The Amen Corner

“Maybe the Lord wants you to leave that man.”

Ida Jackson’s sick baby reminds Margaret of her own stillborn child. Margaret advises Ida to do the same thing she did, which is to take the child as a sign from God to leave her husband. This scene foreshadows one of the bigger reveals of the play: that Margaret left Luke, not the other way around.

“The Lord give me eyes too, Mama, but I still had to go to school to learn how to read.”

This is the first time that readers get a hint that David is doubting his faith. He does not shy away from correcting his mother, which is the first step to him eventually leaving and following his own path.

“I did! I left! To get away from the stink of whiskey—to save my baby—to find the Lord!”

Margaret finally admits that she is the one who left Luke, which contradicts the story she’s been telling everyone for all these years. David learns that his father never wanted to leave him, and Margaret’s congregation will soon find out and question her righteousness further.

“Yes, Sister Margaret, everybody understands that when you got trouble in the home, the home comes first.”

Other members of the church try to convince Margaret to take care of Luke and to find out what is going on with David. Margaret refuses, giving into her pious nature, thinking that it will make her holier. What she doesn’t realize is that this is the very attitude her congregation finds fault with.

“If Jesus had to pray, what about me? He had to fall down on His knees, Crying Father, help me if you please, If Jesus had to pray, what about me?”

Baldwin uses hymns throughout the play to accentuate the onstage action. This hymn is a subtle dig at Margaret, who has become so obsessed with being holy and righteous that she has lost sight of her humanity. Even Jesus prayed and asked for help, but Margaret refuses, as if she is above such an act.

“She act like she way above human trouble. She always up there on that mountain, don’t you know, just-a-chewing the fat with the Lord.”

Although the church initially seems to appreciate Margaret’s passionate faith, Luke’s arrival reveals that she is more human than she’s let them believe. Her hypocrisy leads to some members talking about her to each other, and the line between gossip and speaking the truth quickly becomes blurred. In this way, Baldwin explores The Church’s Hypocrisy.

“She done gone too far, she done rose too high. She done forgot it ain’t the woman supposed to lead, it’s the man.”

Tension Between Men and Women is evident throughout the play. This quote questions Margaret’s authority using gendered assumptions about men and women and foreshadows her downfall. The repetition of “She done” creates emphasis and rhythm.

“I want to know, how come she think she can rule a church when she can’t rule her own house?”

This quote implies that Margaret can’t run a church if her own family won’t follow religion. Baldwin shows how this church provides no room for individuality. Luke and David rebel against this philosophy, tarnishing Margaret’s reputation as a leader even further.

“Son, don’t try to get away from the things that hurt you. The things that hurt you—sometimes that’s all you got. You got to learn to live with those things—and—use them. I’ve seen people—put themselves through terrible torture—and die—because they were afraid of getting hurt.”

When speaking with David, Luke suggests that pain is a natural part of life, not a punishment from a higher power. When Margaret’s baby was stillborn, she refused to face that pain and ran from it, severing ties with the man she loved. It isn’t until later that Margaret internalizes what Luke teaches David in this moment.

“Question is how long you can keep up with the music when you ain’t got nobody to kiss. You know, the music don’t come out of the air, baby. It comes out of the man who’s blowing it.”

Luke demonstrates regret. Both he and Margaret—and, as a result, David—missed out on so many years they could have had together as a family. Both ended up lonely; just like God wasn’t truly enough for Margaret, music wasn’t truly enough for Luke.

“Sister Margaret’s working on another building, hallelujah, in the heavens, not made with hands!”

The play suggests that Margaret is so focused on her future after death that she does not appreciate what she has in life until it is too late. She takes her family for granted and doesn’t prioritize them. It isn’t until she loses both Luke and David that she realizes the home on earth was worth building, too.

“And if it’s all right to blow a trumpet in church, why ain’t it all right for Joel to drive that truck, so he can contribute a little more to the house of God?”

