The Tobacco Wives

“I fumbled with my kerchief, folded it in a big triangle, and lined it up along my hairline.”

The action Maddie takes to cover her hair represents her obedience to Momma and is a physical representation of how she hides parts of herself away in the beginning of the novel. The symbol of her red hair evolves along with Maddie throughout the text when she goes from covering her hair to letting it out, demonstrating her acceptance of self and budding individuality.

“Only MOMints are made with North Carolina Bright Leaf tobacco and mint oil to calm our fragile nerves, which means they’re great for expectant mothers—and also for brand-new ones.”

This is the first introduction to MOMints that Maddie hears on her way to Bright Leaf. It establishes advertisements as a central motif and introduces the patriarchal forces around which the tobacco industry revolves since it degrades women’s “fragile nerves.” It also situates the reader within the setting of this specific time period where advertisements like this were commonplace.

“Men were forever giving Momma special treatment, watching her in that hungry way. I tried to tell her she shouldn’t be flirting like that.”

Maddie’s Momma is a static character who shows Maddie patriarchal power dynamics, particularly regarding sexuality. Momma believes that the only way to advance in life is through her connection to a man, but Maddie learns the importance of female independence. She learns her first lessons about Societal Constraints and Female Empowerment through Momma, who remains tightly bound within patriarchal structures.

“I had time too to think about who I was and what I wanted to be. I kept that in mind as I practiced my basting and gathering and topstitching.”

Sewing is an important means of escape and agency for Maddie. It will serve her throughout her life and into adulthood when she opens her own business; initially, it is a way for her to envision a better future for herself and escape the confines of the Holler. Sewing gives her access to money and opportunity.

“I pulled down the windows to try and get a breeze going and instead got a face full of oven-hot air. Rows and rows of shoulder-high, green tobacco plants blurred together like one of those cartoon flip books.”

Myers creates palpable atmosphere when she introduces Bright Leaf through Maddie’s eyes. It establishes the setting of Bright Leaf and the “oven-hot” rural conditions for laborers and farmers that Myers soon contrasts to the manicured lawn and pristine appearance of the Winston home, emphasizing the socioeconomic disparity in the town.

“Her cigarette smelled like peppermint, and she left behind a ring of red lipstick on the light green filter when she lit it. It made me think of that rhyme from when I was a child. Ring around the rosies, a pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall down.”

Myers inclusion of a nursey rhyme here creates a haunting tone: The allusion to a rhyme that have a more serious implication—“we all fall down”—foreshadows the revelations about the harm that smoking does the townspeople and the miscarriages that it causes.

“I guess they’ll be happy to go home to their families once all the men come home. It will be a relief to them, I’m sure.”

Mitzy assumes that the women working in the factory will be glad to return home, but she discounts the ways in which work gives them agency and empowers them. Mitzy’s words demonstrate the power, race, and class differences between the wealthiest in Bright Leaf and those on whom tobacco production hinges, and it shows how out of touch Mitzy is with the reality of her surroundings.

“Angry red welts covered her long, tapered fingers and crisscrossed along the inside of her delicate wrists.”

Myers uses this vivid imagery to illustrate the damage of factory work to the women on the line. The juxtaposition of painful red injuries against delicate skin illustrates the ugliness and danger of the factory work.

“The draw of the clean mint was heavenly. These were going to be a big hit.”

Maddie’s assessment of MOMints the first time she smokes them foreshadows their significance throughout the novel. She doesn’t yet know that MOMints will become the center of a major conflict in a few short weeks, and she demonstrates her innocence in this moment because she has not yet been confronted with the horrifying reality of their danger.

“The pit in my stomach upon waking every morning, the loss of him hitting me fresh as I opened my eyes each day.”

This passage signals Maddie’s grief after losing her father, which is a thread that runs throughout the novel. It adds to her characterization as a resilient young person, and it is what forges her connection to David.

“I couldn’t end up like Momma, leaning on a man to pay the bills.”

Maddie looks to break generational patterns within her family because she sees the way Momma struggled, and this passage explains her commitment to rising above those circumstances. It demonstrates her continued understanding of the complex power and gender dynamics at play during this time period and her emerging feminist views.

“It was strange that a dress could make you feel like you fit in, that it could fool others into believing it too. Who was I kidding? I may look the part, but that’s as far as it went.”

Myers shows the inner turmoil Maddie feels about what her outside presentation portrays, a conflict that relates to The Contrast Between the Opulent Façade and Hidden Realities of Society. Throughout the novel, Myers uses dresses and clothing to characterize Maddie and other women like Ashley, Cornelia, and Rose. One of the internal conflicts Maddie struggles through is her sense of belonging in a place that’s not her home, and her clothes represent that uncertainty. Though she may look the part walking side-by-side with David in her expensive clothes, internally she feels like a fraud.

