RACISM EXPERIENCED BY THE BLACKS AND
MULATTOES IN THE LATE NINETEENTH CENTURY
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN CHESNUTT’S
THE
MARROW OF TRADITION
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree ofSarjana Sastrain English Letters
By
ANINDYA KOMALA DEWI
Student Number: 094214066
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
i
RACISM EXPERIENCED BY THE BLACKS AND
MULATTOES IN THE LATE NINETEENTH CENTURY
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN CHESNUTT’S
THE
MARROW OF TRADITION
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree ofSarjana Sastrain English Letters
By
ANINDYA KOMALA DEWI
Student Number: 094214066
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
RACISM
MULATTOES
UNITED STA
P. Sarwoto, S.S., M.A Advisor
Dra. A. B. Sri Mulyani Co-Advisor
ii
ASarjana SastraUndergraduate Thesis
EXPERIENCED BY THE BLACKS
OES IN THE LATE NINETEENTH CEN
STATES OF AMERICA IN CHESNUTT’S
MARROW OF TRADITION
By
ANINDYA KOMALA DEWI
Student Number: 094214066
Approved by
M.A., Ph.D. August
ani, M. A., Ph. D. August
A
Sarjana SastraUndergraduate ThesisS AND
CENTURY
TT’S
THE
ust 13, 2013.
RACISM
OES IN THE LATE NINETEENTH CEN
STATES OF AMERICA IN CHESNUTT’S
MARROW OF TRADITION
By
ANINDYA KOMALA DEWI
Student Number: 094214066
iv
The future belongs to those who
believe in the beauty of their
dreams.
Roosevelt-v
This undergraduate thesis is
dedicated to
vi
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I would like to thank Allah SWT for the blessing, love, spirit,
and help so I could accomplish this undergraduate thesis. I would like to express
my gratitude to my advisor, P. Sarwoto, S.S., M.A., Ph.D. for his advices and
guidance during the work of this thesis. I would also like to express my gratitude
to my co-advisor, Dra. A. B. Sri Mulyani, M. A., Ph. D. for her guidance so I
could correct my mistakes in this thesis. My gratitude goes to my examiner Ni
Luh Putu Rosiandani, S.S., M.Hum for her suggestions to perfect this thesis.
My greatest gratitude goes to my parents who always give me love and
support. Thanks to my brother and sister for encouraging me to finish this thesis.
My special thanks go to my Exception for this unforgettable year of my life.
I would like to express my gratitude to all of the lecturers who have taught
me during my study in Sanata Dharma University. Thanks to all of 2009 English
Letters students for our togetherness during the four years of my college time.
The latest thank goes to all who have helped the writer accomplishes this
thesis. May God repay you for all your kindness.
LEMBAR PERNYA
an di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sa : Anindya Komala Dewi
: 094214066
gan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul:
IENCED BY THE BLACKS AND MULAT ENTH CENTURY UNITED STATES OF AM
SNUTT’STHE MARROW OF TRADITION
yang diperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian sa an Sanata Dharma hak untuk menyimpan, men mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, m dan mempublikasikannya di internet atau me mis tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya maupun
selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebaga
an ini yang saya buat dengan sebenarnya.
STA
I honestly declared t
other people, except t
paper should.
viii
ATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY
that the thesis which I wrote does not cont
pt those cited in this quotations and bibliograph
Yogyakarta, 9 S
Anindya Kom
ontain the work of
phy, as a scientific
9 September 2013
ix
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI... vii
STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY... viii
TABLE OF CONTENTS………ix
ABSTRACT... xi
ABSTRAK... xii
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION...1
A. Background of the Study... 1
B. Problem Formulation... 5
C. Objectives of the Study ... 5
D. Definition of Terms ... 6
CHAPTER II THEORETICAL REVIEW ...7
A. Review of Related Studies ... 7
B. Review of Related Theories ... 9
1. Theory of Character ... 10
2. Theory of Characterization ... 10
3. The Relation between Literature and Society... 10
4. Theory of Racism ... 11
C. Review of Racism in the United States of America in the Late Nineteenth Century ... 11
D.Review of Mulattoes in the United States of America... 16
E.Review of Slavery in the United States of America ... 19
F. Theoretical Framework ... 20
CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY ... 23
A. Object of the Study... 23
B. Approach of the Study... 24
C. Method of the Study... 25
CHAPTER IV ANALYSIS ... 27
A. The Description of the Characters inThe Marrow of Tradition... 27
1. The Description of Sandy Campbell... 27
2. The Description of Josh Green ... 30
3. The Description of Jerry Letlow... 37
x
B. Racism Experienced by the Characters inThe Marrow of Tradition... 46
1. Racism Experienced by Sandy Campbell... 46
2. Racism Experienced by Josh Green ... 49
3. Racism Experienced by Jerry Letlow ... 51
4. Racism Experienced by Dr. Miller ... 55
C. The Reflection of Racism Experienced by The Blacks and Mulattoes in the late Nineteenth Century United States of America ... 62
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION ... 71
BIBLIOGRAPHY...75
xi
ABSTRACT
Anindya Komala Dewi. RACISM EXPERIENCED BY THE BLACKS AND MULATTOES IN THE LATE NINETEENTH CENTURY UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN CHESNUTT’S THE MARROW OF TRADITION.
Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University, 2013.
This study analyzes a work of Charles W. Chesnutt, The Marrow of Tradition. The novel deals with the issue of racism experienced by the Blacks and Mulattoes in the United States of America in the late nineteenth century.
In conducting this study, the writer provides three problems to be answered. The first problem is how the characters are described inThe Marrow of Tradition. The second problem is how racism is experienced by the characters in The Marrow of Tradition. The third problem is how The Marrow of Tradition reflects racism experienced by the Blacks and Mulattoes in the late nineteenth century United States of America.
The writer uses library research in conducting this study. To analyze the topic, the writer uses theory of character, characterization, the relation between literature and society, and racism. The writer also uses the review of racism in the U.S.A. in the late nineteenth century, Mulattoes in the U.S.A. and slavery in the U.S.A. The approach used in this study is sociocultural-historical approach.
xii
ABSTRAK
Anindya Komala Dewi. RACISM EXPERIENCED BY THE BLACKS AND MULATTOES IN THE LATE NINETEENTH CENTURY UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN CHESNUTT’S THE MARROW OF TRADITION.
Yogyakarta: Jurusan Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2013.
Penelitian ini menganalisis karya Charles W. Chesnutt yang berjudul The Marrow of Tradition. Novel tersebut berkaitan dengan persoalan rasisme yang dialami oleh orang kulit hitam dan Mulatto di Amerika Serikat pada akhir abad kesembilan belas.
