Picking Cotton
Encyclopedia
"Picking Cotton" is one of Erskine Caldwell
's earlier short stories
, included in We Are the Living
(1933), conspicuous for its humorous treatment of the theme—highly controversial at the time of writing—of inter-racial sex.
The story begins with a detailed description of working conditions during the cotton-picking season, on Donnie Williams' 500 acres (2 km²) farm. Workers prefer the Williamses to other farmers, despite the fact that they pay thirty five cents for hundred pounds
while other farmers may offer forty or even fifty cents; this, because the Williamses are unique in offering at dinner "a free, good sized watermelon, for every man, woman and child"—an obvious attraction to those having to do hard work under the hot sun.
Both whites and blacks are employed on the Williams Farm, with no segregation or discrimination. Early every morning, workers flock to the Williams Farm—with the composition of the work-force changing from day to day, since some of the workers also have their own small plots, and others are itinerant workers moving through the countryside. Donnie Williams prefers his hired hands to work in pairs, since big crowds of workers tend to waste time gossiping and telling jokes rather than working.
On some occasions Harry, the narrator, was paired off with a Black boy called Sonny. He welcomed such occasions since Sonny worked as a houseboy to Mrs. Williams and could tell a lot of interesting gossip.
On other occasions, Harry is paired off with a fifteen year-old red-headed girl called Gertie, who is in the habit of repeatedly asking him riddles while picking cotton. As soon becomes clear, many of these riddles have a provocative content, such as "do you know what is the age of consent
?" and "Why does an old maid look under the bed at night before she puts off the light?". Moreover, Gertie is in the habit of lifting her calico skirt to fan her face with, revealing to Harry that she is wearing nothing underneath—which makes it hard for him to concentrate on picking cotton.
The point of these teasing and provocations becomes clear when one day they pass a black-haired girl and Gertie tells Harry that on the previous day this girl was paired off with a boy named Dennis, and that at the end of the day she had weighed-in four hundred pounds while the boy had only fifty pounds—clearly implying that Dennis had given away much of his harvest in return for sexual favours, in effect a form of prostitution
.
Gertie then reveals to Harry that she herself was paired off with Sonny, from whom she got a hundred pounds of cotton. Harry reacts with an angry outburst: "Did you let that damn nigger
... I am going to beat hell out of him, he ought to have better sense than to pair off with a white girl!"
Gertie, unruffled, continues to provoke Harry, who does not realize that she is manipulating his racism and jealousy in order to make him "outbid" Sonny and give two hundred pounds for her favors—which at the conclusion of the story he does.
Erskine Caldwell
Erskine Preston Caldwell was an American author. His writings about poverty, racism and social problems in his native South like the novels Tobacco Road and God's Little Acre won him critical acclaim, but they also made him controversial among fellow Southerners of the time who felt he was...
's earlier short stories
Short Stories
Short Stories may refer to:*A plural for Short story*Short Stories , an American pulp magazine published from 1890-1959*Short Stories, a 1954 collection by O. E...
, included in We Are the Living
We Are the Living
We Are the Living is a 1933 collection of short stories by Erskine Caldwell, comprising some of this writer's earlier works.-Style:The stories are of different characters, some obviously intended as humorous or satirical while others are lyrical, romantic and/or tragic...
(1933), conspicuous for its humorous treatment of the theme—highly controversial at the time of writing—of inter-racial sex.
The story begins with a detailed description of working conditions during the cotton-picking season, on Donnie Williams' 500 acres (2 km²) farm. Workers prefer the Williamses to other farmers, despite the fact that they pay thirty five cents for hundred pounds
Piece work
Piece work is any type of employment in which a worker is paid a fixed "piece rate" for each unit produced or action performed regardless of time...
while other farmers may offer forty or even fifty cents; this, because the Williamses are unique in offering at dinner "a free, good sized watermelon, for every man, woman and child"—an obvious attraction to those having to do hard work under the hot sun.
Both whites and blacks are employed on the Williams Farm, with no segregation or discrimination. Early every morning, workers flock to the Williams Farm—with the composition of the work-force changing from day to day, since some of the workers also have their own small plots, and others are itinerant workers moving through the countryside. Donnie Williams prefers his hired hands to work in pairs, since big crowds of workers tend to waste time gossiping and telling jokes rather than working.
On some occasions Harry, the narrator, was paired off with a Black boy called Sonny. He welcomed such occasions since Sonny worked as a houseboy to Mrs. Williams and could tell a lot of interesting gossip.
On other occasions, Harry is paired off with a fifteen year-old red-headed girl called Gertie, who is in the habit of repeatedly asking him riddles while picking cotton. As soon becomes clear, many of these riddles have a provocative content, such as "do you know what is the age of consent
Age of consent
While the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used in relation to sexual activity, the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. The European Union calls it the legal age for sexual...
?" and "Why does an old maid look under the bed at night before she puts off the light?". Moreover, Gertie is in the habit of lifting her calico skirt to fan her face with, revealing to Harry that she is wearing nothing underneath—which makes it hard for him to concentrate on picking cotton.
The point of these teasing and provocations becomes clear when one day they pass a black-haired girl and Gertie tells Harry that on the previous day this girl was paired off with a boy named Dennis, and that at the end of the day she had weighed-in four hundred pounds while the boy had only fifty pounds—clearly implying that Dennis had given away much of his harvest in return for sexual favours, in effect a form of prostitution
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
.
Gertie then reveals to Harry that she herself was paired off with Sonny, from whom she got a hundred pounds of cotton. Harry reacts with an angry outburst: "Did you let that damn nigger
Nigger
Nigger is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a pejorative context to refer to black people , and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. It is a common ethnic slur...
... I am going to beat hell out of him, he ought to have better sense than to pair off with a white girl!"
Gertie, unruffled, continues to provoke Harry, who does not realize that she is manipulating his racism and jealousy in order to make him "outbid" Sonny and give two hundred pounds for her favors—which at the conclusion of the story he does.