Study the Masters by Lucille Clifton
like my aunt timmie.
it was her iron,
or one like hers,
that smoothed the sheets
the master poet slept on.
home or hotel, what matters is
he lay himself down on her handiwork
and dreamed. she dreamed too, words;
some cherokee, some masai and some
huge and particular as hope.
if you had heard her
chanting as she ironed
you would understand form and line
and discipline and order and
america.
Greetings, Class.
In this course, we are exploring the ways gender and intersectional identity may have impacted the experiences of enslaved people. This poem by Lucille Clifton may help us to unpack some of the complexities associated with gender in slave communities.
 |
| from http://clclt.com/charlotte/not-just-black-history-america-i-am/Content?oid=2774133 |
Yours truly,
Dr. Hill
The dynamic between female slaves and the slave owners' wives would be very interesting. Because of the nurturing, caring, relational nature of women, I can see it being hard for the white woman to punish a female slave. It makes me wonder if there were occasions of stories when a white woman and a female slave, very much against the rules of society, became "undercover" friends.
ReplyDeleteAfrican American slave women endured not only the hardships that came with being a slave but that also she was forced to give up her body to her white master. Her struggles were not only one of abuse, rape and neglect but also living under the same roof of her attacker. Women even by today's standards are often blamed for rape and carry the weight of the abuse even after getting professional help. I cannot imagine how these women had the strength to carry on with pregnancy, whipping from the masters wife, rape, and the selling of her child(s). I have a huge respect for all the women in this time frame that had to endure this hardship.
ReplyDeleteBeing a wealthy, white female living during slavery had many implications that aren't often explored. The myth of the gentle white planation mistress is pervasive in American history and often revered and protected. However once you delve deeper into the communities that existed on a plantation and how those intersected, one can understand the picture posted above. Like mentioned in discussion, being a female slave almost inherently meant sexual abuse from their masters and other lustful individuals. Thus one can imagine the tension that existed in the household as a prim and proper white mistress knew and understood what occurred between her husband and her "property". While the ideal of white femininity didn't include tendencies of violence, it is clear such tendencies existed and were probably extremely persistent. Here's a link to accounts from slave narratives who detail intolerant and abusive mistresses: https://southernwomenproject.wordpress.com/antebellum-elite-white-women/
ReplyDeleteBeing a woman in slavery would be much different than it would be being a man. This is based off of the two different environments the genders were to work a majority of the time. The males worked out in the field and the women were inside of the home helping the slave master's family. Such as being a nanny for kids or (as we discussed in class) helping the slave master's wife get ready for her day. Many times the slave masters took advantage of such slaves and would sexually exploit the women. Either through consensual or forced sexual intercourse. This could lead to children through their intercourse. Also after these occurrences abuse by the slave master's wife could took place. Leading to a separation of a mother and child. Or even worse the murder of the slave who was sexually taken advantage of.
ReplyDeleteAfrican Female slaves were sexual exploited. The slave master didn't considered it rape but a favor because having sex with them meant they didn't have to have sex with the African male slave who was considered to be animalistic. They also deemed a certain group as jezebels and sexually abused them multiple times a day. Being an object of sex was their only obligation.
ReplyDeleteAlso the cooks who they usually call Mamie's were only dressed nice to reflect the slave owners wealth. It wasn't because they were in the house so they were treated better they were better dressed so people would know how wealthy their slave owner was, the nicer the clothes equals the wealthier the slave owner was.
I would find it hard to believe that white women slave owners would all be cruel to the slave women. The female characteristics tend to be more loving than that of man. I believe that there were some woman that would be in a hard situation, where maybe her husband raped a slave and the wife would become angry at the slave. In this situation i could see the wife being very hard and beating the slave.
ReplyDeleteGender and intersectional identity impacted the individual experiences of people in enslaved communities. For example, the slave male in a plantation had to go through the process of seeing their wife being raped by the slave master and seeing the wife giving birth to the child. The slave males couldn't do anything about it because most likely he would be killed for opposing the master of the house. So he was force to take care of a child he neglected emotionally but not physically because it is still the child of their wife.
ReplyDeleteI think that the life of a female slave was significantly different than that of a male slave. A woman not only had to deal with the injustices that came with the color of her skin but she also had to deal with masters and the wives of masters differently. She had to constantly stay on guard because it was very possible that a master would lust after her and she was virtually defenseless in this scenario. Also, if it was the case that the master looked at her in a sexual way, she would then have to deal with the wife who was bitter and jealous of her. I'm sure this not only had a toll on female slaves physical, but emotionally as well.
ReplyDeleteI think being enslaved as a women was much more psychologically draining, as opposed to being a male slave. women slaves were constantly being exploited by their masters. Not only did this create tension between the slave master and the slave, but also created tension between the slave masters wife and the slave. Living everyday with your rapist and the women who is married to your rapist, I could imagine, takes an emotional toll on someone.
