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Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'
Of One Blood: Or, the Hidden Self: The Givens Collection by Pauline E. Hopkins
1 review
seawarrior's review
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Of One Blood begins with Reuel, a young man who seems suspiciously withdrawn and fixated on the occult. Once one of his experiments recovers Dianthe, a lovely woman he's had visions of, from the dead, it's easy to assume that tragedy will ensue from this meddling with the natural order. Yet this event is surprisingly not the epicenter of the horror that befalls our protagonists. Rather, the horror in Of One Blood is found in the legacy of racism, enslavement, and white imperialism that envelops and links each of our leading characters in ways which devastate them all. The "hidden self" in Hopkins' subtitle can be assumed to refer to Reuel and Dianthe's strategical hiding of their Black heritage in order to survive in white proper society, yet the word holds far deeper meaning which unravels as the text progresses.
Hopkins' prose is enticingly written, she excelled with providing imagery to enhance our understanding of the characters' emotions and their environments. This story can be described and viewed through the lens of multiple genres, as it progresses in directions that cannot be confined to a single one. In many ways Of One Blood is a product of its time, yet in others, its examination of racial identity and the social rules generations of the powerful have constructed around it are relevant to the modern day. I would recommend reading this classic, but also to find an edition that provides you with historical and literary context that you may find useful throughout your reading.
Hopkins' prose is enticingly written, she excelled with providing imagery to enhance our understanding of the characters' emotions and their environments. This story can be described and viewed through the lens of multiple genres, as it progresses in directions that cannot be confined to a single one. In many ways Of One Blood is a product of its time, yet in others, its examination of racial identity and the social rules generations of the powerful have constructed around it are relevant to the modern day. I would recommend reading this classic, but also to find an edition that provides you with historical and literary context that you may find useful throughout your reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Grief, Incest, Infidelity, Medical content, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, and Sexism
Moderate: Colonisation, Genocide, Pregnancy, Slavery, and Sexual assault
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