The issue of Brother Boxer’s liquor truck arises, and this time the argument is more pointed. The Boxers draw a parallel to music, which can be used “for good” in church if not outside of it, to Mr. Boxer’s job. Margaret again refuses to give her blessing, cementing herself as an enemy of Mr. Boxer.

“We didn’t get married because we loved God. We loved each other. Ain’t that right?”

As the play progresses, readers learn that Margaret wasn’t always a God-fearing preacher like she is today. Before her and Luke’s baby was born stillborn, the religious gap between the couple was not as great. Luke, in a desperate attempt to reach her before he dies, tries to remind her of the love they shared at the beginning of their marriage.

“Maggie, I remember when you didn’t hardly know if the Holy Ghost was something to drink or something to put on your hair.”

Margaret preaches as if she has always lived a faithful, devout life. Luke reminds her of the truth, whether she wants to hear it or not. There are not a lot of specific details revealed about Maggie and Luke’s marriage, but the play implies that Margaret partook in many things she now preaches against and felt no guilt for it.

“Don’t talk at me like I was a congregation. I ain’t no congregation. I’m your husband, even if I ain’t much good to you no more.”

Part of Margaret’s defense mechanism is preaching: It’s her way of finishing an argument and dismissing any further questions. She operates as if her word is final, but Luke calls her out on it.

“I ain’t going to go out screaming against hellfire […] It would make me nothing but a dirty, drunk old man didn’t do nothing but blow music and chase women all his life.”

Margaret desperately tries to convert Luke on his deathbed, but Luke refuses. He doesn’t want David to believe that narrative. He is a huge proponent of independent thought and wants nothing more than for David to finally experience something similar, even if Margaret will not.

“I don’t care what kind of life he lives—as long as it’s his life—not mine, not his mama’s, but his own.”

Margaret is determined to control her son, while Luke hopes for the opposite. He has seen the damage a herd mentality like that at church can do to a person, and he doesn’t want that for David. A major part of David’s coming-of-age arc is discovering what he thinks for himself and not letting his mother think for him.

“Get on home to your husband. Go on home—to your man.”

After Ida’s baby dies, Margaret grows as a character. She realizes that sometimes bad things happen and that instead of running from the ones she loves, she should run to them. She now realizes that when her own baby died, she wanted Luke more than anything. This moment shows that Margaret’s heart is softening and that she is starting to question herself more.

“Amen means Thy will be done. Amen means So be it. I been up all morning, praying, and I couldn’t say amen.”

This is a huge confession and moment of vulnerability for Margaret, who prides herself on being strong and perfect all the time. In the first two acts, she would have accused someone of blaspheming for saying this, but now, after Luke’s death, she is more empathetic. She knows that sometimes it’s too hard to pray and wish for “God’s will.”

“SISTER BOXER. The truth is a two-edged sword.

ODESSA. It ain’t never going to cut you down. You ain’t never going to come that close to it.”

This quote explores The Church’s Hypocrisy. Odessa is shocked to find out how much the church has been discussing Margaret’s situation behind her back. When Sister Boxer tries to defend herself, Odessa calls her out. This demonstrates that it’s not just Margaret who needs to reevaluate her life but the rest of the congregation as well.

“My man is in there dying, and my baby’s in the world—how’m I going to preach, Odessa? How’m I going to preach when I can’t even pray?”

Margaret finally admits that she isn’t strong enough to bear the pain of losing Luke and David on her own: She is human, fallible, and frightened. In this moment, she is more authentic than she’s ever been during the play.

“It’s an awful thing to think about, the way love never dies!”

In the author’s note at the beginning of this script, Baldwin reveals that this was the first line he wrote for The Amen Corner. At its essence, the play is very much about this quote. Try as she might, Margaret never stopped loving Luke, and she realizes that she will continue to love him even after he passes away.

“Oh Luke! If only we could start again!”

In one of the most tragic parts of the play, Luke and Margaret reconcile at last, only for Luke to die moments afterward. Margaret is filled with regret for all the years that she spent away from her husband; it’s this that gives her the emotion and passion needed to deliver one final sermon.