Don't Explain Marist Interpretation

 

              As a society, not every individual is equal. In the last century, we’ve been making strides to find some type of harmony, but inequality remains prominent. Those seen as lesser suffer in many discriminatory ways. One of the biggest struggles can be seen within the workforce. “Don’t Explain” represents the heart of this problem. Through a Marxist lens, Jewelle Gomez’s “Don’t Explain” portrays how a socioeconomic system uses classism to shape an individual’s character.

              Within “Don’t Explain” a wide spectrum of characters are presented to the reader. However, certain characters have more power over the other given their class. A scholarly article titled, The Race for Class: Reflections on a Critical Raceclass Theory of Education written by Zeus Leonardo, dives into these principles. He explains that there are two classes. The first being the dominant group: “. . .the propertied class, or the bourgeoisie, owns not only the means of production but also its social cognates, including the ruling ideas of a society” (Leonardo 6). Within “Don’t Explain” those characters can be seen as Aristotle and Tip. In Aristotle’s case, he is the owner of 411 lounge. His character isn’t a prominent one, but there is an instance where he flashes his authority by flashing a simple signal. The signal instructed Letty to stand up, as sitting down would look unprofessional, especially in front of white customers.

Tip, however, is a more relevant character who has appears to be an authoritative figure. Working as a pimp, Tip has gained a type of reputation for himself in the 411 establishment. He’s a figure who has much more wealth than Letty, the protagonist. For that, he exemplifies his arrogance in several ways. He talks down to people. This can be seen through an interaction with Letty. The language he uses is demeaning as he even has the audacity to offer Letty to work as a prostitute: “’ Not in my business, baby. Why you don’t come on and work for me and you ain’t got to worry ‘bout your feet’” (Gomez 356). The wealth and type of authority he has allows him to come off as cocky as if he owns the place.

But both Aristotle and Tip were given these positions because of their gender. Since men are placed over females, these two characters are allowed to act in certain ways over Letty and her fellow coworkers. In Leonardo’s essay, he explains the other class in as seen through Marxist’s theory: “the propertyless class, or the workers, own primarily their labor, which they exchange for wages within an unequal relation of power that favors the owners” (Leonardo 6). He explains how the people in this class are known as the workers. Factors like race and gender often decide the placement of one’s class. Women and inferior races like those of color are put into the workforce to pay the owners.

Since Letty is a black woman, she suffers from intersectionality. People like her have a difficult time finding decent paying jobs. Letty has to settle for working as a waitress at the 411 Lounge. Even in her job, she had to learn to deal with arrogant people like Tip. Given Letty’s gender and race, people like Tip like to give her hard times. It’s evident that this is something Letty has learned to adapt to. However, new hires like Delia need to learn how to deal with those above them. Letty has learned to shape character into one who can deal with the quips and demands of white men above her. At the same time, we can see her soft spots for her coworkers, as she wants what’s best for them. She wants to protect them from those who carry more authority.

Lavender Scare Poster--
ithaca.edu/news

On top of Letty’s race and gender, it becomes apparent that she is also homosexual. During that time period, there was an epidemic known as the Lavender Scare. According to an article titled How LGBT Civil Servants Became Public Enemy No. 1 in the 1950s Erin Blakemore goes into the struggle of being homosexual during the epidemic. Homosexuals were seen as ‘morally weak’. There were many reprimands if one was caught or considered to defy sexual norms. One being the risk of losing one’s occupation: “As Congressional hearings about supposed homosexual activity within the department raged, the intelligence community began interviewing and pressuring for the resignations of suspected gay employees.”

Lavender Scare--lib.ncsu.edu

Since Letty is homosexual within the time period of the Lavender Scare, the reader can see how it affects her character. One portion of the text explains Letty’s fears: “When she’d quit working at Salmagundi’s and come to the 411 she’d promised herself never to think about any woman like that again” (Gomez 355). Letty goes as far as to force herself from even thinking of women. It’s a protective mechanism, as if she were to get into a relationship, she would be risking her job and even jail time. Considering that, in her society, she suffers from her gender and race, if word got out she was homosexual, finding employment or general human decency would be difficult.

Letty might’ve stayed concealed for the rest of her life. However, Billie Holiday was someone who defied the current socioeconomic norms. The idol was female, black, and open about her homosexuality. Despite all this, Billie was a successful singer. Upon her visit to 411 Billie's presence, fame, and wealth is the talk of the night. Her money and generosity become apparent by the time she leaves: "When Billie finished eating and gathered her entourage to get back on the road, she left a tip, not just for Henrietta but for each of the waitresses and the bartender" (Gomez 357).

For Letty, this was eye opening. The idol was her beacon of hope, the text even explaining, “Billie was her hero. Letty saw Billie as big, like herself, with big hungers and a hard secret she couldn’t tell anyone” (Gomez 357). Since Billie could defy the norms, it gave hope to people like Letty that they could too. It’s the reason why Letty accepted Delia’s invitation and ultimately began to connect with Maryalice. The denial of her identity was swapped after seeing the possibilities.

“Don’t Explain” uses many characters to paint an image of the 1950s. It shows how there was still inequality in race, gender, and sexual orientation. These factors ultimately linked themselves to the workforce. From these inequalities, the reader gets to see how classism effects certain characters along with their occupations.

Work Cited

Blakemore, Erin. "How LGBT Civil Servants Became Public Enemy No. 1 in the 1950s." History.Com, 5 Jun. 2018, www.history.com/news/state-department-gay-employees-outed-fired-lavender-scare. Accessed Mar. 9, 2024.

Fragola, Marian. "Lavender Scare." NC State Universities Libraries, 23 Oct. 2017, www.lib.ncsu.edu/events/documentary-film-screening-lavender-scare-scenes-perfect-arrangement. Accessed Mar. 17, 2024.

Gomez, Jewelle. “Don’t Explain.” Using Critical Theory, edited by Lois Tyson, Routledge, 2021, pp. 354-361. Accessed Mar. 9, 2024.

Leonardo, Zeus. "The Race for Class: Reflections on a Critical Raceclass Theory of Education." Educational Studies, vol. 48, no. 5, 2012, pp. 427-449, https://doi.org/10.1080/00131946.2012.715831. Accessed Mar. 9, 2024.

Maley, Dave. "Lavender Scare Poster." IC News, 5 Nov. 2019, www.ithaca.edu/news/lavender-scare-screening-ithaca-college. Accessed Mar. 17, 2024.