“But pay attention and you’ll see that it’s all about her. She acts like the perfect wife and pillar of the community but she’s no saint.”

Anthony explains one of the conflicts surrounding Mitzy. Though Maddie starts to understand more about Mitzy as the novel progresses, on the night of the Gala she ultimately comes away with the same impression as Anthony in this passage. His words highlight the layers with which Myers constructs her characters to make them round and dynamic characters, creating a sense of verisimilitude.

“On the far side of the worktable sat still more materials: hooks, eyes, and loops (the expensive Peacock-brand ones), pearl-head pins […] standard scissors, tins filled with rainbows of thread in different gauges, and dozens of new and unopened patterns.”

Not only does Maddie’s sewing studio afford her access to the best materials because of Mitzy’s generosity, it also puts Maddie in touch with the discomfort she feels around so much abundance when others have so little. The imagery suggests this abundance with an edge of danger, since it illustrates “hooks” and “pins” and “scissors.” Her lower-class upbringing and compassion for the less fortunate is important context within this passage.

“How could our beloved tobacco be bad? Tobacco farming and manufacturing fueled the whole state of North Carolina.”

Maddie is conflicted after she learns the contents of the letter, and this passage underscores the economic significance of tobacco which generates The Moral Dilemma of Uncovering Uncomfortable Truths. It shows how even well-informed citizens would have a difficult time letting go of a valuable cash crop that was central to the social fabric and economy of the community.

“He didn’t foresee how temporarily empowering women would complicate matters for him.”

Richard is a static character and antagonist who wants things to return to the way they were before the war, as evidenced in this passage in which Ashley explains the complicated position he’s in now that he no longer needs women’s work (in his estimation). He is characterized by his misogyny and indifference to the experiences of women.

“Men like to believe they’re the strong ones, you know.”

Mitzy shows more awareness here of the gender politics and complexities of marriage than Maddie initially gave her credit for. This is an example of the roundness of her character; she grasps the disconnect between reality and what her husband may believe.

“They like to carry a fuss around with them as if it were an umbrella.”

This passage employs vernacular as a literary device to characterize the people of Bright Leaf and reinforce the setting in the rural American South. Colloquialisms like this lend a distinctive voice to Myers’s characters and situate them within an informal and conversational setting, which provides a homey and intimate quality to the interaction.

“Husbands don’t have to obey anyone. They have to ‘love, honor, and cherish.’ How’s that for getting off easy?”

Ashley’s statement signals her progressive approach to marriage and equal rights. She is an example of how Myers weaves the theme of Societal Constraints and Female Empowerment into her female characters to highlight the forms of oppression that propped up the tobacco industry and initiate character development.

“Women who smoke MOMints are proud Americans, Dr. Hale is a trusted American doctor.”

This passage illustrates how advertising sways consumers and appeal to their values. Mr. Winston utilizes xenophobic rhetoric that relies on feelings of nationalism in post-WWII America to persuade the public to buy his cigarettes and ignore sound medical advice based on its foreign status.

“I was helpless against these powerful men. They’d ruin Aunt Etta and Frances, just because they could. Spite was a dangerous thing.”

Maddie is aware of the uneven power dynamics at play when she confronts Dr. Hale, and he preys on her compassion and close relationships by threatening the safety of Etta and Frances. This passage highlights Dr. Hale’s role as an antagonist in the novel, which draws attention to injustices against women and queer people more broadly.

“I didn’t feel like the Maddie who had been whisked away in her nightgown and dropped off like a parcel in Bright Leaf. I felt more sure of myself, a little stronger and proud.”

The circumstances that brought Maddie to Bright Leaf were out of her control, but the agency with which she acts to improve her situation is a signal of character development. The imagery of arriving in a nightgown evokes an innocence and childlike quality that develops into confidence and self-assuredness. Her growth from a child to a woman is symbolized in the clothes she wears.

“Through my child’s eyes everything was so simple, so clear. But life wasn’t like that. It was far more complicated.”

Maddie’s coming-of-age experience in the summer of 1946 concludes with a greater understanding of The Moral Dilemma of Uncovering Uncomfortable Truths because now she sees that following one’s moral compass is complex. This is a difficult lesson to learn, but it is important for her character arc and evolution at 15. There is room for both Mitzy and Maddie’s approaches when confronted with the truth, which Myers uses as a way to allow for nuance in the ending.