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The most fragile of the Boatwright sisters, May struggles with a deep depression that stems from her feeling empathy for the whole world. All misery, big and small, sends her crying, self-soothing, and tucking notes into her wailing wall. Her capacity for empathy is tremendous, extending even to the cockroaches. Although May’s immense ability to love and care makes her a beloved member of the Boatwright household, her almost porous sense of self means that she takes on too many burdens, leaving her unable to deal with the cruelty of the world. In terms of the novel’s themes of care and spirituality, May’s greatest weakness is her inability to share her burdens with others instead of taking responsibility for the whole world’s worries. The characters in the novel are strongest when they receive help from their community instead of dwelling in solitude, as Lily learns from the Daughters of Mary. Rosaleen moves into May’s bedroom as a way of relieving May’s burden, encouraging her to draw comfort and strength from a friend.
Although May cares for everyone around her, she is particularly focused on racial injustice. This focus echoes the suicide of her twin sister, April, who killed herself at the age of thirteen because she was unprepared to live with the reality of being unjustly hated. Because May is a Black woman, the extreme and violent backlash to the Civil Rights Movement is not abstract to her but rather an active attack on her and her family, even if they are not the physical targets of an attack. Therefore, it is possible to read May’s anxiety and depression not as the product of supernatural empathy, but of the stress of living in a violent, racist world that hates her and those she loves. Her awareness of this hatred is why Zach’s arrest is so unbearable for her. She understands how the criminal justice system could smash the ambitions of a bright, hardworking, and caring young Black man, leaving him with no opportunities. Seeing the unjust hatred so close to her family is ultimately too much for her, and May follows in April’s tragic footsteps.