Dalam menyusun penelitian ini, penulis menyiapkan tiga permasalahan untuk dijawab. Permasalahan yang pertama adalah bagaimana para tokoh digambarkan di The Marrow of Tradition. Permasalahan kedua adalah bagaimana rasisme dialami oleh para tokoh di The Marrow of Tradition. Permasalahan yang ketiga adalah bagaimana The Marrow of Tradition mencerminkan rasisme yang dialami oleh orang kulit hitam dan Mulatto di Amerika Serikat pada akhir abad kesembilan belas.
Penulis menggunakan studi pustaka dalam menyusun penelitian ini. Untuk menganalisis topik, penulis menggunakan teori karakter, karakteristik, teori hubungan antara sastra dan masyarakat, dan teori rasisme. Penulis juga menggunakan ulasan tentang rasisme di Amerika Serikat pada akhir abad kesembilan belas,Mulattodi Amerika Serikat dan perbudakan di Amerika Serikat. Pendekatan yang digunakan di penelitian ini adalah pendekatan sejarah dan sosial-budaya.
1
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION A. Background of the Study
According to Humes, Jones, and Ramirez in “Overview of Race and
Hispanic Origin: 2010 Census Briefs,” there are six races categories in the United
States: “White, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native,
Asian, and Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander” and “Some Other Race”
(2011: 2). The following quotation defines the six races categories.
“White” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa. “Black or African American” refers to a person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. “American Indian or Alaska Native” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America). “Asian” refers a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent. “Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands. “Some Other Race” includes all other peoples not included in the White, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander. Multiracial, mixed, interracial, or a Hispanic or Latino group are included in this category (Humes et al., 2011: 3).
In the 2010 US census, the largest racial group is White (223.6 million),
“accounting for 72 percent of all people living in the United States” (2011: 4). It
means that all racial groups other than White are the minorities. The minorities
often experience the practice of racism from the majority because they are
different. One of the differences is their physical appearance. Unlike the Whites
skin, frizzly hair, and flat nose” (Boas, 1955: 4). Another racial minority is the
Asians who have “flat faces and straight black hair” (1955: 4).
The difference of physical appearance can cause the majority think that
minorities are inferior. They think that the minorities have lower intelligence.
However, this is not true. According to Franz Boas in his book Race, Language,
and Culture, Professor Garth makes a research on relationship between race and
intelligence. The professor draws conclusion that “it is not possible to prove a
difference due to genetic factors” and that the difference in intelligence is due to
“differences in social environment” (1955: 11).
The majorities often think that the minorities have bad behavior. This is
not true, either. There is no relationship between race and behavior. “From Waitz
on, through Spencer, Tylor, Bastian, to our times, ethnologists have not given
serious attention to race, because they find cultural forms distributed regardless of
race” (1955: 13). They find that the North American Indians are stoic and ready to
endure pain and torture without a murmur (1955: 13). However, this not because
they are Indians, but this is because they live in a culture that “demands repression
of emotion” (1955: 13).
In the case of black people, the practice of racism against them is not only
because the Whites think that the Blacks have lower intelligence and bad behavior
but it is also because during the slavery time, black people were the slaves.
According to Blum, et al. in The National Experience: a History of the United
States, after 1815, the economy of American South depended on the cultivation of
profitable crop because the price was high. The owner of a plantation could make
big profit by “exploiting the labor of black slaves” so the production costs were
low and by selling the cotton for a high price (1985: 207).
During the slavery time, slaves were considered as valuable property. For
the masters, the possession of slaves brought great prestige. If there was a person
who owned a plantation in which the workers were the slaves, he was considered
as a successful person (1985: 209). Because slaves were considered as property,
they were treated badly. They were overworked and were given monotonous food
(1985: 210).
Slavery in the United States of America was abolished in 1865
through Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
(http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=true&doc=40). However, the
treatment toward black people was not improved. They experienced the practice
of racism from the Whites who thought that the Blacks were inferior race. There
were laws that forced the segregation between Blacks and Whites on the public
transportation (Boyer, et al, 1990: 756). Another practice of racism was lynching.
According to Amy Louise Wood in Lynching and Spectacle: Witnessing Racial
Violence in America, 1890-1940, “hundreds, sometimes thousands, of white
spectators gathered and watched as their fellow citizens tortured, mutilated and
hanged or burned” (2009: 1). The majority of the lynching victims were black
men (2009: 4). The horrifying violence was representation of “racial hierarchy”
that is powerful Whites and helpless Blacks (2009: 2). Lynchings took place most
The practice of racism is also experienced by mixed-race people. One of
them is the mulatto. Being a mulatto means having both African and European
ancestry (Reuter, 1928: 36). However, because of the “one drop rule,” one drop of
Black blood makes a person Black, they are considered Blacks (Hickman, 1997:
1163). The law of Virginia that was enacted in 1785 and continued to apply
through nineteenth century gave the definition of a Negro: “a person with a black
parent or grandparent” (Zackodnik, 2001: 433). The law made a person who had
at least one quarter African blood a Negro or Black. Consequently, in the
eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, southern courts treated a Mulatto as
discriminatively as black people (Bodenhorn, 2002: 25).
Racism against black people and Mulattoes inspires some authors to write
novels about it. One of the novels that tell about racism against black people and
Mulattoes is The Marrow of Tradition that was written by Charles W. Chesnutt.
The novel tells about Southern society that discriminates black people and
Mulattoes in the late nineteenth century. There are various characters in the novel
that experience the practice of racism. The experiences of practice of racism that
are depicted inThe Marrow of Traditionbecome the focus of this study.
There are two reasons why the writer chooses Chesnutt's The Marrow of
Tradition to analyze. The first reason is that the novel took place in the late
nineteenth century when the practice of racism, including racial segregation, was
of America. The second reason is that there are various characters in the novel that
experience the practice of racism.
To analyze racism experienced by the Blacks and Mulattoes in the late
nineteenth century United States of America in Chesnutt’s The Marrow of
Tradition, the writer uses sociocultural-historical approach. The approach is used
because this study is related to the social, cultural, and historical background of
Blacks and Mulattoes in the United States of America.
B. Problem Formulation
Based on the above discussion, there are three problems that can be
formulated as follows
1. How are the characters described inThe Marrow of Tradition?
2. How is racism experienced by the characters inThe Marrow of Tradition?
3. How doesThe Marrow of Traditionreflect racism experienced by the Blacks
and Mulattoes in the late nineteenth century United States of America?
C. Objectives of the Study
This study has three main objectives. The first objective is to see how the
characters are described in The Marrow of Tradition. The second objective is to
find out how racism is experienced by the characters inThe Marrow of Tradition.
The third objective is to discover how The Marrow of Tradition reflects racism
experienced by the Blacks and Mulattoes in the late nineteenth century United
D. Definition of Terms
According to Donald Light, Suzanne Keller, and Craig Calhoun in
Sociology, racism is “the doctrine (or a policy based on the doctrine) that some
races are inherently inferior and some inherently superior to others” (1989: 352).
Therefore, racism is a belief that some races are better than the others.
