Marigolds

In “Marigolds,” Eugenia Collier explicitly explores the ways that her main character, Lizabeth, has a painful Coming of Age at 14 when she destroys the marigolds of an elderly woman in a malicious attack. Lizabeth straddles childhood and womanhood, not quite comfortable in the identity of a child but not yet understanding what womanhood means. Because her mother works long hours in a white family’s home and her father is out searching desperately for work, Lizabeth is left without much adult supervision or guidance during this tumultuous time.

When Lizabeth leads the attack against Miss Lottie’s marigolds during a game with the other children, she is surprised by how she feels afterward. The text says, “Suddenly I was ashamed, and I did not like being ashamed. The child in me sulked and said it was all in fun, but the woman in me flinched at the thought of the malicious attack that I had led. The mood lasted all afternoon” (8). Lizabeth has a dawning awareness that the “games” that she and the other children play are cruel and that their actions are hurting