Elias AAL

     In my last post, I talked about the ways the trauma of slavery had affected the characters Nanny and Sethe. Their stories shared a number of common themes, most notably the way each person's consequent actions led to the direct harm of those they loved and had intended to protect, an unfortunate outcome brought about by judgement clouded, or rather influenced by trauma. With this post, I want to go in a different direction, and talk about the ways this pain can manifest a different way. Retaliation: less protective by nature, though in a way still a means of defense, the bubbling up of years of frustration and racial injustice culminating in an act of violence towards the oppressor. These moments of violence can be observed in a number of instances within Beloved, Paul D's attempt at killing Brandywine for example. Sethe's attempt at killing Bodwin, and the slave prisoners biting off pieces of their captors genitals are also examples of retaliation in Beloved. Each of

    Their Eyes Were Watching God is a book telling the story of the life of Janie Mae Crawford. Janie lives what I would say is rather fulfilling life. She finds love, gets married, does it again, acquires wealth, happiness, and eventually peace as well. Her story is a captivating one, but in this post the focus shifts to her grandmother, Nanny Crawford. Nanny's life was considerably more disconsolate than Janie's, she was born into slavery and raped by her master. She managed to escape slavery with her daughter, though failed to protect Janie's mother from being raped by her schoolteacher. Nanny faced considerable horrific moments of pain and violence, experiences that shaped her into a very hardened old woman. Nanny's outlook of life is bleak, she prioritizes her granddaughter's safety over all else, and while her methods are disagreeable at times, her position is understandable. Considering the hardships that Nanny has faced, it's no surprise when she decides