Part 1, Chapter 1

Questions

1. Why is Robert Smith on the roof of the hospital and what is he wearing?
2. Why is "Not Doctor Street" called that?
3. What does the pregnant woman drop when she sees Mr. Smith on the roof?
4. When does the pregnant woman go into labor?
5. What are Ruth's two joys in life?
6. What is Macon, Jr.'s nickname and how does he get it?
7. How do women in the Dead family get their names?
8. How much does Mrs. Bain pay Mr. Dead for rent?
9. What ultimatum is Porter shouting down from the attic?
10. Whose house does Macon walk by on his way home?

Answers

1. Robert Smith is on the roof of the hospital about to jump off wearing blue silk wings.
2. "Not Doctor Street" is called that because people started calling it Doctor Street instead of Mains Street (it's rightful name) because the first black doctor lived there. When city officials got fed up with people calling it Doctor Street, they changed the name to Not Doctor Street.
3. She drops a basket of red velvet flowers in the snow.
4. The pregnant woman goes into labor at the same moment that Mr. Smith jumps from the roof.
5. Ruth's two joys are staring at the grey watermark on her dining room table and breastfeeding her son.
6. Macon, Jr.'s nickname is Milkman because his mother breastfed him until he was four years old.
7. A pin is stuck in a Bible and the name that is closest to the pinpoint is used for the name of the female child.
8. Mrs. Bain pays four dollars a month.
9. He is shouting that if they don't send someone up to have sex with him he's going to kill himself.
10. He walks by his sister Pilate's house.