Setting

Physical setting

Most of the story takes place in Harlem in the 1980s. Most of the locations described in the novel are presented in negative terms, though there are also a few places associated with positive things. Below, we will provide an overview of the most important locations of the story.

Harlem, Manhattan

Harlem is a large district in the northern section of Manhattan, which houses a relatively large proportion of African-American citizens compared to the rest of New York. The area has historically been known for high rates of poverty, drug use and crime, and these problems still exist today.

Precious gives a number of vivid descriptions of this neighborhood, usually focusing on
the depressing state that the area is in. These detailed descriptions often appear in her personal journal, which means that the language is usually fragmented and chaotic, full of incomplete sentences and non-standard grammar:

Pass 116th ‘n Lenox, more abandoned land, buildings falling down. How it git so ugly is people throw trash all in it. City don’t pick it up; dogs doo doo. Peoples wif no bafroom piss ‘n shit. Ugliness grow multiplied by ten. (p. 110)

Sometimes the focus is also on the differences between the various neighborhoods of Manhattan, highlighting the divide...