Sorority Sisters (23 page)

During the 1920s and 1930s, around the time of the Harlem Renaissance, more than a quarter of a million African-Americans settled in Harlem, creating what was described at the time as “a cosmopolitan Negro capital which exert[ed] an influence over Negroes everywhere.”

Nowhere was this more evident than on West 138th and 139th Streets between what are now Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., and Frederick Douglass Boulevards, two blocks that came to be known as Strivers Row. These blocks attracted many of Harlem’s African-American doctors, lawyers, and entertainers, among them Eubie Blake, Noble Sissle, and W. C. Handy, who were themselves striving to achieve America’s middle-class dream.

With its mission of publishing quality African-American literature, Strivers Row emulates those “strivers,” capturing that same spirit of hope, creativity, and promise.

READING GROUP GUIDE

The following questions are intended to enhance your group’s discussion of
Sorority Sisters
.

1. Although sororities have social and charitable functions, they are fundamentally based on the power of sisterhood. How does Tajuana Butler illustrate this in
Sorority Sisters
? What role does the pledge period play in creating these bonds of sisterhood? What makes them so strong they last almost for life?

2. Each of the women enters the pledge period with different expectations, motivations, and circumstances. How do these change from the beginning of the pledge period to the end? What do the women learn about themselves and one another?

3. Both Stephanie and Cajen share secrets they feel will cause others to look down on them, yet both suffer more by harboring the secrets than revealing them. How do Stephanie and Cajen change after telling their secrets to their line sisters? Which is harder, keeping a secret or sharing it?

4. After the pledge period ends, Chauncey’s boyfriend, Don, proposes and she accepts. Although she is technically a sophomore, Chauncey is still the same age as most freshmen; is she right to agree to marry Don at such an early age? Will she miss anything by changing schools to be with him? Would you do the same?

5. The Big Sisters want to test their pledges’ commitment to joining the sorority. What do they hope to achieve by subjecting them to the arduous pledge process? Although the hazing the line sisters endure seems mild, what kind of hazing isn’t right?

6. When Stephanie’s best friend becomes pregnant by her ex-boyfriend, Stephanie doesn’t bother asking many questions and nearly ends their friendship. Did Sidney’s encounter with Scott sound consensual? Is Stephanie overlooking this when she becomes angry with her?

7. Cajen pays a price for her brief relationship with Jason but emerges from the experience stronger and more mature. Why couldn’t she see Jason for what he really was? Are men like him common on campus? What happens to them?

8. Of the eight women chosen to be on line three eventually drop out. What is the difference between the women who drop out of the line and those who stay? What kind of woman is drawn to join a sorority?

9. Tiara comes from a disadvantaged background and seems more mature than her fellow line sisters. How does her background influence the choices she makes? In some ways Rhonda is more of a mother to Tiara than her own, where would Tiara be if she didn’t have Rhonda?

10. Malena faces the difficult task of disentangling herself from a relationship that isn’t too bad but not very good, either. After she meets Ray on campus, she is sure about leaving Anthony. What is the difference between the two men? Does she know what she really wants?

11. Stephanie grew up in a wealthy and loving family but feels deeply insecure about her past. Why does she have such a hard time accepting the fact that she is adopted? Should parents tell their children that they are adopted or not?

12. In some ways the unnamed college in
Sorority Sisters
is a typical college campus, with its mix of athletes, scholars, and students from all backgrounds. How do the line sisters reflect this? How is college life different from a young person’s life before and after the experience?

To print out copies of this or other Strivers Row
Reading Group Guides, visit us at
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A CONVERSATION WITH TAJUANA “TJ” BUTLER

Did you pledge a sorority, and if so, how does the process in
Sorority Sisters
mirror your own?

Yes, I did. I joined my sorority in 1990.
Sorority Sisters
mirrors my pledge process in that I was fortunate enough to be brought into the sorority by young ladies who didn’t abuse the procedure. I will admit that some of what occurred during my pledge process was ridiculous and/or unnecessary; however, there were definite instances where I learned from my big sisters. Also, like the characters in
Sorority Sisters,
I bonded with my line sisters and established a true sisterhood with them that has grown with time.

How do you feel about hazing?

