I believe the grandmother refers to her daughter-in-law, the narrator's mother, as "her affliction."
Sorry, I'm not able to go in depth about as to why considering I haven't really read the story. Hope this is of some help though!
The most likely reason why the townspeople engaged in bullying talk about Matt's mule is:
D. The town was incredibly boring and they had nothing better to talk about.
This question is taking from "Their Eyes Were Watching God"
<h3>Their Eyes Were Watching God </h3>
"Their Eyes Were Watching God" is a book written by Zora Neale Hurston.
At Joe's stores, there were porch sitters who sat on the porch discussing. They sit down there and talk about Matt's mule, accusing Matt of mistreating the mule. Joe forbids Janie from taking part in the discussion.
For such people just discussing aimlessly actually means the town was boring and they didn't have any other better thing to say.
Learn more about "Their Eyes Were Watching God" on brainly.com/question/3874387
Explanation:
WOWW THIS IS ACTUALLY GOOD