"The Gilded Six-Bits" by Zora Neale Hurston tells the story of a young couple living a simple but happy life in Eatonville, Florida. Though they dont have much in the way of personal possessions, Joe and Missie May Banks are shown to be content with the little they have and their love for each other. However, the introduction of the grandeur and luxury of city life by Mr. Otis D. Slemmons proves a corrupting force their naïve minds cannot combat. As a result, their lives are turned upside down and the couple is left to try and piece together their broken relationship. Joe and Missie Mays descent from a state of blissful ignorance to one of corruption, coupled with the corresponding search for redemption, serves as a symbolic reenactment of the Biblical story of Adam and Eves fall from grace.

Though a far cry from the "garden of delight" portrayed in the Bible, Joe and Missie Mays surroundings serve as an unconventional Eden, providing them with all they need to survive in comfort. The opening lines of the story describe the Banks home as, "a Negro house in a Negro settlement that looked to the payroll of the G and G Fertilizer works for its support" (1033). Despite its modest circumstances, "there was something happy about the place," its groomed yard and newly whitewashed exterior indicating the loving care the owners put into its upkeep (1033). Additionally, as Robert Bone points out, the "world of Joe and Missie May responds to natural [. . .] rhythms," with the sun serving as the time-keeper and overseer of their lives (150). As the Garden of Eden provided a natural haven for Adam and Eve, so does Eatonville and the Banks home offer a modern sanctuary cognizant and welcoming of natures presence. A pure and cheerful place with "flowers [. . .] blooming cheerily" and the front door "open to the sunshine," their home resembles a pastoral paradise where Missie May and Joe delight in their "joyful mischief" (1033).

As with the story of Adam and Eve, "all, everything was right" for the Bankses until the arrival of the cunning serpent, Slemmons, with his deceitful nature and tempting manner (1037). Every Saturday Joe and Missie May would play fight over the nine silver dollars Joe threw in the door, a ritual that demonstrated their love for each other and contentment with the world. In Scripture, nine, as a multiple of three, represents divine perfection, and here speaks to the seeming perfection that surrounds Joe and Missie May (Bullinger). Conversely, nine itself is the number of finality or judgment, foreshadowing the judgment the couple will face upon succumbing to temptation (Bullinger). Conveniently, the arrival of Mr. Otis D. Slemmons presents the potential for judgment, as his presence is "at once a contrast to the tone and quality of life into which Joe and Missie May have securely and so happily nestled" (Jones 321). Joe is immediately taken with Slemmons dignified appearance and seeming abundance of wealth, commenting that, "He got de finest clothes Ah ever seen on a colored mans back. [. . .] Wisht Ah had a build on me lak he got" (1035). Although Joe is enamored with the man and clearly would like a taste of the city life Slemmons embodies, Missie May, "as an uncorrupted, child-like figure, [. . .] finds little appeal in Slemmonss big-city, womanizing, bragging ways" (Chinn and Dunn 779). Despite Missie Mays lack of interest in Slemmons himself, she cannot help but admire all the "gold" money he possesses, and along with Joe begins to imagine how nice it would be if they had that kind of money: "But he sho is got uh heap uh gold on 'im. Dats de first time Ah ever seed gold money. It lookted good on him sho nuff, but itd look a whole heap better on you" (1036). What makes his gold coins so appealing is not only the assumed monetary value, but also that they are the symbolic forbidden fruit. As Joe informs his wife, "He dont low nobody to touch it at all. Not even put dey finger on it. [. . .] You can make 'miration at it, but dont tetch it" (1036). While it turns out that no one is allowed to touch the gold because it is merely gilded quarters, the naive couple fails to entertain such an idea and dreams about acquiring gold coins of their own. Thus, it is the introduction of the gold coins as the forbidden fruit that marks the beginning of the end of innocence for Missie May and Joe Banks.

Missie May, unable to resist the appeal of gold when coupled with the cunning pursuit of Slemmons, succumbs to temptation and, like Eve, suffers a fall from grace. Interested in the gold and desiring to make Joe happy, Missie May initially attempts to contrive a legitimate means of attaining gold for them. Aware of the fact that Joe both admires and envies Slemmons and his wealth, she initially suggests an innocently hopeful dependence on chance, saying,
"Us might find some goin long de road some time. Us could" (1036). However, realizing that the probability of finding gold money on the street is essentially zero, "Missie May prostitutes herself for six bits to a persistent Otis Slemmons" (Chinn and Dunn 779). Just as the serpent conned Eve into taking a bite out of the fruit from the tree of knowledge, so does Slemmons trick Missie May into sleeping with him to get the gold. Upon being discovered, Missie May pleads her case to Joe, crying, "Oh Joe, honey, he said he wuz gointer give me dat gold money and he jes kept on after me " (1038). It is at this moment that Missie May hits her lowest point, for not only has she corrupted her own innocence, but also that of her husband. Understandably upset by the discovery of another man in bed with his wife, "Joes fury overrode his intentions and he grabbed at Slemmons with his left hand and struck him with his right. [. . .] [He] found himself alone with Missie May, with the golden watch charm clutched in his left fist" (1038). Like Adam, Joes fall is caused by the actions of his wife, but different in that he, too, was taken in by Slemmons façade. By the end of
the scene, both Missie May and Joe have gained knowledge from their transgressions at the expense of their Eden-like home and virtually sorrow-less lives.

