FRANGIPANI HOUSE
ABOUT BERYL GILROY
- Born August 30, 1924, and died in April 2001.
- She was born in Skeldon village, Berbice county, Guyana.
- She entered the formal school setting, for the first time, at 12 years old.
- She completed the British Guiana Teacher's Certificate with first class Honours.
- She attended the University of London where she graduated with a Diploma in Child Development.
- She was the first black headteacher in the UK.
- She later worked as a researcher at the University of London where she pioneered work in psychotherapy.
- More ...
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SOCIAL CONTEXT
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BERYL GILROY'S NOVELS
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SETTING
THEME
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Bakru Cockamimy Duppy Jumby Jumby hour Mauby Missy-man Pickney Nara Rucktion Souse |
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
spirit
silly ghost ghost the middle of the night bittersweet homemade drink from the bark of a tree effeminate or cowardly man child complaint caused by the twisting, or rupturing, of the intestines disagreement, quarelling Pickled pork drink |
SUMMARY
This is the story of Mama King, an elderly woman with a strong and indomitable spirit. We meet Mama King when she is placed in Frangipani House, a rest home, by her children who live in America. Her experience at the rest home is a claustrophobic one that robs her of her freedom, and slowly leeches away at her senses. She delves into her memories in order to survive that experience, but eventually gains enough lucidity to escape. This escape leads to the family descending on the island to seek out their beloved Mama.
This is the story of Mama King, an elderly woman with a strong and indomitable spirit. We meet Mama King when she is placed in Frangipani House, a rest home, by her children who live in America. Her experience at the rest home is a claustrophobic one that robs her of her freedom, and slowly leeches away at her senses. She delves into her memories in order to survive that experience, but eventually gains enough lucidity to escape. This escape leads to the family descending on the island to seek out their beloved Mama.
CHARACTERS
Mrs. Mabel Alexandrina King (Mama King)
RESIDENTS of Frangipani House
NURSES at Frangipani House
BEGGARS
Mama King's CHILDREN
Token
Mama King's GRANDCHILDREN
Mrs. Mabel Alexandrina King (Mama King)
- 69 years old.
- She has two children, Token and Cylette.
- She has five grandchildren; Soloman, Cindy, Charlie, Boyson and Markey.
- Her husband's name was Danny.
- She was physically abused by Danny.
- Her best friend is Ginchi.
- Mama King is a very feisty old lady who often kept the nurses in line.
- She was very independent, as seen in her feelings of isolation at Frangipani House vs. peace among the beggars.
- She was very poor, as seen in her recollections of the various things she did to provide for her children.
- She was very loving, as seen in the kindness shown to her grandchildren.
- She is an excellent mother who is willing to take on the most menial of tasks in order to ensure the survival of her children.
- Matron had an excellent reputation as a woman who was good and did good work.
- She purchased Frangipani House after her mother's death.
- Despite having an excellent reputation, she treated the inmates coldly.
- We learn, later on in the novel, that Matron has led a harsh life that contributes to her behaviour towards the inmates at Frangipani House.
- Her mother neglected her emotionally, then sanctioned her marriage - at sixteen - to an old man.
- She resented her mother.
- Mama King's best friend.
- Helped Mama to deliver her children, and helped her take care of her grandchildren.
- She was a loyal friend to Mama King, as seen in the fact that she visited her on Sundays, while she was an inmate at Frangipani House.
- She killed Danny for constantly hurting her friend.
- Despite this act, she was a good person who adopted Carlton after he was abandoned.
- She died of breast cancer.
- Mama King's deceased husband.
- She admits that she married him for security, not love.
- He physically abused Mama King throughout their marriage.
- Her best friend, Ginchie, killed him and Buckman disposed of the body.
- Mama King believed, for years, that he had abandoned his family.
- A gentleman who courted Mama.
- She rejected him because she believed that he only wanted sex, and might have extended that desire to her children.
- He visits Mama King at Frangipani House and is shocked at her regression.
- He leaves, from that visit, haunted and sad.
- Mama Ginchi's adopted son.
- He works at Frangipani House.
- He makes plans to leave the community when Miss Ginchi dies.
- A policeman
- Matron uses her skin tone and physique to prompt him to investigate Mama King's disappearance.
- He was half Portuguese.
- He courted Mama King while she was being courted by Danny.
