A Visit to Grandmother by William Melvin Kelley
"A Visit to Grandmother" by William Melvin Kelley explores complex family dynamics and long-simmering resentments within the Dunsford family. The narrative follows Dr. Charles Dunsford as he visits his mother, Mama Eva, in Nashville, accompanied by his teenage son, Chig. Initially framed as a heartwarming reunion, the visit unravels into a painful confrontation about childhood favoritism and familial love. As Chig acclimates to the warmth of his extended family, Charles struggles with unresolved feelings of jealousy towards his successful brother, GL. The story culminates in a heated exchange during a family dinner, where Charles voices his grievances about perceived neglect and favoritism. Mama Eva defends her love for all her children, but the emotional wounds linger for Charles, leading to a poignant climax when GL unexpectedly arrives. The narrative encapsulates themes of familial loyalty, the complexities of parental relationships, and the impact of childhood experiences on adult identity.
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A Visit to Grandmother by William Melvin Kelley
First published: 1964
Type of plot: Social realism
Time of work: The 1940's
Locale: New York City and the American South
Principal Characters:
Dr. Charles Dunsford , a black, middle-class professional with festering childhood memoriesCharles "Chig" Dunsford II , his eldest childGL Dunsford , the doctor's spontaneous, hedonistic older brotherMama Eva Dunsford , Dr. Dunsford's mother
The Story
Although the title of this story sparks images of loving company and comforting surroundings, it actually is a presage of disaster. Dr. Charles Dunsford has left his New York home to attend his twenty-year college reunion in Nashville, Tennessee. Accompanied by his oldest son, Charles "Chig" Dunsford II, he spends a festive week in the South. Then he decides to prolong their vacation, suggesting to the teenage Chig that they visit his mother, who has not seen her grandson since he was a small boy.
Once the pair arrives at "Mama" Eva Dunsford's home, their journey becomes an unpleasant one. Plied with questions and pampered by attentive relatives, Chig settles in with ease. His father, however, becomes taciturn and withdrawn. The constant, mesmerizing stories about his fun-loving brother, GL Dunsford, open old resentments that Charles had buried under his kind, gentle exterior.
Finally, unable to listen to the tales anymore, the jealous brother blurts out his anger during the family's dinner. Complaining to his mother that she never really loved him at all, he voices the familiar lament of the overdisciplined, overachieving sibling: "If GL and I did something wrong, you'd beat me first and then be too God damn tired to beat him. At dinner, he'd always get seconds and I wouldn't. You'd do things with him . . . but if I wanted you to do something with me, you were always too busy." The astonished Mama justifies her behavior, arguing that she loved all of her children even though she may have treated them differently. However, Charles remains distraught. After repeating that it is too late for mending wounds, he runs upstairs to his room. Sadly, who should then appear at the door, "smiling broadly [with], an engaging, open, friendly smile, the innocent smile of a five-year-old," but GL himself, eager to reunite with his brother.