Charles Chesnutt

Superstitions and Folk-Lore of the South

Summary: Charles Chesnutt wrote a response to his own writing to give more context of its motivations. He explains that the conjure stories he writes in The Conjure Woman are merely myth and are a way of showing African American folklore. While these stories are not proven true they were passed down through oral traditions. He mentions several stories that he has heard such as a conjure man hurting a girl that steps upon the ground he walked on. He quickly refutes the validity, giving the explanation that she was so overtaken, and afraid that she twisted her ankle as she stared. He says that ignorance was the best tool for the “trickster”, without it superstitions would not have been believed. Not
He questions Chesnutt’s motive in making Julius the trickster, while it seems that John is narrating Julius takes over most of the narration in the framed plot. In doing this it shows the power Julius holds and the power superstition can hold. In the stories written Julius often gains something from his story telling he is clever enough to make stories or retell stories that would at least effect Annie, John’s wife, enough to guide John in the direction Julius wansts. Sollors brings out the idea that the evil that African Americans thought of, within conjuring, could also represent the turmoil of slavery. The belief in conjure was a way to focus on other “evils” that would not come close to the effects of slavery. In The Conjure Woman the conjuring may seem terrible but was a way to be removed from slavery. This critic also analyzes other characters such as John, his disbelief parallel to his stubborn attitude towards racism. Chesnutt was able to use conjure stories and subtle references to the Bible to show a deeper meaning to his characters and to the setting. Sollors compares John with the Pharisees and Julius to the true Christians who are not able to convert the Pharisees. He also shows the connection between the grapevine in the story and the vine used countless times in the Bible. Through this critique he brings out possible hidden meanings and also questions