- He was angry that he was not chosen, but Mama King believed that he only wanted to have sexual relations with her, and nothing else.
- Cindy's husband.
- He is in agreement with his wife that they should become Mama King's caregivers.
- His visit to Africa has affected his life in a great way.
- The midwife who delivered Cindy and Chuck's twin boys.
- Mama King was not impressed by her new and strange methods.
RESIDENTS of Frangipani House
- Miss Tilley - She had six children and they all took care of her. She was the first inmate to die during Mama's stay at Frangipani House.
- Miss Marie Mason - A former school teacher who loved to read romance novels. She was a favourite inmate of many of the nurses due to her mischevious antics. She is the second inmate to die during Mama's stay at Frangipani House, she died on her ninetieth birthday.
- Mrs Ida Gomez - She replaces Miss Mason. We learn that she has had 5 stillbirths and suffers from 'fits'. Mama King had planned to use one of these episodes of fits to escape, but Mrs. Gomez suffered from a stroke before Mama King's plan could be executed.
- Miss Olga Turvey - She feared death. She was afraid to look at Miss Tilly's body because she thought that she was next in line to die. Mama King reveals that this old lady had a guilty conscience; she supported her son in denying his child, which led to her fear of death.
- Old Mother Dickson (Titsy) - She believed that if a woman got married, it meant that her husband owned her. She believed that 'Only white people married!' (Gilroy, 104)
NURSES at Frangipani House
- Nurse Sarah Douglas - She is the most sympathetic of the nurses. She is gentle with the inmates, and even Matron goes to her for comfort in her time of distress. We get a sense of Mama's history from this nurse.
- Nurse Tibbs
- Nurse Carol Carey - She leaves Frangipani House to marry Soloman.
- Nurse Agnes - She is the most unsympathetic of the nurses.
BEGGARS
- Pandit Prem - The leader of the beggars. He is very kind to Mama King and allows her to stay with them.
- Sumintra - One of the beggars. She is a true friend to Mama. They go to the market together and she visited Mama King when she was in the hospital and while she was at home.
Mama King's CHILDREN
Token
- She 'was about six feet tall ... well-built, staid and respectable.' (Gilroy, 100)
- She is the eldest of Mama King's children.
- She left her two children, Soloman and Cindy, with Mama King in order to make a better life for them.
- She took them to live with her when she was financially stable.
- She loves her mother and places her in Frangipani House because she believes that it is the best place for her.
- She does not see Guyana as her home and resents her childhood that was characterized by poverty.
- She returns to Guyana when Mama King runs away and remains resolved that Mama should be in Frangipani House.
- She is unwilling to become her mother's caregiver.
- She was tall but shorter than her sister's six feet.
- She was 'thick and tumultuous, with a kind of seething energy that was just off boil.' (Gilroy, 100)
- She wanted to be her mother's caregiver and did NOT see Frangipani House as the answer.
- She left her three boys with Mama King in order to make a better life for them.
- She also returned to them when she became financially stable.
- Unfortunately, one of her children died in Mama King's care.
- She too did not see Guyana as her home.
Mama King's GRANDCHILDREN
- Soloman - Token's son. He became an optomologist and, at the end of the novel, was engaged to Nurse Carey. He was empathetic to his grandmother, but was unwilling to become her caregiver.
- Cindy - Token's daughter. She was pregnant, and eventually gave birth to twin boys named Amos and Abel. She, and her husband, Chuck, volunteered to become Mama King's caregivers in America.
- Charlie - Cylette's son. He was a difficult child who was always in trouble. He died at a young age due to this same tendency.
- Boyson - Cylette's son. He was mentally challenged and drowned in the river, while under Mama King's supervision.
- Markey - Cylette's son. He was the most empathetic of Mama King's grandchildren. He was shocked at how Mama King's experience at Frangipani House had degraded her, both physically and psychologically. He wanted to care for his grandmother, but could not do so due to his job with the navy. It required a lot of travelling.
PLOT
Chapter 1
Frangipani House, named for the trees that surround it, is a beautiful and stately home for the elderly. People who get the opportunity to go there are viewed as lucky, and the owner has an excellent reputation. This reputation, however, is undercut by her greed and need for power. The owner, Olga Trask (Matron), receives a call from Token, Mama King's daughter. She resides in New York and has called to secure a place for her mother at Frangipani House. The cost for her stay is four hundred to five hundred dollars a month. Mama King arrives and is, initially, excited by the order that characterizes the home. However, this excitement quickly erodes and transforms into boredom and discontent. She voices these feelings but is ignored by the matron. The only thing that breaks the monotony is the screaming of Miss Tilly, along with some other elderly ladies.
