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Chapters 7 & 8
Summary: Chapter 7
Elwood’s grandmother Harriet remembers the unfair treatment that caused the death of her husband and father (Elwood's grandfather and great-grandfather). She reflects on her daughter Evelyn, who was a neglectful mother to Elwood, and Evelyn’s husband Percy, who became bitter after the racist treatment he faced when he returned from serving as a soldier during World War II. The couple ran away during the night and left their son behind. The most painful goodbye Harriet faced, however, was when Elwood was taken to Nickel. When she goes to visit him, she is told he is sick. Elwood is actually in the Nickel hospital healing from his beating in the White House. He lies on his stomach while the wounds on his back and legs heal for the next two weeks.
Turner eats soap powder to fake an illness so that he can get into the infirmary and visit Elwood for a few days. They listen to the radio and joke with each other, and Turner shares his ideas about how the world works. Turner tells Elwood he must realize that people are mean and racist, and that he should try to avoid conflict. Elwood, however, believes that reform is coming through the Civil Rights Movement, and that people will change and act justly when they are confronted by injustice. Once healed, Elwood sees the scars on his legs and feels ashamed. He doesn’t tell his grandmother about the beating when she comes to visit.
Summary: Chapter 8
Elwood returns to regular life at Nickel, where he realizes there is no rhyme or reason to punishment or the merit system, and no way to know if he’s working his way toward early release. On Turner’s recommendation, Elwood gets a job doing “Community Service” with a young white man named Harper. Harper and the two boys spend the morning in the town of Eleanor, bringing food, medicine, and other items meant to be used for the Black boys at Nickel and distributing them to local businessmen. The businessmen give Harper envelopes of money, which he passes along to Superintendent Spencer, who then passes them along to his boss, Director Hardee. When they’re done with deliveries, Harper drops Elwood and Turner off at the home of Mrs. Davis, the wife of the fire chief, who is on the board of directors of Nickel. Harper goes to see his girlfriend while Elwood and Turner paint the Davis’s gazebo.
Turner tells Elwood why he was sent to Nickel for the second time. Turner worked at a bowling alley setting up bowling pins after customers knocked them down. In order to get tips, he would joke and make faces as he did his job. One night, the Black man who worked in the burger stand told Turner that acting like a fool shows he has no self-respect. After that, Turner was mean to the customers until a white boy chased him around the bowling alley. A week later, Turner threw a cinderblock through the white boy’s car window. He was arrested and sent to Nickel. Elwood gets a notebook, and each night he records the names and places they visited and what they delivered.
Analysis: Chapters 7 & 8
Self-preservation has become more important to Elwood’s grandmother, Harriet, than standing up to injustice, as she has encountered many instances of unfair treatment throughout her life. She has lost many loved ones due to horrific racism and is hesitant to add to that number. Harriet is used to being robbed of control over situations she faces, and this is reinforced when Nickel Academy won’t let her see Elwood when she visits. Harriet is also deprived of the truth when the staff at Nickel tells her that Elwood is sick rather than admitting to her that he is recovering from a beating. When Turner fakes an illness to visit Elwood, it demonstrates the importance of friendship at Nickel Academy, and the ways human connection is instrumental as a means of survival. Elwood’s friendship with Turner helps distract Elwood from his pain and allows him to believe that he can get through this and other difficult situations. This belief will become more important as the novel progresses. As Elwood gets to know Turner, he finds out that Turner is an individualist and believes that people should watch out for themselves. Like Harriet, Turner believes that standing up for others leads to trouble. When Elwood decides to hide the scars of his beating from his grandmother, it indicates that he is ashamed and furthermore has decided not to dwell on the abuse, as was shown about his character in the prologue. In this sense, Nickel Academy has already succeeded in controlling Elwood—by keeping him quiet.
When Elwood returns to regular life at Nickel, he notices more and more instances of injustice, and at the same time realizes the flawed nature of Nickel’s points system. No matter how hard he works, he’s not getting ahead. When he gets a job doing “Community Service,” Elwood sees that “Community Service” is a euphemism for bribes and favors. Although Elwood experiences a measure of freedom going into town with Harper to deliver supplies, the ethically dubious nature of the deliveries casts a pall over his excitement. The cycle of white supremacy is apparent in the favors passed between the school, local businessmen, and the fire chief, who is on the board of directors at Nickel. As they work, Turner tells Elwood how he ended up at Nickel, again. His story reveals how he has struggled with reconciling his desire for personal dignity with the racist society in which he lives. While working his job at the bowling alley, Turner was forced to choose between degrading himself to entertain white people and acting with self-respect. When he chose the latter, it eventually led to an outburst of anger, demonstrating the toll that racism takes on the individual. Despite the different approaches taken to life by Elwood and Turner, they both lead the boys to Nickel Academy, reinforcing Turner’s belief that standing up to injustice is futile.