Mulatto is a person of “mixed Negro-white ancestry.” “It includes
individuals one of whose parents is Negro and the other white as well as
individuals one of whose parents, or both, is of mixed blood” (Reuter, 1928: 36).
7
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW A. Review of Related Studies
In this subchapter, the writer reviews three studies. Two of them analyze
The Marrow of Tradition like this study does while one of them analyzes the
similar topic to that of this study that is racism. The first study titled Why Whites
Riot: The Race Riot Narrative and Demonstrations of Nineteenth Century Black
Citizenship was conducted by Ebone McFarland. The second study titled Black
Benefactors and White Recipients: Counternarratives of Benevolence in
Nineteenth-Century American Literature was conducted by Marie L. Troppe. The
last study titledRacism and Women’s Liberation in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin
in the Sunwas conducted by Andreanus Radhityo Cahyo Utomo.
In his graduate thesis Why Whites Riot: The Race Riot Narrative and
Demonstrations of Nineteenth Century Black Citizenship, McFarland argues that
the author ofThe Marrow of Tradition, Chesnutt, “revises Southern custom”:
Through the Miller family, Chesnutt revises Southern custom. In white Southern memory, blacks are traditionally characterized as lacking economic, social, and political power. Chesnutt presents the Millers as occupying a black middle class position, challenging the assumption that there is a natural link between privilege and whiteness (2011: 57).
The above quotation tells that by presenting the Miller family who are black
middle class citizens, Chesnutt wants to show that unlike what white Southerners
think, Blacks are not always poor.
In her dissertation Black Benefactors and White Recipients:
Marie L. Troppe argues that Chesnutt wants to highlight the importance of black
newspapers:
The character of Carteret overlooks the achievement of the black newspaper in Wellington because of its small size, the poor quality of the paper upon which it is printed and its preponderance of advertisements. Having thrown the newspaper there earlier in the day “without looking at it,” Carteret retrieves from the wastebasket an “eighteen by twenty-four sheet, poorly printed on cheap paper” and mocks it as “an elegant specimen of journalism.” Chesnutt metaphorically retrieves what Carteret considers trash, imbuing it with redeeming value, observing that “it was not an impressive sheet in any respect, except when regarded as the first local effort of a struggling people to make public expression of their life and aspirations” as written by a “class to whom, a generation before, newspapers, books, and learning had been forbidden fruit.” By adding this context through the narrator, Chesnutt expands the criteria by which to judge the black newspaper from mere appearance to what it represents—a community speaking with a collective voice, having overcome a lack of educational opportunity, and with the capacity to create a community asset on their own, without white supervision or philanthropy (2012: 156).
Therefore, Chesnutt wants to highlight the importance of black newspaper
because it represents the progress of the black people—having a newspaper to express their opinions and aspirations without the help of white people.
Andreanus Radhityo Cahyo Utomo in his thesis Racism and Women’s
Liberation in Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun critiques the topic of
racism: “Mama migrated to Chicago from the South because of racial
discrimination against blacks at that time. Many blacks are lynched without a
lawful trial. Without an obvious reason and enough proof, black people are
hanged by whites” (2003: 35). Racial discrimination is seen in the novel when one
of the characters, Mama, is afraid that she will be lynched by whites so she moves
from the South to Chicago. She is afraid because many Blacks are lynched
they are black. The novel shows that racial discrimination can be in the form of
murder.
This study has one similarity to the two previous studies. It analyzes
Chesnutt’sThe Marrow of Traditionlike they do. However, this study is different
from the two previous studies because it only analyzes Chesnutt’s The Marrow of
Tradition while they analyze some novels and The Marrow of Tradition is only
one of them. Moreover, this study analyzes a different topic from that of the two
previous studies. It analyzes racism experienced by the Blacks and Mulattoes in
the late nineteenth century United States of America in Chesnutt’sThe Marrow of
Tradition while the two previous studies analyze the race riot narrative and
demonstrations of nineteenth century black citizenship and counternarratives of
benevolence in nineteenth-century American literature respectively. This study
analyzes a similar topic to that of the third previous study that is racism. However,
this study analyzes a different novel from that of the third previous study. It
analyzes Chesnutt’s The Marrow of Tradition while the third previous study
analyzes Lorraine Hansberry’sA Raisin in the Sun.
B. Review of Related Theories
In this subchapter, the writer reviews some theories that are needed to
answer the problems stated in the problem formulation. Those theories are the
theories on character, characterization, the relation between literature and society,
1. Theory of Character
In A Glossary of Literary Terms, Abrams and Harpham define characters
as follows
Characters are the persons represented in a dramatic or narrative work, who are interpreted by the reader as possessing particular moral, intellectual, and emotional qualities by inferences from what the persons say and their distinctive ways of saying it-the dialogue-and from what they do-the action (2009: 42).
Thus, the characters are the persons in a work whose characteristics are reflected
in the dialogue and in the action.
2. Theory of Characterization
In A Handbook to Literature, William Harmon and Hugh Holman define
characterization as the creation of imaginary persons in fictions (2009: 95).
According to M. J. Murphy in Understanding Unseens: An Introduction to
English Poetry and the English Novel for Overseas Students (1972: 161-173),
there are nine ways that can be used by an author to show the characteristics of the
characters. They are personal description, character as seen by another, speech,
past life, conversation of others, reactions, direct comment, thoughts, and
mannerisms.
3. The Relation between Literature and Society
According to Rene Wellek and Austin Warren inTheory of Literature, works
of literature are social documents. They are pictures of social reality (1956: 102).
A literary work can represent the social situation when the work is being written.
They also argue that “literature can be made to yield the outlines of social history”
history. It is because a literary work can represent an era or century, e.g.
Elizabethan era, Victorian era, and eighteenth century.
4. Theory of Racism
According toThe New Encyclopædia Britannica, one of the manifestations
of the practice of racism is physical segregation (1983: 360). Another
manifestation of the practice of racism is racial endogamy that is marrying within
one’s own racial group (1983: 360). The practice of racism can also be in the form
of commensality that is rules determining with whom one may or may not eat
(1983: 360). Another manifestation of the practice of racism is limitation of the
rights of some racial groups to get access to “essential services – housing,
education, employment, and health facilities” (Archer, 2000: 3-4).
There are two types of racism: individual and institutional racism.
Individual racism is racism that is practiced by individuals. Institutional racism is
“when organizational programs or policies work to the benefit of white people and
to the detriment of people of color” (http://www.seattle.gov/rsji/why.htm).
C. Review of Racism in the United States of America in the Late Nineteenth Century
In the United States of America, there were Jim Crow laws. Jim Crow
laws are “legal enactments adopted by Southern states after Reconstruction to
enforce segregation of Whites and Blacks in schools, public transportation,
theaters, hotels, and restaurants” (The Encyclopedia Americana: International
Edition, 1995: 92). The law enforced the “separate but equal” accommodations. It
provided for blacks accommodations precisely equal in all respects to those
provided for whites holding similar tickets” (Riegel, 1984: 29). However, in
reality, there were many Blacks admitted that they were forced to use “segregated
accommodations which were generally inferior to comparable white
accommodations of the same price” (Riegel: 1984: 25). Moreover, the law did not
really impose Whites: Whites who smoked or had second-class tickets were
allowed to sit in the Jim Crow car (Riegel, 1984: 27).