Chapter 2
Mama King listens to the sounds of Frangipani House and feels isolated. She recalls the day that she met Danny, but is interrupted by a nurse who tries to coax her to eat. She talks to the young nurse and is able to trace her, the nurse's, family tree. Mama King dozes off, awakens, then immerses herself in memories of Danny and their secret rendezvous. She surfaces to face her reality and screams that she wants to go home.
Chapter 3
The nurses give Mama King drugged Coca-Cola in order to calm her down. We are introduced to Mrs. Mason, an 89-year-old retired teacher who is a voracious reader of love novels. She is full of life and mischief and the young nurse appears to be very fond of her. The nurse shares a bit of her life, outside of Frangipani House, with Miss Mason. The peace is disturbed by Mama King's loud talking in her room, and nurses scurrying to quiet her. Mama King talks about Danny and ends up calling for him. Miss Mason tries to explain why Mama is behaving in this manner, but the nurses ignore her.
Chapter 4
Miss Mason amuses the nurses at bedtime by wearing all her night clothes simultaneously. They wait until she falls asleep to undress her. Nurse Douglas warns, however, that Miss Mason, despite her amusing antics, is 'fake-happy' (Gilroy, 14). Mama King, on the other hand, plays with some leaves outside and escapes in her memories. She remembers the feeling of pride in her ability to acquire costumes for her children, Token falling ill, and both her daughters finding good jobs; Token as a nurse and Cylette as a secretary. Matron startles Mama King from her recollections with the statement that Mama King is staring as if she is mad. She gives a saucy response and goes to her room, where she falls asleep. She awoke around dusk and Nurse Douglas gave her a cup of cocoa tea. She tells the nurse that she wants to go home, but the nurse advises her to count her blessings. Mama asks for pen and paper and pens a letter to her daughter, Token, telling her that she wants to go home. The nurse promises to post the letter for Mama King, but she suspects that none of her letters get posted. Miss Mason visits Mama and tries to console her with a message from Danny, but Mama is not receptive to her comments and snaps at her. She sits by the window in her room and slips back into memory. She recalls a man, Ben Le Cage, who tried to court her and she rejected him. She fell asleep and had a dream about Danny choosing to be with Matron, and not her because she was too old. She woke up feeling very disconcerted.
Chapter 5
Ginchi visits Frangipani House on Sunday. The nurses and residents are on their best behaviour. Ginchi reminisces with Mama King, but she is immersed in her own memories. Mama, in her moment of lucidity, complains about not receiving responses to her letters to Token and Ginchi promises to ensure that her letters are mailed. Before Ginchi leaves, Mama repeats her request to go home and to have her letters answered. Ginchi repeats that she will fix the problem. At that moment, Nurse Tibbs asks Mama if she wants something to eat and she sees one of Mama King's letters in her pocket. Ginchi distracts the nurse with a conversation about the state of her apron and picks the letter from her pocket. She leaves and Matron's dog enters. She empathizes with the dog because he too is owned by Matron.
Chapter 6
The visitors leave and the rythm of Frangipani House falls back into place. Mama King, while looking through her window, remembers taking care of her grandchildren - Solo and Cindy - and then losing them when Token takes them to live with her in America. She also remembers being the caregiver for her other daughter, Cylette's, children. She remembers when Boyson drowns and how Cylette did not blame her. We learn, from the nurses' gossip, that Miss Tilly has had six children by five different men. Nurse Carey comments that Miss Tilly's children care about her because they take excellent care of her. Nurse Agnes shares that she believes that Mama King is sulky, and has not made up her mind about how to feel about her. She eventually goes to Mama King's room in order to clean it, and tries to wake Mama King in a very rough manner. Nurse Douglas, however, prevents Nurse Agnes from disturbing her. In her half-conscious state, Mama remembers fishing with her aunt Lula. She awakens to find that Miss Tilly died in the night. Mother Tuney starts crying because she believes that she is next. Mama tries to console her and then starts to talk to herself about Olga Turvey's secret in the shower. She asks for assistance to dry her back and gives the nurse a sound cursing when she is too rough. This conversation drags her into a memory of herself and Danny walking on the beach. This chapter ends with Mama King reflecting on life and death.
