The Healing by Gayl Jones
"The Healing" by Gayl Jones is a novel that explores the journey of self-discovery and wholeness through the experiences of its protagonist, Harlan Jane Eagleton. The narrative is characterized by a stream-of-consciousness style that blends Harlan's voice with those of other characters, creating a dynamic and sometimes disorienting reading experience. Set against the backdrop of Harlan’s upbringing in Louisville, Kentucky, the story unfolds her complex relationships, particularly with Joan Savage, a rock singer, and the challenges they face in their professional and personal lives.
Harlan’s life takes a transformative turn when she discovers her unexpected gift of healing following a violent confrontation with Joan. This moment catalyzes her journey into faith healing, diverging from traditional perceptions of healers. Throughout the novel, themes of friendship, jealousy, and the search for identity are intricately woven into the characters' interactions, including Harlan's encounters with various figures in her life, such as her grandmother and a man named Josef.
Published by Beacon Press, "The Healing" received critical acclaim for its innovative language and deep character portrayals, marking a significant return for Jones after a long hiatus from novel writing. The book's release was shadowed by personal tragedy in the author's life, which added a layer of complexity to its reception. Despite its challenges, the novel is recognized as a vital part of contemporary African American literature, reflecting on human experiences and the nuanced relationships that shape one’s understanding of self.
The Healing by Gayl Jones
First published: 1998
Type of work: Novel
Type of plot: Comedy; feminist; picaresque
Time of work: Late twentieth century
Locale: United States
Principal Characters:
Harlan Jane Eagleton , a faith healer and former music managerJoan Savage , a rock singerJosef Ehelich von Fremd , an African German horse breederNaughton James “Jamey” Savage , a scientist and Joan’s ex-husbandNorvelle , a medical anthropologist and Harlan’s ex-husbandNicholas J. Love , a former bodyguard to Josef, who witnesses Harlan’s faith healingGrandmother Jaboti , Harlan’s beautician grandmother and a former Turtle Woman in a carnival
The Novel
The Healing is the story of a woman’s journey to wholeness and self-knowledge. Rather than telling the story in strict chronological order, the novel opens at a time when its protagonist is near the achievement of her quest. Harlan Jane Eagleton is on her way by bus to yet another “little tank town,” to perform faith healing at a church. The bus ride, the healing ritual itself, and the novel’s side events are all narrated in a run-on, stream-of-consciousness style. The narrative voice is usually Harlan’s, but it often slides into those of other characters, either spoken or assumed by Harlan. The novel’s opening is confusing but intriguing, and it leads into an extended series of flashbacks.
Harlan Jane was brought up in Louisville, Kentucky, by her mother and grandmother, who owned a beauty salon. Harlan too becomes a beautician. She meets Joan, the rock singer, at a party. Joan, always keen on fashion experiments, asks for a sample makeup job. Harlan hires on as the singer’s makeup person, starts helping with her books as well, and ends up working as her manager. She negotiates more and better deals than the singer had been getting on her own, but Joan remains a small fish in the ocean of pop music.
The relationship that develops between Harlan and Joan is complex and often infuriating to both. They spend much time together when on tour, and they share a running commentary on such diverse topics as popular culture, the rarity of African American scientists, and even the pros and cons of song titles. Joan’s manipulative nature begins to wear on Harlan, however, and after she sets her up for a liaison with Joan’s ex-husband Jamey, sexual jealousy is added to their complicated friendship.
In between tours, Joan retreats to a farm she owns in Minnesota. Harlan Jane goes off to play the ponies at various racetracks. At Saratoga she meets Josef, who calls himself an arbitrager but who is in America to buy and breed top-ranking thoroughbreds. Josef surrounds himself with bodyguards; he is paranoid about some mysterious danger. Although Harlan enjoys the luxury she shares during their affair, she knows early on that they have little in common besides horseracing. They end up with a casual friendship.
The narrative flows back and forth in time. There are scenes from Harlan’s marriage and from her grandmother’s beauty shop. Harlan and Norvelle have a good rapport until he wants to stay in Africa, following a Masai medicine woman he is studying. Grandmother Jaboti teaches Harlan lessons in life by word and example, including the importance of “confabulation” and imagination.
