Joe uses an old Testament verse to describe the situation Missie May has introduced into their happy, simple lives. The story of Lot, his wife, and his daughters fleeing the city of Sodom during it's destruction by fire and brimstone.
When she turned from the stove and bent to set the cup beside Joe's plate, she saw the yellow coin on the table between them. She slumped into her seat and wept into her arms. Presently Joe said calmly, "Missie May, you cry too much. Don't look back lak Lot's wife and turn to salt" (993).
This parable has so many controversial themes that I was unprepared for it's use by Joe. Sodomy comes to mind first. But I think Joe reflects on the virtues of Lot who was steadfast under the temptation to watch Sodom fall. Essentially, I concluded that Joe comes to the revelation that his humble, Negro life is comparable to the Rockefellers, Fords, and Slemmons in the world. Joe urges his wife "not to look back" and he means she should not dwell on the past and more importantly not to envy others lives. He realizes there may be severe repercussions to envy from a distance and that he and Missie Mae don't have to look at others to determine the value of their lives.
Why does Joe eventually use Slemmon's gold piece to purchase his wife candy?
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