Chapter 7
Mama King goes to pay her last respects to Miss Tilly in the 'dead-room'. She sings her favourite song and wishes that she were in Tilly's place. Matron interrupts her gazing through the window, in her room, to tell her that she has a visitor. It is Ben Le Cage. Ben and Mama King end up arguing and Ben reveals that Mama King was physically abused by Danny. Ben leaves, disappointed in their encounter.
Chapter 8
The incident with Ben Le Cage upset Mama King and she became very uncooperative and sulky. Matron punished her because she asked for two sausages, one for her and the other for Danny. Matron gave Mama King the sausages, but she took her false teeth, which made eating the sausages an arduous task. Matron's dog ended up eating the sausages. Miss Mason pays Mama King a visit and produces Mama King's false teeth and a five-dollar bill, all of which she pilfered from Matron's office. The sight of the five-dollar bill triggers a memory of Cylette's children. The reader learns about the out-of-control Charlie who died young, Boyson, who drowned, and Markey, who has a successful career in the Navy. This memory triggers yet another memory that she verbalizes, but the nurses cannot understand. She remembers Frankie, a half-Portuguese shop owner who showed an interest in her, but she rejected him. Ginchy thought the decision was stupid, but Tilly responded to his overtures and received groceries and a baby. Carlton then delivers the message that Ginchie will miss her usual Sunday visit, but Markey is coming to pay her a visit. A discussion on marriage then ensues, because Nurse Carey shares the fact that she is engaged. The chapter ends with the nurse querying if Mama King is coming to the party.
Chapter 9
Miss Mason dies on her ninetieth birthday. During all the activity, Mama King recalls her stint as a brick breaker, along with memories of Markey and his promise to take her home. She hovers between happiness, fear, and anxiety while she waits for Markey's arrival. The big day arrives and Markey is shocked at the sight of Mama King. He sends greetings and love from the family and spends some time with her. He speaks to Ginchi about the shock that he felt at the sight of Mama. He tells Ginchie that he will report his findings and observations to his mother, but it will take a while to reach her because he is traveling. He gave Ginchie twenty dollars and asked her to take care of his grandmother.
Chapter 10
Markey stops at a vendor and tries some sous. He breaks down and starts to cry and the taxi driver talks to him. He purchases some flowers and asks the taxi driver to deliver them to his grandmother because the living should receive flowers. Mama King, when she receives the flowers, wonders why she has received them because only the dead receive flowers. Markey's visit sparks a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree change in Mama King. She is more cooperative and, as a result, is given freedom to walk the grounds, and less supervision on a general level. She became friends with Mrs. Gomez, Miss Mason's replacement, and learned of the death of her five babies, along with the fact that she suffers from 'fits'. She slyly tells Mrs. Gomez that if she gets an attack of 'fits' on Friday, beggars will take her illness away. She then begins to formulate a plan of escape that involves using Mrs. Gomez's illness as a distraction. This preoccupation triggers memories of Markey.
Chapter 11
Mama King is sad because she missed her granddaughter's wedding. She blames Matron for this oversight and curses her. She recalls a game that she used to play with her grandchildren when they were sick and hugs herself. Ginchie and Carlton find her in this position and she tells them that Markey is coming for her, and if he does not, she will find him. Miss Ginchie begs her not to do anything stupid, but Mama is very secretive. Her days were preoccupied with planning her escape. Unfortunately, Mrs. Gomez had a stroke and, essentially, became a vegetable.
Chapter 12
Friday arrives and Mama steals out of the house and goes to the latrine. The beggars arrive and Matron gives her donation. They find her in the latrine and she communicates her need to escape. They hide Mama King in the midst of them and take her away from Frangipani House. Mama King feels contented among them.
Chapter 13
The police sergeant visits the beggars to ask if they have any information about Mama King's disappearance. Their answer is no, but they promise to contact him if they ever see her. Mama King is content among the beggars, but this contentment is marred by her concern over the fact that Markey has not tried to find her and she cannot locate him. She keeps away from Frangipani House because Matron suspects that the beggars were involved in Mama King's disappearance. Meanwhile, at Frangipani House, Matron is very anxious about Mama King's disappearance due to the adverse effect that it could have on her reputation. She calls Bubble Elder, a police officer, to assist her in finding Mama King.
