Po' Sandy

Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1899

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Summary

Background

Story Analysis

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Charles Chesnutt identified as Black when he might have passed as white. How does the meaning of “Po’ Sandy” depend on the racial identification of the person who wrote it?

How does the image of Mars Marrabo as a stork change the story?

Does the possibility of Mars Marrabo having mixed blood affect the meaning of the story?

What are the primary differences in the way Julius and John are depicted?

Compare what marriage meant between men and women who were enslaved to what marriage meant between free Black and white Americans in the historic moment of the story.

What is the relationship between freedom and power in “Po’ Sandy”?

How are the roles different or similar for the women in the story: Mars Marrabo’s wife, Annie, and Tenie?

How does this story represent the historic moment in which it was published?

How does this story represent the period in which Sandy and Tenie lived?

10.

Had American culture changed significantly between the time of Sandy’s story and the time in which the frame narrative is set?