According to Boyer, et al, in The Enduring Vision: A History of the
American People, Jim Crow laws did not only force the segregation on train but it
also forced the segregation on other places: “A tangle of local ‘Jim Crow’ laws
imposed strict segregation on streetcars, trains, schools, parks, public buildings,
and even cemeteries. In some courts, black and white witnesses took the oath on
separate Bibles!” (1990: 756). Therefore, because of Jim Crow laws, there was
segregation on streetcars, trains, schools, parks, public buildings, cemeteries, and
Bibles.
Another practice of racism was that black people got different facilities.
“The facilities provided for blacks, including the schools, were invariably far
inferior. With a few exceptions, labor unions excluded black industrial workers,
while skilled black craftsmen earned about one-third less than whites” (1990:
756). The quotation shows that facilities for black people were far inferior and that
“black craftsmen earned about one-third less than whites.”
Another practice of racism is lynching. According to Amy Louise Wood in
although the victims of lynching were not only Blacks but were also “white men;
Native Americans; Chinese, Mexican, and other immigrants” the majority of the
victims were black men (2009: 3-4). Because of that, most Americans in the late
nineteenth century “understood lynching as a southern practice and as a form of
racial violence that white mobs committed against African American men”
(Wood, 2009: 4). “Lynching is understood to be just and necessary retributions
against abominable crimes” (2009: 7). When an unexplained crime was
committed in a Southern community, Whites always thought that the criminal was
a black man. It is because many white Southerners believed that black men often
committed acts of violence and “sexual transgression” (Wood, 2009: 6). The
victims of lynching were usually hanged or burned in front of thousands of
spectators (Wood, 2009: 21). Lynching was not only reported in newspapers, it
was also retold via pamphlets, popular stories, ballads, and motion pictures
(Wood, 2009: 9). Southern newspapers also promoted lynching by telling
“stories of black crime” (Wood, 2009: 6). Lynch mobs “saw themselves not as
criminals or defilers of the law but as honorable vindicators of justice and popular
sovereignty” that fulfill their “rights as citizens to punish crimes against their
communities” (Wood, 2009: 24). The defenders of lynching “saw the violence as
an inevitable and justifiable substitution for capital punishment in particular
because the legal system bestowed too many rights on black criminals and offered
too little respect for white victims” (Wood, 2009: 25). Although the purpose of
lynching was to punish crimes, usually white criminals were not lynched;
instead (Wood, 2009: 26). Therefore, it was believed that black men were
criminals and that lynching was a just punishment for them.
There was an organization called Ku Klux Klan that did the practice of
racism frequently. It was established in 1866. The following quotation is the
definition of Ku Klux Klan according to anti-Ku Klux law cited by Stanley F.
Horn in his bookInvisible Empire: The Story of the Ku Klux Klan 1866-1871:
A secret organization of men, who, under the cover of masks and other grotesque disguises, armed with knives, revolvers and other deadly weapons, do issue from the place of their rendezvous…generally in the late hours of the night, to commit violence and outrage upon peaceable and law-abiding citizens, robbing and murdering them upon the highways, and entering their houses, tearing them from their homes and the embrace of their families, and, with violent threats and insults, inflicting on them the most cruel and inhuman treatment…disturbing the public peace, ruining the happiness and prosperity of the people, and in many places over-riding the civil authorities, defying all law and justice (1939: VII).
Therefore, Ku Klux Klan is a secret organization in which the members wear
masks to disguise and have weapons to commit violence, usually in the late night.
Ku Klux Klan did not commit violence without reasons. They had goals:
suppressing black voting and reestablishing white supremacy (Boyer, et al, 1990:
544). The members of Ku Klux Klan attacked “white Republicans, black militia
units, economically successful blacks, and black voters.” They attacked white
Republicans because the Republicans supported the Blacks. One of the forms of
their support is forming “state militia, in which blacks were often heavily
presented” (1990: 543). In 1868, a white Republican made a speech in front of
many Blacks in Huntsville in which he urged the Blacks to shoot the Ku Klux
members attacked the place where the speech was held. They killed 2 people and
wounded 5 people (1939: 134). In 1871, the Ku Klux Klan members burned
several black schoolhouses (1939: 152). The Ku Klux Klan members were also
“robbing and plundering the weak and defenseless negroes” (1939: 144). In 1871,
a white man called John Coleman was threatened by a Ku Klux Klan member that
he would be killed because he taught at a Negro school (1939: 137-138). Thus, the
Ku Klux Klan did not only attack Blacks but they also attacked Whites who
helped Blacks.
Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution that was
enacted in 1870 stated: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote
shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on
account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude”
(http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?doc=44&page=transcript). However,
Blacks and Mulattoes could not vote freely because in the 1898 campaign,
Democrats used some tactics “to keep black Republicans away from the polls”
(Wright, et al, 2006: 95).
There was an event called Wilmington Race Riot that happened on
November 10, 1898 (Wright, et al, 2006: 122). It was planned to “suppress the
African American and Republican communities,” but the riot “grew into
unplanned bloodshed” (Wright, et al, 2006: 122). According to Dr. Jeffrey Crow,
deputy secretary of the N.C. Office of Archives and History as cited by Easley and
Evans, “The Wilmington Race Riot was not a spontaneous event, but was
Wilmington” (2005: 1). In their campaign that triggered the riot, Democrats used
Alexander Manly’s editorial that “challenged the popular notion among southern
judges and legislators that interracial sex was rape” ” (Lowery, 2006: 349). As a
result of the riot, there were black men who were killed or wounded throughout
the day because of the firing of rifles from “a mob of up to 2,000 Whites” (Easley
and Evans, 2005: 2). During the day, “the Red Shirts and the White Government
Union clubs,” the supremacist groups, “regularly brandished weapons while
marching through black neighborhoods” (Easley and Evans, 2005: 2). The total
death toll of the riot was as high as 250 (http://ncpedia.org/wilmington-race-riot).
Moreover, there were black and Mulatto men who were banished on November
10, 1898. There were two categories of black and Mulatto men who were
banished: “First, were the African American leaders who were vocal supporters of
full participation in government by blacks and open opponents of the white
supremacy campaign. Second were African American businessmen and
entrepreneurs whose financial successes were galling to the white upper and
working classes (Wright, et al, 2006: 158).
D. Review of Mulattoes in the United States of America
The legal records of the first Mulatto in the United States “are few and not
a model of judicial explication” but there were some documents about it
(Hickman, 1997: 1172). In 1632, “Captain Daniel Elfrye was reprimanded by his
employer for too freely entertaining a mulatto” (Hickman, 1997: 1172).