Chapter 14
Mama King and Sumintra go to the market. Sumintra collects her package and is ready to leave, but Mama King is missing. Mama told someone's fortune for money and returned to Sumintra. She decides that she wants to share a bottle of Mauby with her new friends. She follows some boys to buy the Mauby, but they attack and rob her. Sumintra sounds the alarm and runs away, and the crowd of spectators descends. Carlton happens to be in the crowd and recognizes Mama King. The reader then learns that Mama King's family is on the way. Meanwhile, in a half-conscious state, Mama King reminisces about her family.
Chapter 15
Mama King was put in intensive care because she was in a coma. Meanwhile, reporters hound Matron about shirking her duties. Mama pulls out of the coma on the back of a memory about being in poverty, and Matron is relieved that she has not died. However, she faces the news that Mama's family is descending on the island. Matron immerses herself in unhappy memories of her own mother. She is interrupted by Carlton, who tells her that he will be absent from work, the following day because he must take Ginchie to the hospital for a boil on her breast. She asks him to kill a kid (baby goat), that has been annoying her before he leaves. She drowns her sorrows in a bottle of rum after he leaves.
Chapter 16
Ginchie refused a mastectomy but went to the hospital to tell Mama that she killed Danny. Mama simply looked at Ginchie when the revelation was made. Ginchie went home and, free of her burden, died. She was buried the next afternoon. Meanwhile, Mama King, hovering between life and death, chooses life.
Chapter 17
Mama King is half-conscious when Carlton visits and delivers the news of Ginchie's death. He tells her about the funeral that she did not get to attend. Mama King tells Carlton the story behind how he came to be fostered by Ginchie. Carlton goes home to pack but notices a light in Mama King's house. He investigates and finds that Mama King's family has arrived. He reminisces with them, but, upon leaving, finds that Miss Ginchie's house is on fire.
Chapter 18
Matron feared a confrontation with Mama's daughters. The fated day, however, finally arrives and she is condemned for stealing Mama King's self-respect. Cylette declares that she will be taking her mother home with her. When they leave, Matron asks Nurse Douglas to comfort her. Carlton tells Matron that he is leaving for good and delivers the news that Nurse Carey is leaving as well. She is going to marry Solo, who is a doctor and live in America.
Chapter 19
The old ladies discuss the topic of marriage, based on Nurse Carey's engagement. The comments are mostly negative, but Matron's story, based on her marriage at sixteen to an old man, is the worst. Matron visits Mama King and asks her to return to Frangipani House, but Mama says no, she would prefer to live with the beggars. She falls asleep and wakes to the sight of her family and they discuss her future. Cylette and Cindy want to care for Mama themselves, but Token insists on the fact that Mama King should stay at Frangipani House. Mama falls asleep during the discussion and Cindy declares that she chooses Mama King.
Chapter 20
Token, Cylette, and Markey talk about their issues with family, Mama, and poverty. Token decides that Mama must go back to Frangipani House, while Cindy and Chuck decide to become Mama's caregivers. Cindy and Chuck remain on the island, while the other family members leave. They try to hurry the process of acquiring Mama King's papers along because Cindy's due date, for her baby, was near.
Chapter 21
Mama King reflects on how life has 'reconstituted' her. She has had the roles of child, woman, wife, mother, grandmother, mad-head old woman, beggar, and old woman at peace. She recalls her friend Julia McAbe and her daughter Tina. She is interrupted by Sumintra, who brings greetings from the beggars. She comments on Cindy's 'bigness' (she is pregnant) and, along with the other women, gives her advice.
Chapter 22
Cindy goes into labour and the midwife is called. She delivers twin boys and Mama King buries the afterbirth. Mama King decides to stay in Guyana because she believes that the young couple does not need her. The new parents named the twins Amos and Cindy.
Chapter 1
Frangipani House, named for the trees that surround it, is a beautiful and stately home for the elderly. People who get the opportunity to go there are viewed as lucky, and the owner has an excellent reputation. This reputation, however, is undercut by her greed and need for power. The owner, Olga Trask (Matron), receives a call from Token, Mama King's daughter. She resides in New York and has called to secure a place for her mother at Frangipani House. The cost for her stay is four hundred to five hundred dollars a month. Mama King arrives and is, initially, excited by the order that characterizes the home. However, this excitement quickly erodes and transforms into boredom and discontent. She voices these feelings but is ignored by the matron. The only thing that breaks the monotony is the screaming of Miss Tilly, along with some other elderly ladies.
