Thursday, November 17, 2011

Comapring Brown's works of literature and contributing it in a part of my essay


During Clotel and The Escape, enslaved women are being desired by their owners. It was common during this time for white men to want a relationship with their enslaved women, which many were and became known as their mistresses. In both stories, Brown uses mulatto characters to demonstrate the theme of mixed-culture. Both Clotel and Melinda are mulattas that are embraced by their owners.  “When slaveholders developed feelings of affection for enslaved women, the emotional and psychological cost of holding their enslaved partners as property occasionally won out over their fiscal need for human laborers” (24, Millward). Clotel however, was a much more depressing story than The Escape, the female characters in Clotel were forced to marry their owners and have sexual intercourse, which caused some women to commit suicide. “The power of kidnapping, forced migration, rape, brutality, starvation, natal alienation, and family separation gave slaves readily imaginable motives for suicidal responses to their captors and owners” (42, Snyder). In The Escape, Brown does not go into detail if Melinda was forced to do anything with Mr. Gaines but it is important to grasp that both of these women dealt wanting marriages that they actually wanted, denied. Clotel and Horatio Green were not allowed to marry because he is white and she is a mualatta. Melinda and Glenn are denied their marriage because Dr. Gaines would not allow it, and they were constantly separated from one another. Melinda and Clotel are characters that demonstrate the sexual violence that enslaved women had to go through, and the only way to flee from the uncomfortable physical actions of their masters was to escape with their true loved ones. A scholar of African American studies such as Deborah Walker King argues that sexual violence during slavery acted as one of the key imprints in the African American "culture of pain" (23, Millward).

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Created a new thesis- I believe it is a lot better and improved than the last

If you've read my last blog about my thesis, and read my new one- I hope it is a better understanding of what I am going to try and get across in my research paper. I think this one is 10x better.



            Prior to the Civil War taken place, the first play ever written and published by a former slave and abolitionist was created. The Escape; Or, a Leap for Freedom (1858), by William Wells Brown is a work that covers many of the struggles that African Americans faced during the 19th Century. Slavery, racism, sexual violation, and denied marriages are many of the obstacles of hardship that African American slaves faced during their time under the order of their white owners. The play focuses on Melinda, and Cato who are slaves that are under the watch of Dr. Gaines and Glenn, who is the slave of Dr. Gaines’s brother-in-law. Glenn and Melinda who face forbidden love, due to Dr. Gaines’s obsession towards Melinda and hatred against Glenn, creates a battle to keep their marriage united and therefore sneakily decide to escape to the North, in this case- Canada. Cato then renounces to his slave duties as well and follows. Their experience as slaves under white control allows us to understand why African American Slaves during this time started escaping in search of a better life.

Stressed

Being that this is a liberal course that is required, it is not my favorite. I wish I was better at writing and expressing an argument or thesis in a better way. I hate struggling with this because I enjoy the readings that we've done in class, and the reading that I chose for this research paper but I'm honestly stressed, concerned and scared about how my final draft will end up. I'm trying my best to Google formats for research papers on books and hoping I can do the best I can. I truly wish I was better at writing, but it is unfortunate- in the end, this was a good class, that taught me a lot even though I've struggled through it for the most part. Hope everyone does well on their research paper ! Lots of luck to all.

Maybe a thesis? Might change it...Give your thoughts to it if you read it please

Prior to the Civil War taken place, the first play ever written and published by a former slave and abolitionist was created. The Escape; Or, a Leap for Freedom (1858), by William Wells Brown introduces us to a play which focuses on white racism, and the maltreatment towards slaves during this time. A focal point in the play other than race issues is also the concern of attempted sexual violation on enslaved woman, in this case being Melinda, a mulatta slave who is desired by her owner, Dr. Gaines. Brown makes clear to emphasize the “vulnerability and degradation of female slaves by involving marriage in this story of enslavement” (Ernest, xix).

Monday, November 14, 2011

Topics for Presentation

-A brief background on William Wells Brown

-The role of "Mr. White"-the importance of his character. A northerner who in the South for his views on slavery and who responds to this attack by hiding and returning to the safety of the North.

-Black self-determination, coordinate action in the The Underground Railroad, and the songs that they sang.

-Marriage Issues, (Dr. Gaines & Mrs. Gaines) and (Melinda & Glenn) differences between a white marriage and a forbidden enslaved marriage, and their battles.

-Views on Race

-Religion 

-Sexual violence under slavery

-Mixed Race- Melinda and the slave whom a visitor takes to be the child of Dr. and Mrs. Gaines

-National Identity: William Wells Brown being a former slave, and a northern "free black" the child of a white father and black mother, embodied these roles, containing within himself a collective drama of national identity.

-The character, Cato a slave (as suggested by Brown's other writings) is the black-face minstrel type who is a presence throughout the play. Interesting character because he is the character in The Escape who is based most directly on Brown's own experiences.

Overall thought of the Play

This was a very easy ready. Sometimes the dialect of the slaves were a bit difficult but the lengths of their dialect were not that long so it did not make it complicated for me to understand what they were saying to one another. It was a good story, and I did like how it had to do with the 'Escape' of slaves and how they conquered  it and Glen and Melinda managed to stay together after the difficulties they had to face with their slave owners. However, the ending was a bit too fast for my liking. I feel like Brown got a bit lazy and ended it quick, and made it seem like it was an easy escape when I believe it was definitely harder to just over-come Dr. Gaines and the police at the end. It was a picture in my head that I could not imagine being put together. Overall, the story was good and did not take a long time to read so I did not mind it. I also enjoyed the different themes that were brought up throughout the story instead of concentrating on just one main struggle, because it was not just racism that the blacks had to go through, it was also a lot more than that and this story proves it.

