The Wake of Jamey Foster by Beth Henley
"The Wake of Jamey Foster" by Beth Henley is a poignant drama set in a small Mississippi town, centering on the emotional aftermath of Jamey Foster's untimely death from an unusual accident involving a cow. The narrative unfolds during the wake, where Jamey's younger brother, Wayne, and his wife, Katty, attempt to maintain a semblance of dignity amidst a gathering that reveals a tapestry of family secrets and personal struggles. Jamey's wife, Marshael, along with her quirky relatives—Collard and Leon—bring their own complexities to the event; Collard arrives in a striking outfit after a party, and Leon is preoccupied with his new girlfriend, Pixrose, who has her own traumatic past.
As the wake progresses, tensions rise, exposing the characters' vulnerabilities and unresolved grief. Notably, Jamey's betrayal of Marshael and the poignant circumstances surrounding his death serve as focal points for conflict. The interactions culminate in moments of levity and tension, including an incident involving a pie from Jamey's mistress that Marshael violently rejects. Ultimately, the story moves toward themes of resilience and hope, as the women of the family find solace in each other's company and confront their shared histories. The conclusion sees Marshael choosing personal peace over attending her husband's funeral, highlighting the complexity of love and loss.
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The Wake of Jamey Foster by Beth Henley
Excerpted from an article in Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition
First produced: 1982 (first published, 1983)
Type of work: Play
The Work
Henley sets The Wake of Jamey Foster in a small Mississippi town where friends and family gather after Jamey Foster dies after a drunken midnight escapade in which he is kicked in the head by a cow. Wayne Foster, Jamey’s younger brother and a bank officer, attempts to establish a sense of dignity. He is aided by his wife, Katty. They fail because Jamey’s wife, Marshael, her sister Collard, and her brother Leon are not easily described as respectable. Collard comes to the wake from a wild party in Memphis in a bright red evening gown and cowboy boots. Leon is rather simpleminded and is more concerned with his new girlfriend, Pixrose, than with the dignity of the funeral. Indeed, he arranges for Jamey’s body to be dressed in a bright plaid smoking jacket because it seems cheerful.
Throughout the day and night of the wake, tension grows, forcing the revelation of several secrets. Jamey Foster had left his wife and was living with another woman when his fatal accident occurred. The reason Jamey left Marshael was because she secretly sent the scholarly manuscript he was writing to a publisher, who then notified Jamey that it was worthless. Jamey’s brother blames Marshael for Jamey’s death.
Wayne also dislikes his wife, Katty, partly because her father is his boss at the bank. Wayne is also disappointed because she has had several miscarriages and appears not to be able to have children. Leon, Marshael’s brother, works at a turkey processing plant and collects empty Coke bottles for additional income. The audience learns that his girlfriend, Pixrose, has just left an orphanage where she was injured in a fire deliberately set by other orphans. She is accident-prone and adds to the tensions by inadvertently causing a fire in the kitchen and then dropping and breaking dishes. Collard, Marshael’s younger sister, has emotional difficulties. After learning she was not bright enough to go to law school, she left home and has been living a profligate life.
A final visitor at the wake, Brocker Slade, actually comes to apologize to Marshael for kissing her and then, in a fit of shame, deserting her in the middle of a rainstorm. To assuage the mounting tensions, there is a good bit of heavy eating and drinking, including much nibbling on Easter candies. The drinking leads to more uncontrolled actions, such as Brocker Slade’s attempt, having been rebuffed by Marshael, to climb up the side of the house to her bedroom. He fails, and his failure is repeated by Wayne Foster, whose attempt to kiss and embrace Pixrose is foiled by his wife. Perhaps most devastating of all, Marshael receives as a funeral gift a pie baked by her late husband’s mistress. Raging, she smashes the pie on the floor.
Love and companionship finally triumph. The four women—Marshael, Collard, Katty, and Pixrose—share a night’s conversation, confessing their past sorrows and looking for new hope. In the morning, Marshael decides not to attend the funeral of her estranged husband. She lies in her bedroom, and from the yard below Brocker Slade calls to her. He agrees to go buy Easter candy for her children, then lovingly sings a song for her as she falls asleep.
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