Clotel Analysis Essay Example for Free

Clotel Analysis Essay Clotel is an interesting piece of literary work by William Brown, as it exposes the depraved social conditions of Chattel Slavery and its effect on Marriage relations between slave and slave owner. Interestingly, I recognized the stereotypes that can develop from conditions of race and class in our society. More importantly, we see how race and class present higher priviledges to mulatto slaves (quadroons), than what William coins as the real negro. Undeniably, there is a stereotypical belief in todays society that light skin or fairer skin people have an esteemed privilege than that of dark skin people. Although fictional characters, Currer, Clotel, and Althesa are real-life representations of that belief because they were mulattos. One may imply that it is quite stereotypical to say that light skin people have a higher privilege that is not necessarily given to dark skin people, although many believe it to be true as a result of the conditions faced by non-mulatto slaves. However, others may not agree. Currer and her two daughters Clotel and Althesa are all protagonists in this literary work. Currer, a bright mulatto was a housekeeper for slaveholder Thomas Jefferson, upon which she beared Clotel and Althesa. Currer being of the higher class of slaves was permitted to hire her time for more than 20 years. Surely Currer wanted nothing more than to raise her daughters to attract attention in efforts that they might marry into their freedom. Compared to ordinary slaves, Currer and her daughters had once lived in luxury due to privileged conditions of being a mulatto slave. Nevertheless, they were still slaves, and often reminded that they were no different than ordinary slaves. For example, Clotel was only 16 when she was purchased by Horatio Green, son of a wealthy gentleman of Richmond whom promised to make her mistress of her own dwelling. She lived in luxury for a while, and even beared a child named Mary with Horatio. The time came that Horatio began to be involved with politics, and his success with politics being of greater importance proved his union with Clotel would soon end. Horatio took interest in the daughter of a wealthy man with whom he found a connect to success in politics. Horatio later married her, leaving Clotel to be sold to a slaveholder at the demand of his mistress. It is here that we discover that even the mulatto woman is not as esteemed with privilege as she was once perceived to possess. She is still a slave , born of that blood. She may have lived in luxury for a while, but it was very predictable that she would be sold again to the highest bidder, and for the latter purpose. What is so significant about not only Clotels character, but also for her mothers and sisters character is that they are symbolic of how mulatto slaves were used as an even bigger commodity during slavery. They were put on a pedestal to feel as though they had more privilege, only to discover that they really did not. Even more importantly, mulatto slaves knew the significance of having been mixed-bred, and how it could be used in attempt to free themselves, just as Currer had planned for her daughters from the very beginning. Mostly, the mulattos or quadroons were the house slaves, and occupied the best situation a slave could occupy. Most of the mistresses of the slave owners in the South sought to make the lives of quadroons intolerable, because they viewed them as rivals. For this reason, Mrs. Green had demanded that Clotel be sold out of the state. How soundly ironic that mulattos could be stuck at the center of the depraved social condition of marriage relations between slave and slave owner? And being of the higher class of slaves still be subject to the will of his master. Were they really of a higher class, or were they no better than an ordinary slave whom labored outside the masters house? Some people have their own prejudices toward blacks in general even in todays society. It is safe to say that some whites even still view blacks as slaves. No matter how fair or light the shade of their skin is, it still does not dismiss the fact that they are born of African descent. As William stated in his work, there was a depraved social condition that placed the slave under total control of his master from the very beginning no matter how light or fair their skin was. Therefore, the stereotypical belief that mulattos or light-skin people have an esteemed privilege over dark-skinned people is without a doubt, debateable.

Death Comes for the Archbishop :: Death Comes for the Archbishop

Death Comes for the Archbishop: A Narrative or a Novel? Is it a narrative or a novel? Few questions have caused me this much trouble. It became apparent to me that Willa Cather's Death Comes for the Archbishop would not be an easy piece of literature to classify. Within just a few pages, it became apparent that this piece of literature is more than either category will allow. While reading the pages of this story I get the feeling that I am not reading a novel, rather it is a series of short stories. I understand why the critics claim that this is not a novel. While the chapters in each section seem to be connected, the sections themselves tend to be disconnected from each other. Each one is able to stand on its own. It is not until I step back and reflect upon the novel that I can see the ties that bind the different sections together. This is not a story about Archbishop Jean Marie Latour, in the end I still do not know him. Rather, Willa Cather uses him as a vessel to display the world around him. It is through him that I learn about the people and places of New Mexico. It is through his eyes the beautiful landscape of the desert comes to life. I can see and smell the land in which he travels. I hear through his ears the legends that make the history of the land so important. It is apparent to me that this is not a novel about an individual person, but about a place. The land and people of New Mexico are the storytellers. It is through them that this series of short stories are joined together into a novel. It is the story of these events that make up the narrative. There is no way to simply classify Death Comes for the Archbishop. It is a novel, a narrative, and a series of short stories. It is simply, what you make of it. Death Comes to the Archbishop could be asserted as something other than a novel. I believe that the stereotypical novel is more structured and rigid in refinement than Cather's example. I see that a strong plot cannot be identified and that the journal approach seems to be misleading. There really is not an antagonist, so in counterpart, there is no protagonist.

