Bayou Folk

Bayou Folk by Kate Chopin

A middle-aged black woman named La Folle lives in a cabin next to an abandoned field next to the swamp and has never visited the forest beyond her home. She was once called Jacqueline, but she earned her nickname because she went a little crazy after a terrifying experience in her childhood when the young master P'tit Maître arrived bloodied at the cabin of the mother her after a skirmish in the woods. La Folle has never fully returned to sanity, and now she lives alone, knowing nothing of life outside the swamp other than what she imagines in her mind.

La Folle has never crossed the swamp, even when Bellissime's lover died. P'tit Maître now owns Bellissime and has several daughters and a son whom La Folle adores and calls Chéri. One summer, after Chéri has grown old and obtained her own pistol, children and cattle are allowed to cross the swamp on foot due to a mild drought and the consequent drop in water level. On Saturday afternoons, the fields are deserted while the men go to the market and the women do housework.

While La Folle makes her Saturday chores, she often thinks of Chéri, and when Chéri returns, he approaches her before going to the forest to hunt. He has bragged to her before the game that he will bring her from her. Today, however, she hears a rifle shot accompanied by a cry of anguish and runs towards the sound.

She discovers Chéri on the ground, complaining that she had accidentally tripped and shot himself in her leg. She wants to take him to Doctor Bonfils but she is afraid to cross into the swamp world, so she screams for help. Hearing no response, she runs terrified into what is a new world for her.

Other people notice with surprise that he has crossed the swamp with Chéri, but they do not approach her due to her maddened expression on her. Someone alerts P'tit Maître and she throws Chéri into her father's arms before passing out. When she wakes up, she is back in her cabin and goes back to sleep peacefully, easing everyone's concerns that she might die.

The next morning, she calmly wakes up, crosses the swamp, and walks with delight through the new terrain, enjoying the beautiful flowers. No one is yet awake to observe it. She goes up to the verandah and becomes ecstatic as she watches the swamp.

La Folle knocks on the door and Cheri's mother answers, hiding her amazement at seeing La Folle. La Folle calmly asks about Chéri's condition, and her mother replies that she will recover easily. La Folle decides to wait on the verandah until Chéri wakes up and watches the sunrise with wonder and joy.