Although the first formal statutes that prohibited interracial mating were
before in which white men were punished for having interracial mating. One of
those cases was Robert Sweat’s in 1640. He had to do public penance because he
had a child with “a negro woman servant” (Hickman, 1997: 1173).
The first legal statute concerning Mulatto appears in 1656. Called In Re
Mulatto, the statute states: “Mulatto held to be a slave and appeal taken.”
Although a Mulatto has European ancestry, “the court found that the European
ancestry made no legally significant difference at all” so he/she got racial
discrimination (Hickman, 1997: 1174).
In the late nineteenth century, Mulattoes got both advantages and
disadvantages. One of the advantages they got was that many Whites considered
them to be superior to the full-blood Negroes and gave them better treatment.
“Proprietors generally preferred mulattoes as house servants and plantation
tradesmen and gave them more opportunities to acquire skills for these
occupations than they gave the other slaves.” Mulattoes were also “provided some
education, enjoyed good food, clothing, and shelter.” Sometimes they also had an
authority as plantation managers (Toplin, 1979: 192). Furthermore, “masters
chose mulattoes for household duties because the mixed race was more
susceptible to improvement and could handle tasks requiring higher capabilities”
(Toplin, 1979: 194).
Another advantage was that they usually “rose higher on the occupational
hierarchy sooner and accumulated significantly more wealth” than Blacks. They
also had better access “to food, health care, housing, and clothing” (Bodenhorn,
Another advantage that the Mulattoes got was that they were more likely
to hold professional and “proprietorial jobs than Blacks” although Mulattoes are
much fewer than Blacks (Engerrand, 1978: 208). Furthermore, “in general the
economically prosperous, the socially prominent, and the educated, intellectual,
and professional groups are chiefly mulatto” (Reuter, 1928: 37).
Besides their better occupation, the Mulattoes also had higher literacy rate
than Blacks. 40 percent of Mulattoes could read and write while “only one third of
the Blacks had these skills” (Engerrand, 1978: 208).
There were more Mulattoes “who have risen to some measure of national
reputation” than Blacks. Some of them are: “Frederick Douglass, anti-slavery
agitator and politican [SIC]; Ira Aldridge, actor; Charles W. Chesnutt, novelist;
Henry O. Tanner, artist; Booker T. Washington, educator and race politican [SIC];
Bert Williams, comedian” (Reuter, 1928: 37).
There were more Mulattoes occupying position as government officials
than Blacks. There were two Negroes who were members of United States Senate;
both are mulattoes. There were twenty Negroes who were “members of the
National House of Representatives;” seventeen were Mulattoes (Reuter, 1928:
38).
The Mulattoes also got some disadvantages. One of the disadvantages was
that they were treated as Blacks. “For generations,” there has been a rule,
informally known as “one drop rule,” which means “one drop of Black blood
makes a person Black.” The rule is formally known as “hypodescent” and the
(Hickman, 1997: 1163). Degler made a research on “cases decided by southern
courts in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries” and found that “blacks and
mulattoes were, as far as southern law and southern society was concerned, one
and the same” (Bodenhorn, 2002: 25). Thus, the Mulattoes were considered
Blacks and consequently, they got racial discrimination like Blacks did.
According to the law of Virginia enacted in 1785, a Negro is “a person
with a black parent or grandparent.” Before the enactment of the law, “a mulatto
could posses up to one half African blood, but with this law’s enactment all
persons possessing one quarter African blood or more were considered Negroes.”
The law continued to apply “through the nineteenth century” (Zackodnik, 2001:
433). The law confirmed that Mulattoes were treated as Blacks.
White people usually considered a Mulatto to be “just another nigger” and
“drove the mulattoes into the arms of the blacks, no matter how hard some tried to
build a make-believe third world for themselves” (Toplin, 1979: 186).
Consequently, Mulattoes were refused “in any social relationship to which other
Negroes are ineligible” (Reuter, 1928: 40). Therefore, because they were
considered Blacks, Mulattoes experienced racial discrimination like Blacks did:
they were refused in some social relationships.
E. Review of Slavery in the United States of America
Racism in the United States of America is related to the history of slavery
in the country. According to Paul F. Boller, Jr. and Ronald Story inA More Perfect
Union: Documents in U.S. History, slavery in USA began in 1619 when a Dutch
24). Since then, slaves were very important in the United States especially in the
South. The economy of the South depended on agriculture and the slaves were
needed to work in the cotton, tobacco, and sugar plantations. According to
Current, et al, inAmerican History: a Survey, in 1700s, many tobacco plantations
in the Chesapeake region employed hundreds of slaves (1979: 67). Nelson
Manfred Blake in A Short History of American Life tells about the tasks of black
people: “Plowing, planting, thinning, hoeing, and picking under the broiling sun
were tasks which white men could do if they had to but which they gladly
relinquished to Negroes” (1952: 160). Therefore, the tasks of black people are
“plowing, planting, thinning, hoeing, and picking under the broiling sun.”
According to Blake, slaves were often mistreated: “Negroes might be
overworked and mistreated. Slave women might become the paramours of
overseers or masters. Husbands were often separated from their wives and
children from their parents” (1952: 164). Thus, slaves were mistreated because
they were overworked, were separated from their spouse, children, and parents
and they became the paramours of overseers or masters.
F. Theoretical Framework
To analyze the racism experienced by the Blacks and Mulattoes in the late
nineteenth century United States of America in Chesnutt’s The Marrow of
Tradition, the writer uses sociocultural-historical approach. It means that the
writer uses the theories on social, cultural, and historical background of The
of racism in the United States of America in the late nineteenth century,
Mulattoes, and slavery in the United States of America.
The writer has formulated three problems to analyze the topic. The first
problem is how the characters are described in The Marrow of Tradition. The
second problem is how the practice of racism is experienced by the characters in
The Marrow of Tradition. The third problem is how The Marrow of Tradition
reflects racism experienced by the Blacks and Mulattoes in the late nineteenth
century United States of America. To answer the problems, the writer uses
theories of character, characterization, relation between literature and society, and
racism. The writer also uses the reviews of racism in the United States of America
in the late nineteenth century, Mulattoes in the United States of America, and
slavery in the United States of America. The theories of character and
characterization are used to help the writer understands the characters in the novel.
The theory of relation between literature and society is used to help the writer
understands that literature can represent society. The theories of racism is used to
help the writer understands the manifestations of the practice of racism. The
review of racism in the United States of America in the late nineteenth century is
used to help the writer understands the practice of racism that was experienced by
the Blacks in the United States of America in the late nineteenth century. The
review of Mulattoes in the United States of America is used to help the writer
understands the attitudes of white people toward Mulattoes in the United States of
America. The review of slavery in the United States of America is used to help the
writer analyzes racism revealed in The Marrow of Traditionto see how it reflects
racism that really happened in the United States of America in the late nineteenth
century.
