The Only Man on Liberty Street by William Melvin Kelley
"The Only Man on Liberty Street" by William Melvin Kelley explores complex themes of race, identity, and familial relationships in a racially charged environment. Set in a neighborhood where the lives of black women and their children intertwine with those of white men, the story centers on Jennie, a young girl who believes her father, Mister Herder, visits her and her mother, Josephine, regularly. Herder's presence brings both comfort and tension, as he grapples with his obligations to his wife and the emotional ties he feels towards Jennie and Josephine.
The narrative unfolds as Herder declares his commitment to his new family, despite the societal pressures and risks that accompany their relationship. He is confronted by the reality of racism when a mysterious white woman, presumably his wife, threatens their fragile stability. As tensions escalate, Josephine urges Jennie to seek a future in the North, hinting at the dangers they face in their current environment. The story culminates on the Fourth of July, a day marked by celebration but also by an ominous reminder of the racial conflicts that could jeopardize Jennie's safety. Through Jennie's innocence and Herder's turmoil, Kelley highlights the intersection of personal and societal struggles, inviting readers to reflect on the implications of love and loyalty in a divided world.
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The Only Man on Liberty Street by William Melvin Kelley
First published: 1963
Type of plot: Domestic realism
Time of work: About 1880
Locale: A city on the Gulf coast of Alabama
Principal Characters:
Maynard Herder , a recent immigrant to the United States from Northern EuropeJosephine , his mulatto mistressJennie , their daughter
The Story
As Jennie is playing in the dirt of the front yard of her home, she sees a man ride up the street, dismount, and come into the yard. Jennie sees this man once or twice each week, when he comes to visit her mother, Josephine. Most of the black women who live in the houses on Liberty Street receive such visitors. Jennie's mother has told her that this white man, Mister Herder, is her father, even though he does not live with them.
On this day, however, Herder is carrying a carpetbag of his clothes, and in the house he promises that he will never return to his wife. He explains that it is only when he is with Jennie and her mother that he feels what it is to be at home. Before long, her mother is calling him Maynard, and Jennie feels convinced that he is her father.
Each day afterward, Jennie sees a mysterious white woman pass by in a carriage, peering at the house with a hard and angry expression on her face. One day the woman's driver delivers a letter to Jennie's mother, and the woman shouts that Maynard has one wife, and Josephine is something different. That night, when Herder reads the letter, he angrily vows that he will give up his life before anyone can make him leave Jennie and her mother and go back to his wife. Josephine knows the power of racists, and she makes Jennie promise that when she is grown she will go to the North.
On the Fourth of July, Herder wins the city shooting match, with six excellent shots. As General Dewey Willson, the town's leading citizen, hands him the winner's medal, he advises him that he can no longer protect him. Herder declares that he will do to men what he did to the target, but Willson points out that it is Jennie who will be attacked. Willson's concern for Jennie stems from the fact that she is his only granddaughter; Josephine is Willson's child by one of his slaves. A short time later, Herder sees a rag-clothed white man make a shockingly obscene and threatening gesture toward Jennie. She does not perceive the meaning of the gesture, but Herder realizes that it is his daughter who will suffer if he does not give in. Telling Jennie to do what she has promised her mother, he sends her home without him.