is in this collection that Walker opens up to her readers about her unwanted pregnancy, her
contemplations of suicide, and her courageous decision to take back her life. Yet it is Walker
tenth novel, The Color Purple, for which she won the Pulitzer Prize in 1983, that she is most
famous for. The book is heavily influenced by Walkers own memories and experiences. The
character of Mister for example was based on her grandfather, who as she has stated would
run after her grandmother shooting at her; missing only because he was drunk (Harris).
The Color Purple was so popular that only three years after being published, the movie,
Directed by Steven Spielberg, was released thrusting Walker even further into the limelight.
Unfortunately it wasnt an entirely pretty light being cast upon her. According to Harris,
Walker said
"It was said that I hated men, black men in particular; that my work was
injurious to black male and female relationships; that my ideas of equality and
tolerance were harmful, even destructive to the black community, I was

'accused' of being a lesbian, as if respecting and honoring women

automatically discredited anything a woman might say."
On top of the negative press Walker was receiving, she was also having a hard time in her
personal life. She was extremely sick, her mother was dying, and her longtime relationship
with Robert Allen was falling apart (Harris).
The first one, Roselily, is the perfect introductory short story for this collection. It is
about a woman on her wedding day and about all the fears that are running through her head
during the ceremony. She thinks about her four children, one of which she has sent off to live
with his father. She also thinks about her new life with her husband and how little thought
she has truly put into the marriage. Overall, she thinks of the things any woman thinks about
on their wedding day. However, when she squeezes her new husband hand, most men who
care look back to give their new wife encouragement, he does not. It is in this seven page
short story, that Alice Walker may have first eluded to her unwanted pregnancy when she
says She loves his understanding of her condition. Just in that way with the word
condition being italicized. Could this short story have possibly been a kind of daydream or
worry Walker had when she discovered her own condition when she returned from Africa?
Quite possibly.
Really, Doesnt Crime Pay? is the second short story within In Love & Trouble. This
short story is written in diary form. However rather than starting on day one, this story
begins towards the end. It opens with the narrator discussing her husband surprising her with
a new house. Shortly after the story begins, Ruel, the narrators husband, says Here we can

forget the past, and the narrator says the past of course is Mordecai Rich. Later it is
revealed that Mordecai was a young man who made the narrators acquaintance, and gained
her trust. He gained her trust so much that she opened up so much as to let him read her short
stories. These short stories as very deep and personal for the narrator, and she is extremely
self-conscious of her writing since her own husband had put her down for her writing.
Mordecai takes advantage of the narrators dreams and ambitions, runs off and steals her
work. This throws the narrator into a deep depression, in which she contemplates suicide.
She does perk up a little after moving into the new house, but not in the way Ruel was
hoping for. She refuses him the children he wishes for and acts indifferent to him.
This story has many things going on within it. The most interesting statement in this
short story, by far, is My hand stilled by cowardice, my heart the heart of a slave. This is in
reference to how the narrator felt after her husband shut down her dreams of being a writer.
Her feelings are extremely understandable considering her situation. The narrator feared
what her husband would say or do to her if she were to continue to write, and because she
lost her way of expressing herself she felt trapped; as though she were a slave.
Her Sweet Jerome is about a fairly unattractive woman who owns a beauty shop,
which is only a little ironic. One day, while at work, she sees a handsome young man walk
by. This young man is a school teacher by name of Mr. Jerome Franklin Washington III. Her
and Jerome marry, but she soon grows suspicious of him cheating on her. In the end, it
wasnt a woman Jerome was cheating on her with, but his books. In her craze to discover the

who, she missed the what, and in her love obsession, she missed out on who she was really
married to.
The Child Who Favored Daughter starts out with the perfect intro quote:
That my daughter should
fancy herself in love
with any man!
How can this be?
This quote is perfect because this story is about a young girl who, while walking up to her
house, realizes that her father has found and read the love letter she wrote to her married
lover. It is later mentioned that, not only is her lover married, but he is also white. It is
revealed that her father had an older sister, Daughter and that she got herself into trouble. So
after finding out about the white lover, her father takes her and beats her with his belt. In no
way could anyone condone this behavior, however it is easy to see that the father had his
reasons for beating her. He loved Daughter very much, but he saw what had happened to her
and did not want the same for his daughter which is why he felt that he needed to beat her.
It is also in The Child Who Favored Daughter that the reader gets to experience
Alice Walker the poet. Little italicized poetic lines are placed throughout this short story,
only enhancing the tale itself. When completely written out the poem reads as follows:
Fire of earth
Lure of flower smells
The sun
Lure of flower smells
The sun
The lure of flower smells
The sun
Softly the scent of-