I write honestly about the pledge experience in
Sorority Sisters,
but I do object to hazing. There have been numerous examples of “bad pledging” found on campuses. And increasingly there have been cases where pledges were injured or even killed as a result of hazing. Individuals and groups have acted irresponsibly. Because of that the process had to be altered. If it means saving a life or preventing unnecessary injury, I am all for the new changes.

I entered into Greek life before hazing became illegal. I included that aspect of joining a sorority in my novel because, although the process has often been abused, it did exist and was at one time a major part of becoming a member of a Greek organization. In
Sorority Sisters,
I chose to write about a situation in which pledging was handled with respect and therefore a successful procedure. If more people took responsibility for their own actions, the reality of a fun and memorable experience of pledging would still exist. I feel good that people who read
Sorority Sisters
will have the opportunity to vicariously experience the process without the threat of injury or harm.

Which character in the book most closely resembles you, if any?

I am fond of each of the characters, probably because each of them has a bit of me in them.

Why did you write this book?

Sorority Sisters
is an accumulation of everything good and bad that I witnessed both first- or secondhand while I was in college. I wrote it a year or two after I graduated. I always say I didn’t choose the story, the story chose me. I just allowed all of my thoughts and feelings from that time to be processed and come alive in the form Malena, Stephanie, Chancy, Tiara, and Cajen.

What is next for you?

I’ve been blessed with an abundance of opportunities. I am currently sorting through them all to make solid decisions. For sure is the release of my second novel,
Hand-me-down Heartache.
Also, I am working on my third novel. In addition I am developing sitcom story lines, taking acting classes, and interning in the area of television production. I guess I’m in a learning stage. I’m excited about my possibilities. I’m sure that when he’s ready, God will help me to bring it all together.

Are you going to write a sequel?

A sequel to
Sorority Sisters
has definitely been brewing in the back of my mind.

Sisterhood is an ongoing theme in your writing, both with this book as well as your poetry collection,
Desires of a Woman
. Describe what sisterhood means to you and how it has manifested itself in your own life.

I have been blessed to share my life with two incredible women, my sisters, Kim and Tracy. They are supportive, loving, and blatantly honest. We disagree and argue often, but as we’ve grown older we have realized that a lot of times our arguments arose from our wanting the other to become better. I would have not had the courage to venture out and try new things without their support. Because of them sisterhood means to me unconditional friendship. I am a firm believer that if you don’t have a family or if yours isn’t nearby, God will give you one. Sometimes that family comes in the form of groups and organizations. The sorority was that for me while I was in college.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tajuana “TJ” Butler is the founder of Lavelle Publishing and is also a writer, poet, and public speaker who lectures on sisterhood at colleges throughout the United States.
Sorority Sisters
is her first novel. She has published a collection of poetry entitled
The Desires of a Woman: Poems Celebrating Womanhood.
She is originally from Kentucky, where she attended the University of Louisville. Her second novel,
Hand-me-down Heartache,
will be published by Villard Books in fall 2001. She lives in Los Angeles. You can visit her website at
www.tjbutler.com
.

ALSO BY
TAJUANA “TJ” BUTLER

Hand-me-down Heartache
The Desires of a Woman:

Poems Celebrating Womanhood

Copyright © 1998, 2000 by Tajuana Butler

Reading Group Guide and author interview copyright © 2001 by Random House, Inc.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in the United States by Random House, Inc., New York.

This is a work of fiction. It is not meant to depict, portray, or represent
any particular organization or group of people. Names, characters,
places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination
or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales,
or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

While there are some incidents in this book that could constitute hazing, the author wishes to note that hazing is illegal and is not permitted by fraternities and sororities. The author does not
wish to condone or endorse hazing activities, and the incidents
are merely included as a plot device and are not meant
to promote such activities.

Villard Books is a registered trademark of Random House, Inc. Strivers Row and colophon is a trademark of Random House, Inc.

Earlier editions of this work were published in 1998 by Lavelle Publishing, Smyrna, Georgia, and in 2000 by Villard Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Butler, Tajuana.
Sorority sisters: a novel / Tajuana “TJ” Butler.
p. cm.
1. African American college students—Fiction. 2. African American women—Fiction. 3. Women college students—Fiction. 4. Greek letter societies—Fiction. 5. Female friendship—Fiction. 6. Young women—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3552.U829 S67 2001
813′.54—dc21 2001035024

Villard Books website address:
www.villard.com

eISBN: 978-1-58836-069-4

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