Chapter 2
Mama King listens to the sounds of Frangipani House and feels isolated. She recalls the day that she met Danny, but is interrupted by a nurse who tries to coax her to eat. She talks to the young nurse and is able to trace her, the nurse's, family tree. Mama King dozes off, awakens, then immerses herself in memories of Danny and their secret rendezvous. She surfaces to face her reality and screams that she wants to go home.
Chapter 3
The nurses give Mama King drugged Coca-Cola in order to calm her down. We are introduced to Mrs. Mason, an 89-year-old retired teacher who is a voracious reader of love novels. She is full of life and mischief and the young nurse appears to be very fond of her. The nurse shares a bit of her life, outside of Frangipani House, with Miss Mason. The peace is disturbed by Mama King's loud talking in her room, and nurses scurrying to quiet her. Mama King talks about Danny and ends up calling for him. Miss Mason tries to explain why Mama is behaving in this manner, but the nurses ignore her.
Chapter 4
Miss Mason amuses the nurses at bedtime by wearing all her night clothes simultaneously. They wait until she falls asleep to undress her. Nurse Douglas warns, however, that Miss Mason, despite her amusing antics, is 'fake-happy' (Gilroy, 14). Mama King, on the other hand, plays with some leaves outside and escapes in her memories. She remembers the feeling of pride in her ability to acquire costumes for her children, Token falling ill, and both her daughters finding good jobs; Token as a nurse and Cylette as a secretary. Matron startles Mama King from her recollections with the statement that Mama King is staring as if she is mad. She gives a saucy response and goes to her room, where she falls asleep. She awoke around dusk and Nurse Douglas gave her a cup of cocoa tea. She tells the nurse that she wants to go home, but the nurse advises her to count her blessings. Mama asks for pen and paper and pens a letter to her daughter, Token, telling her that she wants to go home. The nurse promises to post the letter for Mama King, but she suspects that none of her letters get posted. Miss Mason visits Mama and tries to console her with a message from Danny, but Mama is not receptive to her comments and snaps at her. She sits by the window in her room and slips back into memory. She recalls a man, Ben Le Cage, who tried to court her and she rejected him. She fell asleep and had a dream about Danny choosing to be with Matron, and not her because she was too old. She woke up feeling very disconcerted.
Chapter 5
Ginchi visits Frangipani House on Sunday. The nurses and residents are on their best behaviour. Ginchi reminisces with Mama King, but she is immersed in her own memories. Mama, in her moment of lucidity, complains about not receiving responses to her letters to Token and Ginchi promises to ensure that her letters are mailed. Before Ginchi leaves, Mama repeats her request to go home and to have her letters answered. Ginchi repeats that she will fix the problem. At that moment, Nurse Tibbs asks Mama if she wants something to eat and she sees one of Mama King's letters in her pocket. Ginchi distracts the nurse with a conversation about the state of her apron and picks the letter from her pocket. She leaves and Matron's dog enters. She empathizes with the dog because he too is owned by Matron.
Chapter 6
The visitors leave and the rythm of Frangipani House falls back into place. Mama King, while looking through her window, remembers taking care of her grandchildren - Solo and Cindy - and then losing them when Token takes them to live with her in America. She also remembers being the caregiver for her other daughter, Cylette's, children. She remembers when Boyson drowns and how Cylette did not blame her. We learn, from the nurses' gossip, that Miss Tilly has had six children by five different men. Nurse Carey comments that Miss Tilly's children care about her because they take excellent care of her. Nurse Agnes shares that she believes that Mama King is sulky, and has not made up her mind about how to feel about her. She eventually goes to Mama King's room in order to clean it, and tries to wake Mama King in a very rough manner. Nurse Douglas, however, prevents Nurse Agnes from disturbing her. In her half-conscious state, Mama remembers fishing with her aunt Lula. She awakens to find that Miss Tilly died in the night. Mother Tuney starts crying because she believes that she is next. Mama tries to console her and then starts to talk to herself about Olga Turvey's secret in the shower. She asks for assistance to dry her back and gives the nurse a sound cursing when she is too rough. This conversation drags her into a memory of herself and Danny walking on the beach. This chapter ends with Mama King reflecting on life and death.
