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Like a Winding Sheet

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Like a Winding Sheet
JULISA WRIGHT
AML 2600
MS. THORNERS CLASS
FINAL TERM PAPER ANALYSIS
Ann Petry’s “Like a Winding Sheet “defines a pivoting time line in history even though it is a fictional short story. This story took place in 1946 in the time when all the men would be at war and the women would be in factories making all the weapons and equipments that they would need. The women were the focal point in that era because they ensured that the men overseas were well equipped to be at war. The story was set in the summer of ’46 and had numerous place settings in which the conflict took place. The main characters of the story are Mr. Johnson and his wife Mae. Mr. Johnson’s love and fondness for his wife was a true testimony in this story. It also brought about the mere fact of racism and a man’s own conscience and mind playing tricks on him. LIKE A WINDING SHEET Like a Winding Sheet, written by Ann Petry in 1945, is a story that begins with a black man's tough day at work, but takes a twisted turn. Johnson comes home after a hard day planning to kick his feet up and enjoy a relaxing evening at home with his wife, Mae. The bad sense of humour Mae possesses begins to send Johnson over the edge and suddenly, something in him snaps. Johnson brutally beats his wife, quite possibly killing her. This story is very shocking, exposing to us a reality of our society, racism. In this essay I will try to show you that racism, specially in the United-States, can be a source for an imprisonment feeling for individuals, in this case, the bl

In Ann Petry’s 1945 short story "Like a Winding Sheet,". Johnson is a black male struggling with racism and societal pressures. Johnson faces many challenges. As one reads, one cannot help but feel his anger, frustration and tenseness. Petry tells it in the following way, "The knowledge that he had struck her seeped through him slowly and he was appalled but he couldn’t drag his hands away from her face." Petry goes on further to tell us, "He had

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