White Lies By: Natasha Trethewey Presentation By: Amy Miller

Lies White Lies (Stanza 1) The lies could tell, when I was growing up light-bright, near-white, high-yellow, red-boned in a black place, were just white lies. Lies

Stanza 2 I could easily tell the white folks that we lived uptown, not in that pink and green shanty-fied shotgun section along the tracks. I could act like my homemade dresses came straight out the window of Maison Blanche. I could even keep quiet, quiet as kept, like the time a white girl said (squeezing my hand), Now we have three of us in this class.

Stanza 3 But I paid for it every time Mama found out. she laid her hands on me, then washed out my mouth with Ivory soap. This is to purify, she said, and cleanse your lying tongue. believing her, I swallowed suds thinking they’d work from the inside out.

About the Author Natasha Trethewey was born in Mississippi in 1966. Her parents had an interracial marriage which was illegal in her state. Her mother was African American and her father was white.

Background White Lies is about an African American girl who is light enough to pass as white. She tells lies that don’t cause too much damage like where she lives, where she gets her clothes and her heritage.

Stanza 1 Poem Analysis The lies I could tell, when I was growing up light-bright, near-white, high-yellow, red-boned in a black place, were just white lies. Light-bright and near-white are a reference to the girl’s skin color. “in a black place,/were just white lies” is also a reference to skin color and segregation.

Stanza 2 Poem Analysis I could easily tell the white folks that we lived uptown, not in that pink and green shanty-fied shotgun section along the tracks. I could act like my homemade dresses came straight out the window of Maison Blanche. I could even keep quiet, quiet as kept, like the time a white girl said (squeezing my hand), Now we have three of us in this class. She could lie and tell the white folks that she lived in a better place than she did—she is probably ashamed of where she actually lives. She could also lie about where she got her dresses—showing that she is also ashamed of how she dresses. And last she can lie about her skin color—she is most of all ashamed of this.

Stanza 3 Poem