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July 27, 2009
July 27, 2009
Haley Mandoka
SWC 100
Simples “Flights of Fancy” as applied to “Duty is not Snooty and “Fancy Free”
“An idea, narrative, suggestion, etc. which is extremely imaginative and which
appears to be entirely unrealistic, untrue or impractical” (Encarta Online 2001). This
defined is the meaning of “flights of fancy” as mention in The Best of Simple, particu
larly in the stories “Duty is not Snooty” and “ Fancy Free”. Both cases involve the main
character, Simple, rambling on to the narrator, expressing his “brilliant” ideas. In the
story “Duty is not Snooty”, Simples “flights of fancy” is his want to be a bird. Although
he knows that this is quite impractical, he is very thorough in his rant. In the story
“Fancy Free”, Simple tells of how he wants whites to be Jim Crowed, to show their love
for Negroes. Both of these “flights of fancy” show a different side of Simple. The audi
ence can now see that he is not just the selfabsorbed “player”, he appeared to be in
the beginning of The Best of Simple.
“What i want is to be treated equal. So maybe if the nice white folks really find
out what it not like to be treated equal after they live Jim Crow themselves I bet you
things will change” (Hughes 198)! In the story “Duty is not Snooty”, Simple expresses
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his want for the white population to experience the feeling of being Jim Crowed. He
does not believe it when white folks say they love the negroes, unless they are willing
to go through the same discriminatory acts that he goes through daily. He wants
whites to experience what it is really like to go through this horrible treatment, not just
live with having a “theoretical knowledge of prejudice” (Hughes 198). The narrator, who
is listening to Simple ramble on about this, only to tell him that it would never happen.
No white person would ever go for his “flights of fancy”.
Simple, himself, admits that he too, if white, would not participate in his “flights
of fancy”. With the treatment of blacks being the way that it was, a person would have
to be “superhuman” (Hughes 197) to go through that. The act of being Jim Crowed
was unjust. Some examples of Jim Crow laws are the segregation of public schools,
public places and public transportation, and the segregation of restrooms and restaur
ants between whites and blacks. Chaos would most definitely occur a white person
were to participate in this. Authorities would not know what to do. If a black person
where to sit in a white persons seat (i.e. Rosa Parks), they could be arrested. But what
would happen, say a white person attended an all black school?
Another story where Simple’ s “flights of fancy” are mentioned is in the story
“Fancy Free”. Simple goes on to tell how much he wants to be a bird. Why a bird? “ A
July 27, 2009
bird can fly high, see with a bird’s eye, and dig all that is going on down on earth”, “I
would keep out of people’s way, but also I would observe everything they do” (Hughes
123). So in simpler terms, he wants to be a bird to escape all the obstacles he faces,
the biggest being the fact that he his a black man that must abide by the Jim Crow
laws.
Simple shares with the narrator what his course of action would be if he could
be a “plain old ugly bird that caws and nobody wanted” (Hughes 123). He want to be
this type of a bird because nobody would look twice at him. He was going to be truely
free. He could travel everywhere and anywhere that he pleased. He could go to Cali
fornia or visit the “ Radio City’s gardens and set underneath a White House bush”
when visiting Washington, D.C. (Hughes 124). He also express things that he would
do that he is not permitted to do, as a black man. “I would ignore FOR WHITE and
FOR COLORED signs I would drink water anywhere I wished. I would not be tied to
no race, no place, nor fixed location” (Hughes 124) Simple wanted to be free of all Jim
Crow laws. He was also keen on speaking of the South. “I would just fly over the
South, stopping only long enough to spread my tail feathers and show my contempt”
(Hughes 124). This line revealed a lot on Simple’s behalf. His words are of hatred and
animosity for the South. He would not give them the time of the day.
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In “Fancy Free”, Simple also talks about greens food,vegetables. This is not as
much of one of his “flights of fancy”, as it is more about his freedoms and rights. He
expresses all the things he would love to eat, “mustard greens, collard greens, turnip
greens, dandelions, locks.” “Any kind of fresh greens” (Hughes 121). However, the nar
rator says “Thinking of greens is not the same as eating them” (Hughes 121). To this
Simple replied, “No, but at least we can share the thought” (Hughes 121). The mean
ing of this may go deeper than it appears. Considering how much Simple expresses
his want for the vegetables, he is unable to have them. This could also be interpreted
as his desire for freedom, total freedom. His freedom is expressed as the vegetables.
He wants so badly to be free; Free to dine in a white ‘s only restaurant, free to drink
from a white’s drinking fountain, and free to vote for any event. The narrator again re
jects Simple’s lesser “flight of fancy”. Thinking of “freedom” is not the same as “having”
them.
Simple continuously came up with his “flights of fancy”, in which the narrator
was quick to end. Unfortunately they were very unrealistic and had no chance of hap
pening. Although, in these two stories it is shown how much of an effect the Jim Crow
laws have on Simple. He has done much deliberating and thinking to come up with his
July 27, 2009
“flights of fancy”. It can almost change the audiences view of Simple, and they can
now see the depth of him begin to unfold.
Works Cited
Hughes, Langston. “Duty is not Snooty.” The Best of Simple. 1961. New York: Hill and
Wang, 1992. 196198.
. “Fancy Free.” The Best of Simple. 1961. New York: Hill and Wang, 1992. 121
125.
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