Below is the diagram that illustrates the theoretical framework:
0
Racism
Racism in the United States of America in the late
nineteenth century
Chesnutt’sThe Marrow of Tradition
-Character -Characterization
Results
Sociocultural-historical
approach
-Racism in the U.S.A. in
the late nineteenth century
-Mulattoes in the U.S.A. - Slavery in the U.S.A. - The
23
CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY A. Object of the Study
The object of this study is The Marrow of Tradition, a novel written by
Charles W. Chesnutt. The novel consists of 465 pages. It was first published by
Houghton, Mifflin and Company in 1901. The novel used in this study is
published by Bedford/St. Martin’s in 2002.
Set in the fictional town of Wellington, The Marrow of Tradition tells
about Southern society that discriminates black people and Mulattoes. There are
many white and black characters and some Mulatto characters in the novel. One
of the white characters is Major Carteret. He thinks that Blacks are supposed to be
Whites’ servant. It can be seen when he says: “The old relations of dependence
and loyal obedience on the part of the colored people, the responsibility of
protection and kindness upon that of the whites, have passed away forever”
(Chesnutt, 2002: 70). Major Carteret is a white supremacist who, along with
General Belmont and Captain George McBane, wants to overthrow ‘Negro
domination.’ As the editor of The Morning Chronicle newspaper, Major Carteret
spreads the campaign against ‘Negro domination.’ One of the black characters in
the novel is Sandy Campbell. He is the servant of John Delamere, an old white
man. Sandy is accused of murdering a white woman and he will be lynched
because of that. In fact, he is not the real murderer and he is accused of the murder
because he is slandered by John Delamere’s grandson, Tom. One of the Mulatto
when he travels by train. He is ordered by a train conductor to move to a colored
sleeping-car although he has paid first-class fare. Dr. Miller finds that unlike the
one for Whites, the colored sleeping-car has low quality.
The novel reveals the practice of racism toward black people and
Mulattoes. The majority of white characters always discriminate the Blacks and
Mulattoes while the black and mulatto characters continually gets discriminative
treatments. The story also tells about the real race riot that happened in
Wilmington, North Carolina, in 1898 in which “the total death toll as high as 250”
(http://ncpedia.org/wilmington-race-riot).
B. Approach of the Study
The writer uses sociocultural-historical approach to analyze the novel.
According to Mary Rohrberger and Samuel H. Woods, Jr. in Reading and Writing
about Literature, sociocultural-historical approach is the way to locate the real
work in reference to the civilization that produced it. The critics should
understand “the social milieu in which a work was created” (1971: 9). Therefore,
sociocultural-historical approach is an approach that is used to understand a
literary work by observing the social, cultural, and historical background of the
literary work.
In this study, the writer observes the social, cultural, and historical
background of Chesnutt’s The Marrow of Tradition. The writer finds that The
Marrow of Traditionset in the late nineteenth century when the practice of racism
such as racial segregation and lynching still existed in the United States of
writer analyzes the practice of racism revealed inThe Marrow of Traditionto see
how it reflects the practice of racism that really happened in the United States of
America in the late nineteenth century.
Sociocultural-historical approach is most suitable for this study because
the topic of this study is the practice of racism experienced by the Blacks and
Mulattoes in the late nineteenth century United States of America in Chesnutt’s
The Marrow of Tradition. It is impossible to understand the topic without
knowledge of the practice of racism against black people and Mulattoes that
happened at that time in the United States of America.
C. Method of the Study
The method used in this study is library research. Library research is a
research method in which a researcher collects information using existing
resources such as encyclopedias, glossaries, books, and the internet.
The writer uses two kinds of sources in conducting this study: the primary
and secondary sources. The primary source is Chesnutt’s The Marrow of
Tradition. The secondary sources are books on racism against black people;
Mulattoes in the United States of America, slavery in the United States of
America, lynching, and Ku Klux Klan namelyThe Enduring Vision: A History of
the American People written by Boyer, et al, Hickman’s The Devil and the One
Drop Rule: Racial Categories, African Americans, and the US Census, Blake’s A
Short History of American Life, Wood’s Lynching and Spectacle: Witnessing
Racial Violence in America, 1890-1940, and Horn’sInvisible Empire: The Story of
There are some steps in conducting this study. The first step is reading the
novel to understand what the novel tells about. The second step is choosing the
topic and formulating the problems. The third step is collecting theories and
reviews that are needed to answer the problems. The next step is answering the
27 CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS
A. The Description of the Characters inThe Marrow of Tradition
In this subchapter, the writer describes the characteristics of the characters in
The Marrow of Tradition. There are four characters that are described: Sandy
Campbell, Josh Green, Jerry Letlow, and Dr. Miller. The writer chooses the four
characters because they are major characters in the novel.
1. The Description of Sandy Campbell
Sandy is “a nigger” (Chesnutt, 2002: 155) “… apparently about forty years
old, to whom short side-whiskers and spectacles imparted an air of sobriety”
(Chesnutt, 2002: 51). The quotations tell that Sandy is 40-year-old black man who
looks serious.
Sandy is an honest man. It can be seen when his master, John Delamere says:
“The only servant in hearing of the conversation has been my own; and Sandy is as
honest as any man in Wellington” (Chesnutt, 2002: 58). When Major Carteret says to
John Delamere: “You mean, sir, as honest as any negro in Wellington,” Delamere
says “I would trust Sandy with my life,—he saved it once at the risk of his own”
(Chesnutt, 2002: 58). Therefore, Sandy is an honest man because he is trusted by his
Sandy is a servant who always wants to keep the honor of his master’s family.
It is revealed when he answers the grandson of John Delamere, Tom Delamere, who
wants to borrow some money from him:
I don’ min’ lettin’ you take my money, but I hopes you ain’ gwine ter use it fer none er dem rakehelly gwines-on er yo’n, — gamblin’ an ’bettin’ an’ so fo’th. Yo’ granddaddy ’ll fin out ’bout you yit, ef you don’ min’ yo’ P’s an’ Q’s. I does my bes’ ter keep yo’ misdoin’s f’m ’im, an’ sense I b’en tu’ned out er de chu’ch— thoo no fault er my own, God knows!—I ’ve tol’ lies ’nuff ’bout you ter sink a ship. But it ain’t right, Mistuh Tom, it ain’t right! An’ I only does it fer de sake er de fam’ly honuh (Chesnutt, 2002: 144).
The above quotation shows that Sandy knows that Tom likes to gamble and bet but he
never tells John Delamere about that because he wants to keep the honor of
Delamere’s family. Therefore, he always wants to keep the honor of his master’s
family.
