Symbolism

Passage from page 8

"...There was one pretty object in the room, a basket of colored spools of thread which sat on the sill of the window facing Pirate's Alley. By candlelight, the warmth of the colors made me think the thread would throw off a perfume like a garden of flowers.
But these spools were not used for our clothes. They were for the silks and muslins and laces which my mother made into gowns for the rich ladies of New Orleans to wear to their balls and receptions, their weddings and the baptism of their infants, and sometimes to their funerals..."

An important example of symbolism in The Slave Dancer would be the basket of colorful thread that is the symbolic thread of his family's life that binds them together and provides for the family. Because Jessie's mother is a dressmaker who sews clothing and dresses for the wealthy women of New Orleans, she relies on this thread to live and support her family, so they are fully dependent on the thread she uses to make a living. Also, according to the book, the colorfulness of the thread in the basket remind Jessie of the life he would like to have (the rich, the opulent, and colorful lifestyle), which is a sharp contrast to the dull, dreary walls that surround Jessie's home.