Devil In A Blue Dress Chapter 1 Summary

Devil In A Blue Dress: Chapters 1-14 In the first fourteen chapters of “Devil In A Blue Dress” by Walter Mosley, Mosley introduces a character named Ezekiel Rawlins, or Easy. Easy is a home owner and takes great pride that he is one, but he is fired from his job at Champion because Easy did not want to work an extra hour. Since he has no job he does not know how he will pay his mortgage. Joppy, a friend of Easy, knows of Easy’s situation and arranges a job for him with a man named DeWitt Albright. Easy’s mission is simple at first, to find where Daphne Monet is located and report back, but it soon turns out to be far more complex and dangerous. The setting is in Los Angeles in the year of 1948, after World War II. Easy is in Joppy’s
Easy runs into a white man who frustrates him enough to make Easy want to rip his face off, like he had done “to another white boy” (59). Finally, the man grants him access and he meets with Albright after a second encounter with body guards. Albright’s job for Easy is to find a light haired, blue eyed woman whose name is Daphne Monet. Albright was hired by another person to find Monet, but Albright does not have the “right persuasion” (63). Easy is unsure of this job and does not know what he is getting himself into because he does not want to cause any harm to anyone. Albright comforts Easy by telling him all he wants is to know where she is and he will him give enough money so Easy can pay his mortgage to keep his home and find him a job after this job is done. Easy accepts and Albright directs him to a bar that used to be a speakeasy before Prohibition was repealed, John’s place. Easy runs into a man named Junior and he begins his journey looking for
Easy is not interested in talking with her but she makes up conversation with him because she was forced to come with her sister and is bored. Two white boys come and threaten Easy for talking to a white girl. Albright arrives to the pier and threatens one of the boys with a gun. He lets the boy go after pistol-whipping him. Easy thinks to himself that if Albright could do that to his own, he could do far worse to Easy since he is black. Easy is still unsure about Albright and wants to make sure again that no one will get hurt before he tells Albright the information he has learned. Daphne was last seen with a man named Frank Green at the Playroom and tells Albright Frank’s address. Albright gives Easy more money and a card to where he can find a job. Easy thinks that he will not need it because Dupree told him that their boss will hire him again back at Champion, but he accepts the money and card anyways. Easy goes to Champion the next morning and runs into Dupree who is looking for Coretta. Easy lies, again, and tells Dupree he went home after putting Dupree on the bed. When Easy meets with his boss, Mr. Giacomo, he tells him that if he were white, he would have not fired him but joked about asking him to stay late. Easy calls him by saying mister but does not get the same respect from Mr. Giacomo. Easy demands that Mr. Giacomo call him by Mr. Rawlins instead of Easy and Mr. Giacomo consents, but still