Sandy is a servant who loves his master. It is revealed when Tom borrows
some money from him and asks him whether or not he will tell John Delamere:
No, suh, co’se I won’t! Does I ever tell ’im ’bout yo’ gwines-on? Ef I did, I would n’ have time ter do nothin’ e’se ha’dly. I don’ know whether I ’ll ever see dat money agin er no, do’ I ’magine de ole gent’eman would n’ lemme lose it ef he knowed. But I ain’ gwine ter tell him, whether I git my money back er no, fer he is jes’ so wrop’ up in dat boy dat I b’lieve it ’d jes’ break his hea’t ter fin’ out how he ‘s be’ n gwine on. Doctuh Price has tol’ me not ter let de ole gent’eman git ixcited, er e’se dere ‘s no tellin’ w’at mought happen. He ’s be’n good ter me, he has, an’I ’m gwine ter take keer er him,— dat ’s w’at I is, ez long ez I has de chance (Chesnutt, 2002: 145-146).
The above quotation shows that Sandy will not tell John Delamere about Tom
borrowing his money even if Tom will not give his money back. It is because telling
Sandy is religious. He attends church regularly:
Under normal circumstances, Sandy would have attended prayer-meeting on this particular evening of the week; but being still in contumacy, and cherishing what he considered the just resentment of a man falsely accused, he stifled the inclination which by long habit led him toward the church, and set out for the house of a friend with whom it occurred to him that he might spend the evening pleasantly (Chesnutt, 2002: 147).
Sandy is religious because he usually attends church on particular evening of the
week. However, he cannot attend church as usual because he is falsely accused of
doing something sinful by the church. Because of that, he goes to his friend’s house
so he can “spend the evening pleasantly.”
That Sandy is religious and that he is a servant who loves his master is also
revealed when John Delamere is visiting Sandy who is going to be lynched because
he is accused of murdering and robbing Polly Ochiltree. Believing that Sandy is not
the real murderer, Delamere wants to save him so Delamere asks where the gold that
is found in his trunk comes from. Sandy does not tell Delamere because the one who
gives him the gold and the real murderer is Delamere’s grandson, Tom. He is afraid
that telling Delamere the truth will endanger Delamere’s health:
I know you’re gwine ter do de bes’ you kin fer me, an’ I’m sorry I can’t he’p you no mo’ wid it; but ef dere should be any accident, er ef you can’t git me out er here, don’ bother yo’ min’ ‘bout it no mo’, suh, an’ don’ git yo’sef ixcited, fer you know de doctuh says, suh, dat you can’t stan’ ixcitement; but jes’ leave me in de han’s er de Lawd, suh,— He ’ll look after me, here er hereafter. I know I ’ve fell f’m grace mo’ d’n once, but I ’ve done made my peace wid Him in dis here jail-house, suh, an’ I ain’t ’feared ter die — ef I haf ter (Chesnutt, 2002: 171).
The above quotation shows that Sandy loves his master because he does not tell
that telling the truth will shock Delamere and affect Delamere’s health. That he
prefers being lynched to causing death of his master shows that he loves his master.
The quotation also shows that Sandy is religious because he believes that God will
look after him so he is not scared even if he has to die in the prison.
Sandy is a good servant. It can be seen when John Delamere says to him:
“You have been a good servant and a good friend” (Chesnutt, 2002: 170). Therefore,
Sandy is a good servant because his master considered him to be “a good servant and
a good friend.”
Sandy is an honest, faithful, and trustworthy man. It is revealed when John
Delamere does not believe that Sandy is a murderer:
Carteret, what is all this talk about lynching my man for murder and robbery and criminal assault? It ’s perfectly absurd! The man was raised by me; he has lived in my house forty years. He has been honest, faithful, and trustworthy. He would no more be capable of this crime than you would (Chesnutt, 2002: 172).
The above quotation reveals that Sandy is honest, faithful, and trustworthy so it is
impossible for him to commit the murder.
2. The Description of Josh Green
Josh Green is “a black giant” who “for many years had worked on the docks
for Miller’s father” (Chesnutt, 2002: 112). Therefore, Josh Green is a big black man
who has worked for Dr. Miller’s father for many years.
Josh is tall, big, and strong. It can be seen when in the riot, white men admire
him: “Josh Green, the tallest and biggest of them all, had not apparently been
famed on the wharves for his strength…” (Chesnutt, 2002: 234). Thus, Josh is a tall,
big, and strong man.
Josh chooses a violent way that is fighting to defend his right. It is revealed
when Dr. Miller sees that Josh walks into the hospital with “a broken arm hanging
limply by his side.” When Dr. Miller asks him whether or not he has been fighting
again, Josh answers: “No, suh, I don’ s’pose you could ha’dly call it a fight. One er
dem dagoes off’n a Souf American boat gimme some er his jaw, an’ I give ’im a back
answer, an’ here I is wid a broken arm. He got holt er a belayin’-pin befo’ I could hit
’im” (Chesnutt, 2002: 112). When Dr. Miller asks him what became of the other man,
he answers:
Dey tuck him ter de Marine Horspittle in de amberlance, ‘cause his leg wuz broke, an’ I reckon somethin’ must ’a’ accident’ly hit ’im in de jaw, fer he wuz scattr’rin’ teeth all de way ’long de street. I did n’ wan’ ter kill de man, fer he might have somebody dependin’ on ’im, an’ I knows how dat ’d be ter dem. But no man kin call me damn low-down nigger and keep on enjoyin’ good health right along (Chesnutt, 2002: 112).
The above quotations reveal that Josh fights to defend his right. He fights against
people who attack him and who insult him. He fights so that there is no man who can
call him “damn low-down nigger.”
That Josh fights to defend the right of his and his race is also revealed when
Sandy Campbell is going to be lynched. He wants to prevent the lynching by fighting:
The above quotation shows that Josh wants to fight to prevent the lynching. Josh is
not going to do it alone; he will mobilize fifty black people to fight against the
lynching. The quotation also shows that Josh is an unwise man. It is because if he
mobilizes fifty black people, there will be “a clash” and “instead of one dead negro
there ’d be fifty” (Chesnutt, 2002: 160).
Josh is truculent. It is revealed when Dr. Miller, Watson, and Josh gather at Dr.
Miller’s house to find a way to prevent the lynching of Sandy Campbell. They are
going to meet some white men who might want to prevent the lynching. However,
Watson advises Dr. Miller to leave Josh at Dr. Miller’s house because he is too
truculent: “We ’d better leave Josh here. He ’s too truculent. If we went on the street
he ’d make trouble, and if he accompanied us he ’d do more harm than good. Wait for
us here, Josh, until we ’ve seen what we can do. We ’ll be back in half an hour”
(Chesnutt, 2002: 162). The quotation shows that Josh is too truculent — he will make
trouble if he accompanies Watson and Dr. Miller to find some white men who might
want to prevent the lynching.