Religion playing a major role

Through the play, The Escape: or a Leap for Freedom I've came to realize, that I left out a major theme, in the other blog that I wrote. That theme being, religion.

In the story, Mrs. Gaines is a believer in her faith of Christianity, and one can tell when she speaks to Rev. Mr. Pinchen about his experience as a minister. However, I believe that she was contradicting herself a lot when she talked about religion. One minute Mrs. Gaines would praise God, but then she would treat her slaves like dogs. When Mrs. Gaines and Mr. Pinchen are talking at the table, Hannah (the slave) is trying to clear the table as she is also hearing their conversation, and when Mrs. Gaines notices it, she tells her, that she will whip her well for doing such a thing, and then continues to say, "do go on, brother Pinchen, with your godly conversation. It is so sweet! It draws me nearer and nearer to the Lord's side" (13, Brown). I found it very ironic that she would just tell her slave that she will whip her later and beat her, but then turns away and wants to continue to talk about religion. Then later, Hannah asks Mr. Pinchen, "did you see my ole man Ben up dar in hebben", and I would not expect this rev to say this but but he states, "I didn't go amongst the niggers". A very racist and offensive thing to say, especially when Hannah, no matter if she is an enslaved woman, she still has her religion and her beliefs. It is really absurd that even though they are slaves, the whites neglect the fact that they should have a religion at all. It is funny to see how Mrs. Gaines contradicts herself after Mr. Pinchen answers Hannah because she elaborates, "Pinchen didn't go among the blacks...I'll whip you well when I'm done here. I'll skin you from head to foot", then turns to him and says "Do go on with your heavenly conversation...I do love to hear of Christ and Him crucified" (14, Brown). God, was skinned from head to foot, when he was crucified, so it is ironic that Mrs. Gaines is torturing her slaves, just as God was (as said in the Bible) yet, still praising the Christian religion.

Marriage Issues

Throughout the play, I was really drawn to the relationships that were shown. The main couple of the story, Dr. Gaines and Mrs. Gaines was one that little by little, it was easy to distinguish the disastrous relationship they truly had and not a marriage to admire.

Dr. Gaines & Mrs. Gaines: The white slaveholders and owners of the farm at Muddy Creek, Missouri. I was able to tell that with this relationship, there was no love- at all. In fact, throughout the entire play Dr. Gaines is shown to be a an unfaithful coward. He attempts to make Melinda (mulatto character) his mistress, as he's succeeded in doing with others. At the beginning of the play, Hannah (one of the slaves) states, "we mistresses do have a hard time in this world;  I don't see see why the Lord should have imposed such heavy duties on us poor mortals...I long to leave this wicked world and go home to glory" (7, Brown).

Other than Dr. Gaines being unfaithful, one can tell that his relationship with Mrs. Gaines is not a happy one. Mrs. Gaines is more concerned about the materialistic things that Dr. Gaines will provide her with. In one particular part of the story, he asks her to call him Colonel instead of Doctor. "Call me Colonel, and I'll give you any thing you wish for", Dr. Gaines says, and she replies, " Well, as I want a new gold watch and bracelets, I'll commence now" (21, Brown). Although enslaved marriages were denied, the marriages of the free whites was clearly not the best either.

They're constantly fighting, and disagreeing on everything. Especially, when Mrs. Gaines starts getting the hint that Dr. Gaines is in love with Melinda and wants to sell her, while Mr. Gaines obviously does not. At one point, Dr. Gaines is talking to himself and he says, "That woman is the pest of my life, if there is any place in heaven for her, I'd be glad if the Lord would take her" (32, Brown). But then right after, he contradicts everything he says, and tells her, "I don't know what I should do if the Lord should take you home to heaven" (32, Brown). Dr. Gaines at times is very naive, and thinks that Mrs. Gaines is oblivious towards his
thoughts of her but she is no fool.  "You know very well if the Lord should call me home to glory tonight, you'd jump for joy", she says (33, Brown). What is even more surprising is, Dr. Gaines's reactions. He is so emotion-less, and does not seem concerned that his wife is freaking out. "Come, my dear, don't make a fool of yourself. Come, let's go to supper". I was shocked, and could not believe how calm and not understanding he was. It was truly unbelievable the marriage that they have in this story. And then it is revealed that Mrs. Gaines never really wanted to marry Dr. Gaines deep down in her heart. She could of chosen another man, who actually loved her, and she realizes that she made a mistake.

Themes of the Play

In the play of William Wells Brown, The Escape: or a Leap for Freedom there are many themes. Each of the themes that are displayed throughout the play are all important. Not only is there the theme of racism, which is obvious that there is going to be, just by reading the title of the book (we know that they're will slaves involved, keywords: escape, freedom) but there also themes such as: slavery being present in the North too, not just the South, intermixing of the races (mulatto's), sexual violence under slavery, gender inequality, and slave marriages. This play brings about many topics that are all thrown into one story. Slowly uncovering the personalities of each character which each theme.