Recitatif is the story of two women who encounter each other at different points throughout their lives. The two women’s relationship is complicated due to their differences in race and social class. To better understand the rocky connection between the two, one must consider the setting in which their story takes place.
While the timing of the story is not explicated said in Recitatif, it is easy to guess. Through the narrative, there is a multitude of culture references that place in the time period of the story. While at the orphanage, the Big Bozo mentions the Wizard of Oz, which came out in 1939. At one point, Twyla worked a Howard Johnson’s, which was a chain of hotels, motels and restaurants popular