Blood on the Forge by: William Attaway

Introduction

One element of black folk culture that plays an important part in William Attaway's novel Blood on the Forge (1941) is the wishing game. Early in Part I Melody one of three Moss brothers subsisting on a poor Kentucky farm in 1919 begin the game (Attaway 54). His motive is a distraction from hunger while awaiting Big Mat the brother who sharecrops the farm and who may bring some food. In the call-and-response fashion characteristic of Afro-American culture Melody involves his brother Chinatown in the game.

Discussion

Even before leaving Kentucky the difference between Melody and Big ...