Rachel - Chapter 3

1. Identify and briefly define important words, terms, concepts, or characters.

Call- girl- Prostitute., In this chapter Holidays decides that she is done being a prostitute. This begins to put her on the road to becoming a “lady.”

Money- throughout the book Holiday has an obsession with money. Her ways of securing it have evolved. She gets it through her father by embarrassing him. She gets it from the audience by making them cry with her singing. Holiday acquires money generally to take care of her mother who might otherwise be tossed out onto the street. While at first like the rest of the performers she would take money off tables, afterwards she would only accept what people actually gave her. People started to refer to her as a “lady” (in a derogatory way) because of this.

Mother- Her mother appears to be the most important character in her life. She was the motivation that sent Holiday on the path which led to her first singing job. Portrayed as well-meaning, but misunderstanding she once gave Holiday her own money back in tips which she then had to split with the piano player.


Father- Holiday’s father on the other hand is portrayed as not caring about anyone. The only reason he gives the family the money they need to survive is to avoid humiliation. The father serves as a foil for the mother.

2. Summarize the main idea, theme, action, or event of the reading. Be sure to include quotation that best captures the overall feeling or mood of the reading.

“bitch, That aint your mother.”

After all her work for Mother, it is insulting to have her mother’s identity doubted. The entire chapter basically details the various ways that Holiday protects and provides for her Mother. Perhaps this is not evident on the surface but the lengths that Holiday will go to protect her Mother shows this.


3. Formulate a question for discussion. The question should be relatively substantial, based upon a specified passage or scene from the text, and capable of sustaining a thoughtful discussion.

Holiday was forced to think outside the box when searching for a job and took to basically begging for a job from anyone. She tried to be a dancer but failed miserabley. Luckily however, the pianist asked her to sing and she was hired at livable wages, thus starting her career as a singer.

Her mother was about to be thrown out on the street when this happened.

How has Holidays protection of her Mother led her to current singing career? Was this because of specific actions of her mother or a result of Karma, “what goes around comes around?”