"Grandfather (1930)" Summary

The narrator's maternal grandfather works for the railroad and visits when his travels bring him to town. In preparation, Mother scrubs the five-year-old, until his hands are raw, and dresses him in his Sunday best. She cleans the apartment thoroughly and buys expensive real coffee beans. Grandfather inspects the hands before he will shake them and the bottoms of his shoes for proper polishing. He assumes the position at the head of the table and never fails to remind Father of his failure to take care of his family. He ought to have joined the railroad, as the narrator certainly will. Father can say nothing, because Grandfather's checks tide them while he is on unemployment.

A bump is heard overhead, and Father explains that it is Friedrich, the narrator's friend. The Schneiders are a nice Jewish family. Grandfather tells about an...