Chapter 7
Mama King goes to pay her last respects to Miss Tilly in the 'dead-room'. She sings her favourite song and wishes that she were in Tilly's place. Matron interrupts her gazing through the window, in her room, to tell her that she has a visitor. It is Ben Le Cage. Ben and Mama King end up arguing and Ben reveals that Mama King was physically abused by Danny. Ben leaves, disappointed in their encounter.
Chapter 8
The incident with Ben Le Cage upset Mama King and she became very uncooperative and sulky. Matron punished her because she asked for two sausages, one for her and the other for Danny. Matron gave Mama King the sausages, but she took her false teeth, which made eating the sausages an arduous task. Matron's dog ended up eating the sausages. Miss Mason pays Mama King a visit and produces Mama King's false teeth and a five-dollar bill, all of which she pilfered from Matron's office. The sight of the five-dollar bill triggers a memory of Cylette's children. The reader learns about the out-of-control Charlie who died young, Boyson, who drowned, and Markey, who has a successful career in the Navy. This memory triggers yet another memory that she verbalizes, but the nurses cannot understand. She remembers Frankie, a half-Portuguese shop owner who showed an interest in her, but she rejected him. Ginchy thought the decision was stupid, but Tilly responded to his overtures and received groceries and a baby. Carlton then delivers the message that Ginchie will miss her usual Sunday visit, but Markey is coming to pay her a visit. A discussion on marriage then ensues, because Nurse Carey shares the fact that she is engaged. The chapter ends with the nurse querying if Mama King is coming to the party.
Chapter 9
Miss Mason dies on her ninetieth birthday. During all the activity, Mama King recalls her stint as a brick breaker, along with memories of Markey and his promise to take her home. She hovers between happiness, fear, and anxiety while she waits for Markey's arrival. The big day arrives and Markey is shocked at the sight of Mama King. He sends greetings and love from the family and spends some time with her. He speaks to Ginchi about the shock that he felt at the sight of Mama. He tells Ginchie that he will report his findings and observations to his mother, but it will take a while to reach her because he is traveling. He gave Ginchie twenty dollars and asked her to take care of his grandmother.
Chapter 10
Markey stops at a vendor and tries some sous. He breaks down and starts to cry and the taxi driver talks to him. He purchases some flowers and asks the taxi driver to deliver them to his grandmother because the living should receive flowers. Mama King, when she receives the flowers, wonders why she has received them because only the dead receive flowers. Markey's visit sparks a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree change in Mama King. She is more cooperative and, as a result, is given freedom to walk the grounds, and less supervision on a general level. She became friends with Mrs. Gomez, Miss Mason's replacement, and learned of the death of her five babies, along with the fact that she suffers from 'fits'. She slyly tells Mrs. Gomez that if she gets an attack of 'fits' on Friday, beggars will take her illness away. She then begins to formulate a plan of escape that involves using Mrs. Gomez's illness as a distraction. This preoccupation triggers memories of Markey.
Chapter 11
Mama King is sad because she missed her granddaughter's wedding. She blames Matron for this oversight and curses her. She recalls a game that she used to play with her grandchildren when they were sick and hugs herself. Ginchie and Carlton find her in this position and she tells them that Markey is coming for her, and if he does not, she will find him. Miss Ginchie begs her not to do anything stupid, but Mama is very secretive. Her days were preoccupied with planning her escape. Unfortunately, Mrs. Gomez had a stroke and, essentially, became a vegetable.
Chapter 12
Friday arrives and Mama steals out of the house and goes to the latrine. The beggars arrive and Matron gives her donation. They find her in the latrine and she communicates her need to escape. They hide Mama King in the midst of them and take her away from Frangipani House. Mama King feels contented among them.
Chapter 13
The police sergeant visits the beggars to ask if they have any information about Mama King's disappearance. Their answer is no, but they promise to contact him if they ever see her. Mama King is content among the beggars, but this contentment is marred by her concern over the fact that Markey has not tried to find her and she cannot locate him. She keeps away from Frangipani House because Matron suspects that the beggars were involved in Mama King's disappearance. Meanwhile, at Frangipani House, Matron is very anxious about Mama King's disappearance due to the adverse effect that it could have on her reputation. She calls Bubble Elder, a police officer, to assist her in finding Mama King.