The Middle Passage: Hell on Earth

The Middle Passage: Hell on earth Olaudah Equiano’s The Middle Passage is a chilling look into the infamous Middle Passage, a harrowing journey across the Atlantic made by captured African slaves. The Middle Passage is told from Equiano’s own perspective of being captured, allowing the reader to more fully grasp the torturous emotions and tribulations involved in being ripped from your home and shipped a world away.Through the Middle Passage, historians are able to view one of the most gruesome aspects of the journey to slavery from a first person perspective, examining the interactions between many cultures and the impressions each had of one another. The Middle Passage begins with Equiano’s sight and subsequent boarding of the ship that will take him across the Atlantic. It is obvious from the very beginning of his description that this is either his first or one of his first experiences with white people, describing them as â€Å"bad spirits† and believ ing â€Å"they were going to kill me. Fear is the first emotion Olaudah feels, and rightly so: The journey of 1-6 months had a 15% mortality rate, higher for africans during the process of capture and containment. (Wiki) In the subsequent paragraphs, fear turns into hopelessness, as Equiano begins to assess his situation and realizing he was â€Å"deprived of all chance of returning to my native country† As his journey progresses, the true horrors of the trip unfold.The disease and stench of the proximity with which the slaves are held make up arguably the worst of the trauma; many throw up, no doubt adding to the disgust. Historians here get interesting insight into the psyche of the crew: instead of leaving the slaves to die down below, they show vested interest in their cargo, allowing the sickest or most at danger of dying to be brought to the deck of the ship in order to survive. No doubt this seeming empathy was targeted at ensuring survival and thus profit margin rath er than compassion.Multiple captured slaves commit suicide, preferring death over their grotesque conditions, a sickening allusion to how terrible the ship must have been. Upon reaching land the slaves are rounded up and finally given an explanation by other slaves that they will not be eaten, a fear that evidently persisted throughout the journey. They are then rounded up as cattle to be bought by land owners and merchants, a process similar to the reports of slave selling in 19th century America.Equiano’s journey finally over, he remarks on the fact he will most likely never see anyone from that journey again, as he is now alone in a foreign world where he neither speaks the language nor has knowledge of any culture of customs. The Middle Passage tells a tale of suffering, calamity and filth. The insight historians glean from the tale no doubt confirms what is already known of the slave trade: that it is a torturous, inhumane institution who’s end could not have came soon enough.

Reforming Prisons Reforming The Prison System Essay

Reforming our Prison System With the population of the United States prisons growing every day we need to evaluate if they are doing any good. Personally, I believe that we need to keep our prison system, but we need to take steps in reforming them rather than abolish them altogether. The United States has the highest number of incarcerated people than any other country in the world. We must sit down and look at other countries and see what they are doing different than the United States. In this paper, we will first look at what the prison system in America is like and what we can do to improve upon our prison system. Then, we will also look at the Finland prison systems and see if we can learn anything from them, since they have one of the lowest incarceration and crime rate in the world. We will then look at reforming our prison system or abolishing it. Finally, we will investigate other punishment alternatives other than the prison system that we could use. Prison Systems in the United States Prison population. Prisons in the United States have changed throughout the years and became the standard for punishment. Here in America we jail on more offenses for longer periods of time than in any other country (Deady, 2014). Our prison population has increased to over 500% in the last forty years (The Sentencing Project, 2014). A lot of this is due to the crack down on crime and the war on drugs. With the influx of inmates in our prison system we must look at what our prisonShow MoreRelatedReforming The United States Prison System940 Words   |  4 PagesWestphald 1/19/2016 Reforming the United States Prison System The United States is the largest jailer in the world. With only 5 percent of the world s population and a disproportionate 20 percent of the worlds prison population the United States also has the highest incarceration rate in the world (Chamman). 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