Chapter 23: Still in Prison

Chapter 23:

Still in Prison

Summary: Linda was still in her "prison" as she calls it and she described the trials she went through during the winter time. She described how she almost died from an illness, but after her brother got medicine from a doctor she was able to survive. She also described how her grandmother collapsed from the many months of anxiety and toil. During this time Linda's son Benny was also injured after being bitten by a dog. At the end of the chapter Linda's grandmother's illness passed and Benny healed from his wounds.

Importance: As if on cue, more trials came Linda's way. In this chapter Linda was put through three more trials which tested her endurance. Even as there seemed as though there was no letting up coming in the way of the amount of trials she had to go through, Linda proved herself strong yet again.

Connection to Theme: The affects of the psychological abuse on white people is evident in this chapter as well. This is displayed near the end when Sally told Mrs. Flint the reason why Benny couldn't walk. To this Mrs. Flint responded by saying that she was glad that it happened. She added that she wished that the dog had killed him as well and that Linda's day of returning by the mouths of dogs would come too. This showed how cruel and heartless slavery has made even the white people who lived through it.