Author:  Zora Neale Hurston 
 
The story begins with Walter Thomas and Elijah Mosely sitting on the porch of a store. They notice that resident Lena Kanty walks off with “giant of a brown-skinned man" – Spunk, who is not her husband. The men at the store begin talking about the sight, and Spunk himself. They agree that Spunk is a fearless man that takes what he wants. One man describes a time at the sawmill when Spunk bravely took over the operation of a circle-saw after a coworker had just died operating it.

In the middle of the conversation, Lena’s husband Joe Kanty walks into the store. Joe is nothing like Spunk; he is a timid, anxious man that doesn’t defend himself. He knows Lena is having an affair with Spunk, but he’s too afraid to do something about it. The group warns Joe that his marriage is in trouble and he’s in danger of being cuckolded. Elijah in particular tells Joe that the pair of them just passed the store, and that he could do something about it now. Joe pulls a razor out of his pocket and leaves the store in the direction of Lena and Spunk.