Poor People are Good People

page 1-30/ August 3,2010

Reading Response #1

“Cleo said Poppa’s fortune had walked right out the door on him in paper bags. But then, none of the Threadgoode’s could ever say no to anybody. Honey, they would give you the shirt off their backs, if you asked for it. And Cleo was no better. Cleo and I never did have a lot of fancy things, but the good lord provided, and we had everything we ever needed. I believe poor people are good people except the ones that are mean… and they’d be mean even if they were rich.”

This excerpt from the novel, Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café, is interesting because it introduces us to some of the main characters and their personalities. The Threadgoode family gives off the “southern hospitality” vibe where they believe in friends and family relationships over material items. This family seems to do always good and never discriminate against people just because of their social status. This family’s relationships seem to be interconnected with everyone in their small town. The end of this quote seems to be a motto that they were taught as children and live by each and everyday. This is honorable and it makes the characters even more likeable. This gives us, the readers, an insight as to what we will expect from these people as the story unfolds even more.