Although the Banks are not literally cast out of their home as in the Biblical story, they are clearly no longer in the paradise they once were. The Saturday morning after the affair indicates that everything has changed, for there is no "ring of singing metal on wood," no play fighting, no house cleaning and no breakfast conversation (1033, 1038). The absence of their weekly romp indicates the absence of the innocent happiness they once enjoyed, replaced with an emptiness the gilded gold piece cannot fill. In fact, the "yellow coin" keeps the pair apart, preventing them from bridging the gap that has come between them. For Missie May, the "yellow coin in his trousers was like a monster hiding in the cave of his pockets to destroy her," and not only in his pocket, but at the dinner table and under her pillow, as well (1039). Unable to understand why Joe doesnt leave her but too afraid to ask, she decides that, "If she had not the substance of marriage she had the outside show. Joe must leave her" (1039). At the same time, Joe is also tortured by the coin and what it represents. In the words of Evora Jones, the gilded gold piece "embodies the idea that infidelity can be a cheap affair which tarnishes a marriage with the same deceptive shallowness found in the tarnish of Otis D. Slemmons coin" (319). The coin not only reminds Joe of the affair, but also that he fell victim to Slemmons manipulations and may very possibly have been the precipitating factor to his wifes fall. However, "The sun, the hero of every day, [. . .] came up every morning and [. . .]dipped into the sea of fire every evening," indicating that time continues on and, as with most things, works to heal wounds (1039).

Times healing characteristics take hold, and after about a year, Missie May is redeemed as Eve was, with the birth of a son. Despite their initial schism, Joe returns home one evening to be rubbed down with liniment, suffering from a sore back. By the end of the evening, however, "youth triumphed," and every ten days thereafter Joe comes home both to be rubbed and to be intimate with his wife (1039). As a result, Missie May becomes pregnant and bears a "boy chile and de very spit of [Joe]" (1040). It is the birth of their son and the assurance that the child is, in fact, Joes that finally brings Missie Mays redemption. The Saturday after the baby is born marks their reconciliation, for Joe trades in the infamous gilded piece for "fifty cents worth of kisses, [. . .] indicat[ing] his forgiveness of Missie May" (Chinn and Dunn 784). Not only does he buy candy kisses, but Joe also chooses to re-institute their ritual, throwing real silver dollars in the front door. Although weak, Missie May recognizes the sound of "singing metal on wood. Fifteen times," and does her best to make her way to do the door, showing that she, too wants to be a family (1040). The act of Missie May and Joe coming together is one aided by the "energy of divine grace" as the fifteen silver dollars symbolize, being the product of three and five; divine perfection and grace (Bullinger). At the end, "their affectionate exchange [. . .] is a symbol of [. . .] a wiser acceptance of one another," as well as an indication that the period of repentance is over and that of redemption has begun (Chinn and Dunn 784).

"The Gilded Six-Bits" relates the story of a young couples journey from innocent happiness through sin and temptation, finally finding redemption in a "wiser acceptance" by the end. A tale reminiscent of the Fall, one cannot help but view Otis D. Slemmons as a serpent slithering his way into a joyful paradise and causing havoc with deceitful cunning in the form of gilded coins. Clearly Hurston desired to make a statement about the importance of ones faith and fidelity, as well as the values one holds, suggesting, perhaps, that one ought to be wary of those that would challenge the moral vigor of one group or individual for the turpitude of another. Regardless, the story of Joe and Missie May Banks teaches and inspires, speaking to its readers on a number of levels.

"The Gilded Six-Bits" relates the story of a young couples journey from innocent happiness through sin and temptation, finally finding redemption in a "wiser acceptance" by the end. A tale reminiscent of the Fall, one cannot help but view Otis D. Slemmons as a serpent slithering his way into a joyful paradise and causing havoc with deceitful cunning in the form of gilded coins. Viewing the Banks story in terms of the Fall emphasizes the importance of faith in life and helps to put their trials into perspective. In this way, Joe and Missie May are not seen as needlessly suffering at the hands of a vile tempter, but rather as fighting through their tribulations in order to achieve a new beginning, a beginning marked by the birth of their child. Additionally, it is possible that Hurston desired to suggest that one ought not compromise his or her faith or morals regardless of how tempting a situation may appear. As a result, "The Gilded Six-Bits" can be seen as a kind of parable of faith and redemption, as well as a social message concerning the potential for new beginnings for those people and groups facing adversity.