The tensions simmering between Harlan and her employer explode over a group of Caribbean refugees. Joan has financed their ill-fated invasion of their island. Harlan accuses her of quixotically playing with the lives of people they had both promised to protect. She dreams that Joan fires her. Instead, while both are at Josef’s horse farm, Joan pulls a knife on her. It goes into her chest and seems to touch bone. Nicholas, still acting as bodyguard, rushes to deflect Joan, but before he can do anything, the knife falls out. Harlan puts her hand to the wound, and it heals. This is the start of Harlan Jane’s calling as a healer. At the novel’s conclusion, she finds the man she first loved, Norvelle, waiting for her at her current stop.
The Characters
Harlan Jane Eagleton is at the same time a sharply unique character and a sort of African American Everywoman. There is an edge to her outlook on life; she does not believe or trust everyone she meets, but at the same time she approaches most people and happenings with a bracing openness. Joan notes that Harlan always seems to fit in anywhere she wants to be. She is largely self-educated, yet her conversations show a surprisingly wide range of knowledge. While envying Joan’s glamour and sense of style, Harlan is usually content to look—in one church lady’s words—like she belongs on a motorcycle. Harlan bears little resemblance, physically or psychologically, to the popular stereotypes of a faith healer. She readily admits she has no idea how she does the healing, and she does not mystify her gift with ceremony or magic formulations.
Joan Savage, in contrast, takes pride in being mercurial and flamboyant. She even considered calling herself Joan “The Darling Bitch” Savage, but she changed her mind after hearing an announcer use the term to introduce her. Like many artists, she is never quite confident about her talent but rushes offstage to wring her hands in her dressing room. Her friendship with Harlan serves as a catalyst to both women’s self-knowledge.
The novel’s other characters have some interesting complexities too, such as Josef’s disdain for most of American culture and his contradictory regard for American women. Nicholas J. Love is especially memorable in his roles as head bodyguard and witness to a miracle. A giant of a man, he indulges in only a little hyperbole when he says “Y’all know I’m a powerful man,” but his inner persona is gentle and honest. Norvelle is possibly the least well defined of the several male characters, but that may be because Harlan Jane still sees him through the eyes of love. His enthusiasm for gathering African medical folklore despite personal discomfort or exhaustion forms the very image of the dedicated professor.
Critical Context
The Healing was Jones’s first novel in more than two decades. It was also the first novel to be published by the venerable Beacon Press in its 144-year history. For most critics, the book lived up to its prepublication expectations. Reviewers expressed some surprise that the novel was so different from the author’s earlier work but went on to praise it for its innovative use of language, its rich portrayal of character, and its theme of hope.
Unfortunately, just a week after its publication, the book’s content was overshadowed by personal tragedy. The author and her husband, Bob Jones, had been living quietly in Lexington, Kentucky. The ballyhoo surrounding the book caught the attention of local police, who set out to arrest Bob Jones on a prior weapons charge. He barricaded himself and Gayl inside their house. As the police closed in, he cut his own throat with a knife. It was a scene that brought the horrific events of Jones’s earlier novels into real life. Its drama and pathos almost overwhelmed the novel’s impact. Since that time, however, The Healing has taken its place in the canon of contemporary African American literature. It is by no means an easy book to read, but its unique take on human frailties and relationships makes it worth the effort.
Bibliography
Grossman, Judith. “The Healing.” Review of The Healing, by Gayl Jones. The Women’s Review of Books 15 (March, 1998): 15. Comprehensive review that notes Jones’s consistent use of women’s voices and her characters’ “open destinies.”
Jones, Gayl. Liberating Voices: Oral Tradition in African American Literature. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1991. A book of history and criticism by the author. Examines the role of oral tradition, folklore, and music in African American literature.
Mills, Fiona, ed. After the Pain: Critical Essays on Gayl Jones. New York: Peter Lang, 2006. Essays from a feminist perspective. Articles on The Healing examine its Afro-Latino elements, jazz rhythms in Jones’s prose, and other topics.
Nelson, Jill. “Hiding from Salvation.” The Nation 266 (May 25, 1998): 30. Review article with comments on Jones as a private writer in a demandingly public age.
Woodson, Jacqueline. “The Healing.” Review of The Healing, by Gayl Jones. Artforum International, March, 1998, p. S24. Points out the novel’s contemplative qualities and its many possibly imagined elements.