slavery

The destructive legacy of slavery is examined by Toni Morrison in the novel, the Beloved. It presents the chronicles of the life of Seth, a Black woman, who was a slave in Cincinnati and Kentucky. When Seth moved to Cincinnati, she lived there as a free woman; however, the memories of the trauma of her slavery life keeps her a prisoner. Seth and Paul D meet on the day the novel begins. They had not seen each other for a long time, and Paul D’s presence resurrected memories about her slavery experience when they worked together two decades ago on Mr Garner’s Sweet Home plantation. The Beloved is like a ”slave narrative” as it entails testimonies of slavery. Paul D and Seth are displayed as people who had undergone through the slavery experience, and the author makes several references to slavery to expose how the slavery system was brutal. The schoolteacher is a character who manages the plantation. He inflicts pain and cruelty to the slaves by abusing and beating them. In addition, he takes notes and measurements of the slaves and studies them like animals. He is depicted as sadistic, cold, and vehemently racist. Before Mr Garner’s death, the workers at the plantation were treated with dignity, and the schoolteacher considers this as a too-soft approach. It is ironic that his own character and habits are very ascetic where he sleeps less, eats little, and works hard. We can say that the schoolteacher relates to the slavery experiences of Seth, unknowingly. After escaping from the chain gang at the plantation, the thing that stood out with Paul D is how he buried his feelings in a tin to avoid being attached.