The first part of the story reveals that Delia and Sykes live in a time of a patriarchal and racially charged society. Delia talking about how she makes the money in their relationship paired with Sykes awful actions and attitude shows that even though Delia is in charge of finances, Sykes still holds most of the control in their relationship. In the first part of the story, Delia is shown to be a mostly independent woman who unfortunately still deals with her abusive husband. Delia makes all of the money in their relationship, and is a woman of God, which is probably what keeps her with Sykes (divorce is a sin). Sykes is the rude, mean husband of Delia. Sykes makes no money, but tells Delia that he wants her to throw the white people’s clothes out that she washes, which is their only source of income. Sykes is selfish and uncaring about Delia’s feelings. …show more content…
As Sykes grinds dirt into the clothes that Delia’s washing, Delia decides to stand up for herself. She tells Sykes that even if he says he doesn’t care, her washing those clothes is what put food on his plate and kept a roof over his head. I think that this exchange shows that Hurston cares very little for the gender roles in society. Even though men are supposed to be the providers, Delia is the sole provider in the relationship and yet Sykes still treats her like garbage. I believe that this is Hurston’s way of challenging the idea of male domination and the patriarchal society being present no matter what the situation