ISP post #6 - The Most Insight

Now that I have completed the novel The Book of Negroes I can gladly say it is now among one of my all time favourite novels. It was very entertaining to read, and provided me with a new insight on the slave trade. I was able to look at this book with multiple different criticisms which allowed me to have a more thorough understanding of it. Each literary theory provided me with new information about the book that I wouldn't have known otherwise. By looking at the post colonial literary criticism I was able to see how history between the British and the Americans effected slaves. It also showed me what an unexpected character Aminata would have been in those times.  On the other hand by looking at this book with a feminist criticism I gained much more respect for the women in this book. They all were extremely strong even though they had to deal with many hardships.

Although both of these criticisms were very helpful I found that the Archetypal criticism provided me with the most insight on the text. This type of criticism allowed me to find typical patterns that appear  in this type of text and see how they worked in this novel. I was also able to view what patterns the author kept and the areas that he chose to take some creative freedom. This criticism allowed me to analyze the characters in the book and compare how they develop to other novels.

Studying this novel with the Archetypal point of view allowed me to see the choices the author made about his book, and how these choices effected the development of the characters and the plot.

Some character archetypes that are seen in this book are, the great mother, and the wise old man. There are many characters in this novel that could fall under "The great mother" archetype. For example there is Aminata's mother from her homeland. Her mother teaches her everything she knows and is a great role model for Aminata as a child. Another mother like figure in this novel is Georgia. Georgia takes Meena under her wing when she arrives at the Appleby plantation and helps her survive. Although Georgia was not an actual mother she was like one to Aminata. Dolly was another character that was a great mother. Aminata was very scared and lonely when she arrived in Charles Town. Dolly made her feel welcome and in her times of sorrow she comforted her: " 'What's the matter, honey chile?' The sympathy in her voice made me cry even more. Dolly got up out of bed and came to put her arm over my shoulders.'One day your man come back and you start all over again,' she said." (Hill, 236). The next mother we encounter is Aminata herself. Aminata becomes a leader to the people she teaches in New York and many of them rely on her for guidance. She also gives birth to two children who sadly were both stolen from her. Even though she looses both of her children her motherly instincts remain. Aminata is able to take the knowledge she has gained from the other motherly figures in her life and used it to help her become a strong motherly figure to her community.

In many novels there is the "Wise old man" character that people can go to for guidance. In this novel the wise old man is Daddy Moses. He is one of the first people that Aminata meets when she arrives in Nova Scotia. He brings her to Birchtown and helps her find a place to live. The entire community respects and cares for Daddy Moses. They all come together to hear him speak whenever they can and they help him move about as he is blind.

By studying the text with this view I developed a stronger understanding of the reasoning behind using these archetypal character and leaving some others out. For example "the hero" character is not really involved in this novel. Some may argue that Aminata is the hero but she isn't really. She helps many people in many different ways but she is still just an average person. And at the end of the day she cared about herself before she helped others. Aminata was a real person, she may have been a hero in some peoples eyes but she was not the hero of the book. I think it was a smart decision to not have her as the hero of the book. If she had been an outstanding hero I don't think the book would have felt as real, and it would have definitely made Aminata more difficult to relate to.

These are just some of the many archetypes that make this novel so interesting to read! The way Lawrence Hill carefully selected which archetypes to use and which ones to exclude made this novel diverse from many others that I have read. This type of criticism allows the reader to understand why the characters and plot are the way they are based off of the authors choices.

Works Cited

 Hill, Lawrence. "The Book of Negroes." (2011): n. pag. Abstract. (n.d.): n. pag. Print.
 

   

   

ISP #5 - Feminist Literary Criticism

The Book of Negroes is full of strong female characters. It seems strange that in this type of book there would be so many well represented women. This book is written about a time when women were seen as useless and were often considered to be objects not people. Also this book was written by a male author so one may suspect the protagonist to be a man, but that is not the case. The protagonist in this novel is Aminata Diallo, she is the definition of a strong, intelligent, and independent women. From the moment she is taken to be a part of the slave trade, to the moment she dies in London, England, Aminata never stops fighting.

When Aminata was young, she had to learn very quickly how to survive as a slave. While on the boat, she took shelter with the surgeon, although he scared her greatly. This smart decision may have saved her from dying on the ships. She makes many more smart decisions after this that are key to her survival. She listens to everything Georgia tells her which gains her respect. She then makes friends with Mamed who teaches her how to read (177) which is a huge benefit to her later in life. Aminata then makes friends in New York that help her plan her escape from Lindo (284). Yet the only reason she met these friends was because of her ability to read. She was able to make good friends in New York and she ended up helping many of them to freedom in Nova Scotia. Although survival was hard in Nova Scotia Aminata's hard work paid off and she was able to survive, even through the loss of her daughter. Meena eventually was able to lead herself and many other slaves back to Africa; "I would never see May again, and it was time to move on."(416). While there, she had to work very hard to survive. At the end of her life, she headed to England to share her story. She became very sick but that didn't stop her. She found her daughter and wrote her life story and then eventually peacefully died. Aminata's story was nothing short of amazing, and difficult. Her strong will and wits are all that kept her alive. From a feminist perspective she is a very strong female character. One thing with Aminata is that she is incredibly strong and she is still very easy to relate to and real. I think the way that she cried at night for her lost children, and the way she longed for her husband made her seem like a much more real person. These real qualities make it easier for other females to connect to her and her struggles.

