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2.84 AVERAGE
2.84 AVERAGE
dark
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Maaaaan racism is crazy💀
Fascinating read. Very quick and easy, which surprised me a bit in spite of its brevity, given when it was written, but apparently it only took Behn a few hours to write so perhaps that makes sense. I would have actually loved for her to have spend a lot longer and made a much longer book out of this, exploring some events in more detail, but even in this form it's very impactful and memorable - especially the graphic depictions at the tale's conclusion.
I had to read this for a Brit Lit class. Not bad but not something I'd normally pick up. I got the pleasure of analyzing the role of the three main women for the class so it was kind of neat to think about the narrator and the narrator's perspective on Onahal and Imoinda. As well as what role their gender played in the novel.
This book isnt really enjoyable to read but it is a fascinating window into early abolitionist arguments and literature.
There's a quiz on this tomorrow that's likely to consist of 'Who was the main character?' and 'What was the climax?' and 'Name three unconnected plot points that demonstrate ______' (It's been a while since my last English Lit class and I'm totally making shit up), so I'll get my digressive What I Think About This Thing out of the way here. Honestly, it was a windfall that this was assigned as short things make me nervous and I end up putting off reading them for ages, so a "Hey sup have a novella which you'll be quizzed on in two days kthxbai." wasn't nearly as awful as one would assume. Of course, keep in mind my constant appetite for classics/difficult things/first women to ______ if you're thinking of signing up for any variation on the theme of Neoclassical to Romantic British (English with a dash of Irish/Welsh/Scottish/you understand). It's safe to say I'm the only person in my class who was thrilled at the prospect of this.
The only excuse for this is that it was published 326 years ago. That's long enough for it to become a window into a history that plays out all too well today because, guess what, winners like to be winners and the best way to keep winning is to plant an idea (Inception + actual ideological implications on reality) that being a psychopath (winner) is Just How Life Is and then let it grow into a civilization/supremacy that's alive and well today. Behn is a good example of this because her proto-Uncle Tom's Cabin piece is a good mix of all the bits and pieces that go into racism and make it such an effective virus. Gatekeeping via European standards of beauty, pitting one non-European group against another while erasing the complex conflict with vague categorizations such as "anti-Africa" and racism itself, creating stereotypes of black people naturally having a higher pain tolerance, equating a good slave master with a good human being, "noble savage", "Orientalism", the fact that this is a classic while narratives of Ferguson protesters are being fended off with "Why are you so angry all the time?", "There's still hope for them so long as they get the right European teacher!", and a whole host of others that are still being played out, reinforced, and every so often deconstructed all over the corners of Tumblr. The fact that all of this is likely to be passed over for the test-acing essay on "How does Behn's writing style compare with those of her peers?" and other formulaic analyses necessary for eventually being able to earn one's food is yet another aspect.
When all that's said and done, what's interesting is the tale of how this piece made its way into the canon and has survived all these long years. The first woman (supposedly) to support herself via writing, the multiple wholesale condemnations of Christianity and Europeans made during the course of the narrative, the irony that would be considered satire if it didn't involve cultural enslavement and willful genocide, the fact that it's pretty readable, the combination a bunch of genres that weren't being combined at the time, and many other unusual aspects make for a peculiar creation whose survival is still a question when one looks at all the female-authored experimentations that have fallen by the wayside. I wouldn't be surprised if the story of its inclusion is a messy heap of events unto itself, a tale full of white feminists and historical reclamation where cries of "Racist!" rent the air of rooms filled only with white people and so many points are missed by so many liberal academics all the live long day. I'd laugh at it if 326 years hadn't meant shit in the long run.
P.S. There's Islamophobia in this. If the CH shooting is used as a reason for perpetuated genocide, I do not stand with the winners.
The only excuse for this is that it was published 326 years ago. That's long enough for it to become a window into a history that plays out all too well today because, guess what, winners like to be winners and the best way to keep winning is to plant an idea (Inception + actual ideological implications on reality) that being a psychopath (winner) is Just How Life Is and then let it grow into a civilization/supremacy that's alive and well today. Behn is a good example of this because her proto-Uncle Tom's Cabin piece is a good mix of all the bits and pieces that go into racism and make it such an effective virus. Gatekeeping via European standards of beauty, pitting one non-European group against another while erasing the complex conflict with vague categorizations such as "anti-Africa" and racism itself, creating stereotypes of black people naturally having a higher pain tolerance, equating a good slave master with a good human being, "noble savage", "Orientalism", the fact that this is a classic while narratives of Ferguson protesters are being fended off with "Why are you so angry all the time?", "There's still hope for them so long as they get the right European teacher!", and a whole host of others that are still being played out, reinforced, and every so often deconstructed all over the corners of Tumblr. The fact that all of this is likely to be passed over for the test-acing essay on "How does Behn's writing style compare with those of her peers?" and other formulaic analyses necessary for eventually being able to earn one's food is yet another aspect.
When all that's said and done, what's interesting is the tale of how this piece made its way into the canon and has survived all these long years. The first woman (supposedly) to support herself via writing, the multiple wholesale condemnations of Christianity and Europeans made during the course of the narrative, the irony that would be considered satire if it didn't involve cultural enslavement and willful genocide, the fact that it's pretty readable, the combination a bunch of genres that weren't being combined at the time, and many other unusual aspects make for a peculiar creation whose survival is still a question when one looks at all the female-authored experimentations that have fallen by the wayside. I wouldn't be surprised if the story of its inclusion is a messy heap of events unto itself, a tale full of white feminists and historical reclamation where cries of "Racist!" rent the air of rooms filled only with white people and so many points are missed by so many liberal academics all the live long day. I'd laugh at it if 326 years hadn't meant shit in the long run.
P.S. There's Islamophobia in this. If the CH shooting is used as a reason for perpetuated genocide, I do not stand with the winners.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes