While searching through the beginning chapters of Jazz for historically significant references , I came across a couple that were not mentioned in class. The first is the “armistice” that is referred to while the narrator is describing the veterans on Seventh Avenue. This is a reference to the Armistice of 11 November 1918 which took place between the Allies and the Germans during the first World War. This agreement stopped the fighting on the Western Front, which was the battleground of WWI. I find this significant because it pushes me to do research on the roles that African-Americans played in the war and how their lives were impacted both during and after it was over.
Another reference that stands out to me is found when Violet is talking (or thinking) about Dorcas. She mentions a school named Wadleigh. I looked it up and it turns out that Wadleigh, an institution still standing today, was the first public school for girls established in NYC.
These significant references make me feel like nothing in Morrison’s texts should be looked over. Her texts are very informative.