Summary report of Sweat by Zora Neale Hurston
Summary Report: Sweat
Vital Statistics
Author: Zora Neale Hurston
Title: Sweat
Published date: 1926
Main Characters
Delia: A hard working, washerwoman and wife that is abused by her husband. She is portrayed as the protagonist.
Sykes: A lazy, stay-at-home husband who is abusive to his wife and has a mistress name Bertha. He is portrayed as the antagonist.
Point of View
The story is written in a third person omniscient point of view.
Setting of Action
The story took place in a small town in central Florida near Orlando. The events took place in the spring and snakes are known to be prevalent in the area during that time.
Plot Summary Sweat tells a short story about a black, washerwoman, Delia that lives in Florida with her abusive husband, Sykes. Sykes is a very unkind man because he likes to physically and mentally abuse Delia. Delia was abused early into the marriage, but never seek to escape. Furthermore, Delia works really hard to earn money to support both Sykes and herself since he is unemployed. Yet, Sykes still have the audacity to resent Delia for cleaning “white folks” clothes in their home. He also uses her hard earned money on his mistress, Bertha. Sykes, as practical joker, knows that Delia has an intense fear of snakes and still brings it around to constantly scare her. Eventually, the people in the town started noticing their relationship and led Delia to the conclusion that she did not need Sykes in any way and no longer wants to be in a marriage with him. Coincidentally, Sykes was getting fed up with the marriage and decided to kill Delia by putting a poisoned rattlesnake in her washing clothes. Ironically, the rattlesnake ended up biting Sykes in the neck badly and it was evident that Delia did not make an attempt to help her husband because the hospitals were too far. So he laid there suffering and dying in pain while pleading for help. The story ends with her waiting for his time of death quietly under the chinaberry tree
Vital Statistics
Author: Zora Neale Hurston
Title: Sweat
Published date: 1926
Main Characters
Delia: A hard working, washerwoman and wife that is abused by her husband. She is portrayed as the protagonist.
Sykes: A lazy, stay-at-home husband who is abusive to his wife and has a mistress name Bertha. He is portrayed as the antagonist.
Point of View
The story is written in a third person omniscient point of view.
Setting of Action
The story took place in a small town in central Florida near Orlando. The events took place in the spring and snakes are known to be prevalent in the area during that time.
Plot Summary Sweat tells a short story about a black, washerwoman, Delia that lives in Florida with her abusive husband, Sykes. Sykes is a very unkind man because he likes to physically and mentally abuse Delia. Delia was abused early into the marriage, but never seek to escape. Furthermore, Delia works really hard to earn money to support both Sykes and herself since he is unemployed. Yet, Sykes still have the audacity to resent Delia for cleaning “white folks” clothes in their home. He also uses her hard earned money on his mistress, Bertha. Sykes, as practical joker, knows that Delia has an intense fear of snakes and still brings it around to constantly scare her. Eventually, the people in the town started noticing their relationship and led Delia to the conclusion that she did not need Sykes in any way and no longer wants to be in a marriage with him. Coincidentally, Sykes was getting fed up with the marriage and decided to kill Delia by putting a poisoned rattlesnake in her washing clothes. Ironically, the rattlesnake ended up biting Sykes in the neck badly and it was evident that Delia did not make an attempt to help her husband because the hospitals were too far. So he laid there suffering and dying in pain while pleading for help. The story ends with her waiting for his time of death quietly under the chinaberry tree