Aminata is just one of the many strong female characters demonstrated in this novel. There is Aminata's mother who shows extreme bravery when they are attacked, with the way she, "faced the men and called out like a warrior,"(30). Then there is Georgia who is independent and intelligent and is a huge role model in Aminatas life. These are just some of the many strong female characters. With such an abundance of strong female characters you would assume that females have more power in this novel. However that is not the case. There are many cases throughout this novel where all of these strong women are mistreated and discriminated against. For example when Aminata is raped by Mr. Appleby, this amazing women is put into a state of fear and shame because of this mans actions. After this occurs Aminata says "Still I couldn't move, trapped by my own pain and shame."(184) she almost seemed to be reduced to nothing. Another case in this novel where women are not treated fairly is in New York where many women were used purely for sex by the soldiers then were tossed aside once they became pregnant.

I feel like the treatment of women in this novel compared with the characteristics of these women provides the contrast needed to view the true inequality of men and women during this time period. It is clear the women were viewed as objects not people. Using  a feminist criticism it makes it easy see how unfair women were treated during this time, it also makes it very clear that Lawrence Hill has a great respect for women and that he wanted them portrayed in a positive way.

Work Cited

Hill, Lawrence. "The Book of Negroes." (2011): n. pag. Abstract. (n.d.): n. pag. Print.

ISP #4 Postcolonial Criticism

Looking at The Book of Negroes with a postcolonial critisism made me more aware of the struggle between first world and third world groups. Throughout this book there is a war going on between the American Colonies and the British, for control of the United States. The power switches hands multiple times, but the British are losing more and more control all the time. Although the USA is not completely out of the control of European colonial powers, it is getting close. This constant battle in the book creates two sides and forces the citizens of America to choose who they support. The conflict between the Americans and the British provided a great opportunity for the slaves to seek freedom. One of the opportunities that arose was that slaves were given the option to become free if they fought for the British army. This benefited the British army and gave some hope of freedom to the slaves. "The British were promising us freedom if we fought for them."(302) Because of the upheaval of the war and the beginning of change in beliefs about slavery, some slaves could start to claim their freedom without such a large fear of punishment.  The Americans were so busy directing their anger and manpower towards fighting the British that the slaves, such as Aminata,  had a chance to escape. As Sam tells Aminata "War is inevitable, and the Brits are in for the surprise of their life. They have no idea how angry people are. If you flees now, Lindo won't have time to hunt you down."(285). This rise in conflict is exactly what Aminata needed to be able to escape to freedom.

The postcolonial criticism also focuses on the power difference and highlights Aminata's strength. African people were brought to America and enslaved. This book describes the brutality and racism that these people faced everyday (203). This shows how strong and determined Aminata truly was because even though all the odds were against her she learned to read, write, and speak eloquently. Having these skills was unusual for an African American slave, because most never had the opportunity. By developing these skills Aminata proved to other slaves that there is hope for them all.

It is also interesting how the author chose to have a black female as the protagonist. In history women were usually known to have less power then men, then when you add the fact that she is African it makes it even more likely that she won't have power. Historically you would assume that this character would have no power and would not be valued. This is not the case, Aminata ends up having a very powerful voice and aiding many of her friends to freedom. She is valued and appreciated by all that know her and has helped a lot of people. This is not what you expect this from that type of person in history, but Aminata defied the odd and proved the stereotypes wrong.  

Work Cited

 Hill, Lawrence. "The Book of Negroes." (2011): n. pag. Abstract. (n.d.): n. pag. Print. 

Freedom of Religion- ISP #3

In our North American society, the freedom people have with their religion, has become a prominent issue. In North America, everyone has the right to practice whichever religion they choose. However, this right does not mean that these people will not face discrimination for their religion. Many people that are Muslim see this type of discrimination every day. There are many cases in the news where people have been mistreated for no other reason then their region. In California, on April 22nd seven women were asked to leave a restaurant. It has been indicated that they were asked to leave only because of their religion (6 of the 7 women were wearing Hijab's). No other customers were asked to leave even though they had been at the restaurant longer then the seven women. This is just one of many examples of how the freedom of religion is still an issue in our North American society.

In the novel The Book of Negroes, Aminata faces a similar issue. Aminata is also a Muslim women, Since the moment she left Africa she has been warned not to let her religion show. When she gets on the boat on the way to the Appleby plantation she begins to speak with a man. When she tells this man that she is "a freeborn believer" he becomes very upset with her and says " 'You must never pray in that manner. It is dangerous, and the toubab will correct you with the whip. The toubab will correct us all' " (140). This is just the first of many warnings that Aminata receives about praying. To Aminata her religion makes her feel connected to her homeland and her family. After she gets off the boat Aminata tries to pray to comfort herself, she then says, "But in the toubabu's land I couldn't pray by myself. Praying inside my head felt lonely and futile. As nights came and went, thoughts of Allah faded." (123) This is an issue that still affects people today. They start to feel disconnect from their religion because staying connected causes too many issues; it seems easier to let go. Aminata would often try to pray when she was scared or hurt, but whoever was with her would tell her to stop immediately. She was not allowed to practice the religion of her choice, and she would get punished if she did. Eventually Aminata found a man, Mamed, who was a believer like her (173). This discovery helped her build a new relationship. Her friendship with Mamed lead to Aminata learning how to read. The ability to read made her much more valuable to her future owners. Perhaps finding friendships such as this could help people in our society feel safe and more welcome to practice their religion freely. Freedom of religion was an issue then and it is still an issue now. There are laws against judging people based on their religion, but it still happens. People may not risk being beaten based on religion such  as Aminata did, but they might find themselves to be excluded or mistreated.

Work Cited

"Hijab Discrimination: California Muslims Sue over Religious Intolerance - Firstpost." Firstpost 
           Hijab Discrimination California Muslims Sue over Religious Intolerance Comments. N.p.,
           2016. Web. 05 May 2016.

 Hill, Lawrence. The Book of Negroes. Toronto: Harper Perennial, 2011. Print.