ReplyDeleteAaron and I were discussion how the hardships were different on both men and women that were enslaved. I have him the perspective of the women. First and for most they are already property and even considered as a human, just as an item. Secondly they are seen as a sex tool or item by the white men. So I feel that it was emotionally and mentally degrading and breaking of the soul and spirit . To add fire to the flame the African American women that worked in the house with the white women that are also masters, would get whipped more because some of the white women would get jealous that their husbands wanted sexual relations with the slaves. So to already be seen as a sexual tool and item, and then be punished by someone who shares a oppression with you (being a woman) is probably breaking. I couldn't even imagine the feeling of it.
ReplyDeleteI believe that white women who were the wives of slave masters would be more sympathetic with the slave women. I believe this because even though the white women had their rights and were free people they still were not on the same level as men in society during this time. They could possibly feel for the enslaved women who were treated bad and could possibly see a little bit of themselves in them. Especially if they knew that their husbands were using the slaves for sex which is also cheating if they were married.
ReplyDeleteI believe that being either an enslaved black male or female was extremely draining. As a male slave you are being worked from sun up to sun down with little to no food or water. You are seeing fellow slaves being beat or dying nearly everyday. You may see them being killed at the hands of the slave owner or malnourishment. As for a female, they were at times rape victims to their owners. They would have to see the person who took advantage of them each and everyday. They would also have to encounter the slaves owners wife who would be jealous or upset about the situation. The wife may take out that anger on the slave because she wouldn't attempt to fight or kill the slave owner.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the role of the white slave owning women was a very ironic situation. They looked more important than they actually were. The only thing these women controlled were slaves. Although they could control the slaves, their husbands had the ultimate say in what happens to the slaves because they were legally his property. Also, controlling the slaves and the house hold was the the only part in their life they had control of. At this time, women were not allowed to vote and obeyed their husband's orders. To me it seems like the "powerful" role of the slave owners wife was just a facade.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agreed with another student in our class about how female slave owners may not have necessarily resorted to violence when it came to punishing slaves but that they may have just had the whip there to show the slaves that they could be punished at anytime and to also show the female owner had power over the slaves. I also agreed with what we said in class about how maybe the demand for whips was high and so businesses that were trying to sell their products may or may not have included the whip as a side to help them sell their products.
ReplyDeleteThe dynamic between female slaves and the slave owners' wives would be very interesting. Because of the nurturing, caring, relational nature of women, I can see it being hard for the white woman to punish a female slave. It makes me wonder if there were occasions of stories when a white woman and a female slave, very much against the rules of society, became "undercover" friends.
ReplyDeleteOften times when you think about a southern white women during slave times you think of a sweet southern bell that doesn't work but throws parties and gossips with her girlfriends. At least that is how mass media portrays it. However this picture shows that these southern belles werent so sweet. I believe this reveals the side of the southern white female that wanted to be respected and not just take orders from her husband. And who better to get respect and a feeling of obedience from then a black slave.
ReplyDeleteThis picture is vey shocking in the sense that there is a whip in a vanity set, implying that whipping a slave was as casual as brushing one's hair. It also gives insight to the financial culture of the time. Al of the hair accessories are laden in silver, as well as the whip, which suggests that the relationship between wealth and owning slaves was directly proportional-which is disturbing in itself.
ReplyDeleteIt is portrayed that some slave owners where pleasant and kind to their plantations workers and that was not the case. It is said how in history things are interpreted one way and are turned into something new. We all know in reality slave owners and slave owner wives were horrible, unethical, and unreasonable human beings. It's a reality that those solace owners would take advantage of our ancestors for their own agenda's. I couldn't imagine being in the position of my ancestors as I go by everyday knowing the worse is going to happen to me from sun up to sun down and doing it all over again the next day. That is true strength and adversity in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteIt is portrayed that some slave owners where pleasant and kind to their plantations workers and that was not the case. It is said how in history things are interpreted one way and are turned into something new. We all know in reality slave owners and slave owner wives were horrible, unethical, and unreasonable human beings. It's a reality that those solace owners would take advantage of our ancestors for their own agenda's. I couldn't imagine being in the position of my ancestors as I go by everyday knowing the worse is going to happen to me from sun up to sun down and doing it all over again the next day. That is true strength and adversity in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI believe the relationship between white male slave owners (the master) and female slaves contained some very controversial elements. Often times African American females were taken advantage of (sexually) by their master. In turn, this created tension within the household for the wife of the master. If the female slave worked in the house, tension was even greater among the wives of the masters and slaves. I can imagine the master's wife treating the African American females very harshly.
ReplyDelete