Chapter 14
Mama King and Sumintra go to the market. Sumintra collects her package and is ready to leave, but Mama King is missing. Mama told someone's fortune for money and returned to Sumintra. She decides that she wants to share a bottle of Mauby with her new friends. She follows some boys to buy the Mauby, but they attack and rob her. Sumintra sounds the alarm and runs away, and the crowd of spectators descends. Carlton happens to be in the crowd and recognizes Mama King. The reader then learns that Mama King's family is on the way. Meanwhile, in a half-conscious state, Mama King reminisces about her family.
Chapter 15
Mama King was put in intensive care because she was in a coma. Meanwhile, reporters hound Matron about shirking her duties. Mama pulls out of the coma on the back of a memory about being in poverty, and Matron is relieved that she has not died. However, she faces the news that Mama's family is descending on the island. Matron immerses herself in unhappy memories of her own mother. She is interrupted by Carlton, who tells her that he will be absent from work, the following day because he must take Ginchie to the hospital for a boil on her breast. She asks him to kill a kid (baby goat), that has been annoying her before he leaves. She drowns her sorrows in a bottle of rum after he leaves.
Chapter 16
Ginchie refused a mastectomy but went to the hospital to tell Mama that she killed Danny. Mama simply looked at Ginchie when the revelation was made. Ginchie went home and, free of her burden, died. She was buried the next afternoon. Meanwhile, Mama King, hovering between life and death, chooses life.
Chapter 17
Mama King is half-conscious when Carlton visits and delivers the news of Ginchie's death. He tells her about the funeral that she did not get to attend. Mama King tells Carlton the story behind how he came to be fostered by Ginchie. Carlton goes home to pack but notices a light in Mama King's house. He investigates and finds that Mama King's family has arrived. He reminisces with them, but, upon leaving, finds that Miss Ginchie's house is on fire.
Chapter 18
Matron feared a confrontation with Mama's daughters. The fated day, however, finally arrives and she is condemned for stealing Mama King's self-respect. Cylette declares that she will be taking her mother home with her. When they leave, Matron asks Nurse Douglas to comfort her. Carlton tells Matron that he is leaving for good and delivers the news that Nurse Carey is leaving as well. She is going to marry Solo, who is a doctor and live in America.
Chapter 19
The old ladies discuss the topic of marriage, based on Nurse Carey's engagement. The comments are mostly negative, but Matron's story, based on her marriage at sixteen to an old man, is the worst. Matron visits Mama King and asks her to return to Frangipani House, but Mama says no, she would prefer to live with the beggars. She falls asleep and wakes to the sight of her family and they discuss her future. Cylette and Cindy want to care for Mama themselves, but Token insists on the fact that Mama King should stay at Frangipani House. Mama falls asleep during the discussion and Cindy declares that she chooses Mama King.
Chapter 20
Token, Cylette, and Markey talk about their issues with family, Mama, and poverty. Token decides that Mama must go back to Frangipani House, while Cindy and Chuck decide to become Mama's caregivers. Cindy and Chuck remain on the island, while the other family members leave. They try to hurry the process of acquiring Mama King's papers along because Cindy's due date, for her baby, was near.
Chapter 21
Mama King reflects on how life has 'reconstituted' her. She has had the roles of child, woman, wife, mother, grandmother, mad-head old woman, beggar, and old woman at peace. She recalls her friend Julia McAbe and her daughter Tina. She is interrupted by Sumintra, who brings greetings from the beggars. She comments on Cindy's 'bigness' (she is pregnant) and, along with the other women, gives her advice.
Chapter 22
Cindy goes into labour and the midwife is called. She delivers twin boys and Mama King buries the afterbirth. Mama King decides to stay in Guyana because she believes that the young couple does not need her. The new parents named the twins Amos and Cindy.
Contributor: Leisa Samuels-Thomas
Gilroy, Beryl. Frangipani House. United Kingdom: Pearson Education Limited, 1986.
http://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/apr/18/guardianobituaries.books
http://www.berylgilroy.org/
BACK
Gilroy, Beryl. Frangipani House. United Kingdom: Pearson Education Limited, 1986.
http://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/apr/18/guardianobituaries.books
http://www.berylgilroy.org/
BACK
