28 pages • 56 minutes read
William Melvin KelleyA Visit to Grandmother
Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1964A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Family Conflict and Estrangement
Charles’s inability to resolve the resentment he feels toward his mother is the main source of conflict with his family and his past. Poor communication has contributed significantly to his estrangement from his family, particularly his mother. Charles felt neglected by his mother but never voiced his feelings. This lack of communication and closure left him with deep-seated anger and resentment, which fueled the decision he made to distance himself from his family. When discussing the day he moved out, Charles wonders if he should “say what he finally did say” (62). This momentary reluctance, coupled with his distant and detached demeanor during the visit, illustrates how effortful confronting his mother truly is.
Since the family home is ultimately a proxy for stability and safety, the story highlights Charles’s estrangement by presenting the emotional effects it had on him. After he moved out of his mother’s home, he remembers he “cried all the way up to Knoxville” (62). His inability to communicate honestly and openly made it difficult for him to connect with his relatives while away, straining the relationship even further and compromising his children’s relationships with their extended family. Eva seems surprised when she sees Charles and doubts it, saying: “I never ever hear from Charles” (54). Discussing his grievances with his mother would be a way for Charles to heal past wounds and face the emotional toll felt after he distanced himself. Perhaps in an attempt to do that, Charles decides to take his son Chig for a visit to his mother after attending his college reunion. Chig suggests attending the reunion was merely an excuse for the real motive of the trip, highlighting the way familial trauma can be ever-present for those who haven’t resolved it. However, it could be said that going to his reunion and reminiscing on his time in Knoxville sparked the decision to finally mend his and his mother’s relationship.
Despite Charles imploring his mother to confess to her neglect, the confrontation that occurs during their visit ultimately does not bring about the resolution he hoped for. Even though he speaks his truth, he still does not receive the closure he seeks. Eva responds by denying any favoritism and reiterates her love for all her children. This response leaves Charles feeling unfulfilled, as he had hoped for an acknowledgment of his pain and an apology from his mother. The unresolved issues between Charles and Eva highlight how complex family conflict and estrangement can be. Even when both parties make an effort to communicate and reconcile, the past can still hinder their ability to heal and move forward.
Colorism in the Black Community
The conversation around colorism within the Black community is complex and multifaceted. The issue has deep historical roots and has been perpetuated through societal attitudes toward skin tone. During slavery, lighter-skinned African Americans often received better treatment and opportunities than their darker-skinned counterparts. This led to the development of a color hierarchy, with lighter skin tones often equated with greater beauty, intelligence, and social status. This mindset persisted even after slavery was abolished and continues to shape societal attitudes toward skin tone. The issue of colorism is not unique to the Black community, and many other communities of color also grapple with it. Within these communities, lighter skin tones are often preferred over darker skin tones, perpetuating a detrimental bias that deeply affects individuals’ self-esteem and sense of belonging.
Colorism can manifest in multiple forms, often resulting in the preferential treatment of lighter-skinned individuals. Charles’s belief that his mother preferred GL because of his lighter skin color is a prime example of this. Charles points to GL’s “almost white” complexion during his and his mother’s heated argument and cites it as the reason for her neglect. GL’s ability to almost “pass” as white—in other words, be mistaken for a white person when he is Black—touches on the intricacies of Black identity. Despite the events having taken place during his childhood, Charles is still deeply impacted by them. The ripple effect these events had on his psyche as a darker-skinned individual highlights the extent to which racial discrimination has distorted his sense of self. His resentment is a catalyst for feelings of inferiority and inadequacy, especially when compared to his brother.
However, the combination of a narrator in the third-person limited perspective and William Melvin Kelley’s preferred use of indirect characterization obscures the true reason for Eva’s favoritism. As the story only features Chig’s perspective of the events, it does not provide an account of Eva’s thoughts, only her words. According to Eva, she cared for all her children equally but had to make tough choices over which of them required more attention. She states that GL would have “ended up swinging” if she hadn’t been cautious during his upbringing (63), implying he would have had problems with the law or been lynched. This reference complicates Charles’s assertion that GL is white-passing; he might have been more at risk than Charles realized. Eva denies any preference and assures her choices were solely based on giving her children what she believed “they needed most” (63). The family’s inability to resolve these tensions alludes to colorism being an ongoing issue in the broader society and within Black communities.
