Examining the main character's family history, we discussed the role of miscegenation (which I defined)in Southern literature . Jannie Crawford is the product of the rape of her grandmother by a white slave owner . Olivia did a good job tracing the family story back to the pre-Civil War era and noting how the slave owner's wife blames the victim for her husband's misconduct. We then examined Jannie's disillusionment with her first marriage, and the role of the "mule" motif / metaphor that reappears in the novel . Olivia noted how Jannie's first husband oppresses her just as he would a farm animal. We last examined the feminist philosophy underlying the novel. Jannie's grandmother offers an eloquent explanation of a woman's diminished role in Black society explaining that while White society oppresses Black men, Black men in turn oppress and mistreat women. We discussed that due to this negative portrayal , of African-American society, other African-American writers and intellectuals ostracized Zora Thurston and minimized her literary contributions. Using a textual analysis, we highlighted the author's point of view that avoided direct criticism of White society for the socio-economic condition of Black society in the 1930s. The take home Huck Finn test is due tomorrow.