Softy the scent of flowers

And petals
Small, bright last wishes
Memories of years
Unknowable womensisters
spouses
illusions of soul
Memories of years
Unknowable womensisters
spouses
illusions of soul
Memories of once
like a mirror reflectingall hope, all loss
The lure of flower smells
The sun
Memories of once
constant and silent
like a mirror
reflecting
The fifth short story in this book is called Everyday Use. This is a short story about
a mother waiting on her daughter, Dee to come home. She has another daughter, Maggie,
who is unfortunately scared with burn marks and is living with her. Their mother I thinking
about what it will be like to have Dee home, however, like most fantasies, the reality doesnt
live up. Dee brings home a man and announces that she has changed her name because
[She] couldnt bear it any longer, being named after the people who oppress [her].
Essentially, Dee has become one of those African-Americans that ignored all their other
heritage except that that gave them their skin tone. Even though her name did have meaning,
all the first women in their family were named Dee or something of the sort, she did not care

and only cared that she was a descendant of slaves. Nothing after her ancestors being forced
into slavery mattered to her. Dee, or Wangero as she has changed it to, immediately begins to
ask for things from inside the house starting with the benches at the dinner table. She then
brings up quilts that had been made by hers and Maggies grandmother. When her mother
explains that she had already promised the quilts to Maggie, Wangero gets upset and claims
that Maggie wont know how to protect them and will use them for everyday use, (where
the story gets its title). The mother then tells Wangero that she hopes Maggie does use them
every day.
The Revenge of Hannah Kemhuff is the sixth story. This story is written from the
perspective of a voodoo practitioner, Tante Rosies apprentice. The Tante Rosie and her
apprentice go to visit an old lady, Hannah Kemhuff. Hannah tells the other two ladies of how
her family died during the great depression because of a woman named Sarah Marie Holley.
Sarah used to give out free food to the homeless and needy during the depression, but when
Hannah and her family came looking for food, Sarah refused because Hannahs family
looked well off in their hand-me-downs. Hannah wanted revenge on Sarah for the loss of her
family, so Tante Rosie offers to help. However rather than using supernatural powers, Tante
Rosie and her apprentice just threaten Sarah with voodoo magic, and the woman dies fearing
the voodoo curse.
The Welcome Table is probably the most heart-wrenching story within this
collection. It is about an elderly lady who only wants to go to church, however she was a
black woman who had walked into a white church. So just because of her skin tone, she was

turned away by the white members. After being thrown out of the church, literally, the old
woman encountered Jesus himself on the road. In the end, the church goers who threw her
out were arrogantly ignorant of the miracle that had happened just outside their little church,
just because of their racism.
The next story in In Love & Trouble is called Strong Horse Tea and is about a white
woman who is unable to accept help from her black neighbor for her son. The white woman,
Rannies son, Snooks is very ill and dying. However, rather than receive help from her black
neighbor, Sarah, she decides to wait for a white doctor to come see her son. After finally
realizing that the white doctor isnt coming, Rannie decides to accept Sarahs help. It is
almost comical how this story ends, because it seems as though Rannie has had to stoop to
the poorest and most pre-medieval state to save her child.
Skipping down to the final short story in this collection, To Hell With Dying, which
also happened to be Walkers first ever published short story. This story is about a sickly old
man, Mr. Sweets, who was surrounded by people who loved and cared for him even though
he was someone many would consider a dead-beat or a reject. Usually, whenever the old man
was on the brink of death, the narrator and her family would yell to hell with dying! and
shower the old man with love. Yet, as with everyone at some point, Mr. Sweets came to a
point where these things couldnt bring him back. But after he died the family continued to
love him, and threw a celebration in honor of his life. This story was probably the most
uplifting story within this book, which is most likely why Walker decided to end the book
with it.

Overall, it is extremely easy to see why this collection of short stories is titled In Love
& Trouble. According to In Love and Trouble, the writer put it best in saying that this
collection of short stories by Alice Walker is a mix of the strange, the devastatingly sad and
totally delightful. It is extremely hard to disagree with this statement for it is true. This
collection puts the reader on an emotional rollercoaster, and makes them wanting more. How
does Roselily and her husbands marriage turn out in Roselily? Whatever became of
Wangero, Maggie, and their mothers relationships?

Works Cited
Alice Walker. New Georgia Encyclopedia: Arts & Culture. 12 Aug. 2014. Web. 25 Nov.
2014. <http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/arts-culture/alice-walker-b-1944>
Alice Walker: Biography. Bio. 2014. Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.biography.com/people/alice-walker-9521939#related-video-gallery>
DErasmo, Stacey. Alice Walker: In Love and Troube. The New York Times. 24 Oct. 2004.
Web. 25 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/24/books/review/24DERASMO.html?_r=0>
Harris, Michael. The Story Behind The Color Purple: THE SAME RIVER TWICE. Los
Angeles Times. 4 Feb. 1996. Web. 25 Nov. 2014. <http://articles.latimes.com/199602-04/books/bk-32013_1_color-purple>
In Love and Trouble, by Alice Walker. Novel Insights. 26 Dec. 2011. Web. 25 Nov. 26
2014. <
http://novelinsights.wordpress.com/2011/12/26/in-love-and-trouble-by-alicewalker/>
Walker, Alice. In Love & Trouble. Harcourt Brace Jovnovich, Inc. 1973. Print. 11 Nov.
2014.