Josh wants to die in a quarrel with a white man. It can be seen when he says to
Dr. Miller: “I expec’s ter die a vi’lent death in a quarrel wid a w’ite man. An’
fu’thermo’, he ’s gwine ter die at the same time, er a little befo’. I be’n takin’ my own
time ’bout killin’ ’im (Chesnutt, 2002: 112). The quotation shows that Josh wants to
kill a white man and that he has been waiting to do it for a long time. It also shows
Josh asks Dr. Miller whether or not he remembers the Ku Klux Klan. Then he
tells a story by which he tells who the white man whom he wants to kill is:
One night a crowd er w’ite men come ter ou’ house an’ tuck my daddy out an’ shot ’im ter death, an’ skeered my mammy so she ain’ be’n herse’f f’m dat day ter dis. I wa’n’t mo’ ’n ten years ole at de time, an’ w’en my mammy seed de w’ite men comin’, she tol’ me ter run. I hid in de bushes an’ seen de whole thing, an’ it wuz branded on my mem’ry, suh, like a red-hot iron bran’s de skin. De w’ite folks had masks on, but one of ’em fell off — he wuz de boss, he wuz de head man, an’ tol’ de res w’at ter do, — an’ I seen his face. It wuz a easy face ter ’member; an’ I swo’ den, ’way down deep in my hea’t, little ez I wuz, dat some day er ’nother I ’d kill dat man. I ain’ never had no doubt erbout it; it ’s jus’ w’at I ’m livin’ fer (Chesnutt, 2002: 113).
The quotation tells that the white man whom Josh wants to kill is the leader of the Ku
Klux Klan who killed his father and who made his mother crazy. The quotation also
shows that killing the Ku Klux Klan leader is his aim in life.
That Josh Green’s aim in life is killing the leader of the Ku Klux Klan is
confirmed by Dr. Miller:
Here was a negro who could remember an injury, who could shape his life to a definite purpose, if not a high or holy one. When his race reached the point where they would resent a wrong, there was hope that they might soon attain the stage where they would try, and, if need be, die, to defend a right. This man, too, had a purpose in life, and was willing to die that he might accomplish it (Chesnutt, 2002: 114).
Therefore, the reason why Josh Green’s aim in life is killing the leader of the Ku Klux
Klan even if he has to die to accomplish it is because he wants to “defend a right” as a
black person whose father was murdered by Ku Klux Klan.
Josh Green hates white people. It is revealed when he says to Dr. Miller:
w’ite folks up an’ kills a few, so dat de res’ kin keep on fergivin’ an’ bein’ thankful dat dey ’re lef’ alive. Don’ talk ter me ’bout dese w’ite folks, — I knows ’em, I does! Ef a nigger wants ter git down on his marrow-bones, an’ eat dirt, an’ call ’em ‘marster,’he’s a good nigger, dere ’s room ferhim. But I ain’ no w’ite folks’ nigger, I ain’. I don’ call no man ‘marster’ (Chesnutt, 2002: 115).
The quotation reveals that Josh Green hates white people. It is because they treat
black people badly. Another reason why Josh hates white people is because they kill
black people who are prosperous. Moreover, white people only like black people
who call them “master.” It means that white people think that black people are not
equal to them. The quotation also reveals that Josh refuses to call white people
“master.”
Josh is a brave man. It is revealed when Dr. Miller thinks that “Josh had a
reputation for absolute fearlessness” (Chesnutt, 2002: 112). That Josh is brave is also
revealed when the riot is happening. He is with his group that consists of some black
men who want to fight against white people:
De w’ite folks are killin’ de niggers, an’ we ain’ gwine ter stan’ up an’ be shot down like dogs. We ’re gwine ter defen’ ou’ lives, an’ we ain’ gwine ter run away f’m no place where we ’ve got a right ter be; an’ woe be ter de w’ite man w’at lays han’s on us! Dere ’s two niggers in dis town ter eve’y w’ite man, an’ ef we ’ve got ter be kilt, we ’ll take some w’ite folks ’long wid us, ez sho’ ez dere ’s a god in heaven (Chesnutt, 2002: 217).
The quotation shows that Josh is brave because he is not afraid to die in attempt to
defend the right of black people. He does not want white people to shoot black people
‘only’ because black people do nothing against them. Therefore, Josh is brave and
` That Josh is brave can also be seen when Dr. Miller says to him that his group
“are rushing on to certain death” and then Josh answers: “Well, suh, maybe we is; but
we ’re gwine ter die fightin’. Dey say de w’ite folks is gwine ter bu’n all de cullud
schools an’ chu’ches, an’ kill all de niggers dey kin ketch. Dey ’re gwine ter bu’n yo’
new hospittle, ef somebody don’ stop ’em” (Chesnutt, 2002: 225). The quotation tells
that Josh is brave because he is not afraid to die when he is fighting to protect black
people’s property.
Josh has leadership characteristic. It is revealed when his group is protecting
black people’s property and a group of white men “were following them at a short
distance”: “Josh, with the eye of a general, perceived that some of his party were
becoming a little nervous, and decided that they would feel safer behind shelter”
(Chesnutt, 2002: 228). Therefore, Josh has leadership characteristic because he can
make a decision that is good for his men that is going inside the hospital so they can
be safe while protecting the building.
Josh is a man who never gives up. When the leader of the crowd of white men
and the murderer of his father, Captain McBane, tells him to give up or his group will
“be shot like dogs,” Josh answers:
The quotation shows that Josh refuses to give up although he is threatened that he and
his men will be shot down. He prefers taking the risk of being shot to giving up
because he does not let the white men burn down black people’s churches, schools,
and hospitals. Therefore, Josh is a man who never gives up and who always wants to
defend the right of black people.
That Josh never gives up is also revealed when the hospital is being burned
and “one or two” members of his group “had already been killed, and as many more
disabled.” He exclaims:
Men! — fer nobody but men would do w‘at you have done, — the day has gone ’g’inst us. We kin see ou’ finish; but fer my part, I ain’ gwine ter leave dis worl’ widout takin’ a w’ite man ’long wid me, an’ I sees my man right out yonder waitin’, — I be’n waitin’ fer him twenty years, but he won’ have ter wait fer me mo’ ’n ’bout twenty seconds. Eve’y one er you pick yo’ man! We ’ll open de do’ an’ we ’ll give some w’ite men a chance ter be sorry dey ever started dis fuss! (Chesnutt, 2002: 233).
Although Josh knows that his group does not have a chance to win the battle, he does
not give up; he even tells his men to keep fighting. Therefore, Josh never gives up
although he is in a difficult situation.
That Josh never gives up can also be seen when he is shot:
Like a wedge he dashed through the mob, which parted instinctively before him, and all oblivious of the rain of lead which fell around him, reached the point where Captain McBane, the bravest man in the party, stood waiting to meet him. A pistol-flame flashed in his face, but he went on, and raising his powerful right arm, buried his knife to the hilt in the heart of his enemy (Chesnutt, 2002: 234).
Although Josh is shot, he keeps walking toward Captain McBane and jabs his knife
gives up and he can still do what he wants to do in his life that is killing the murderer
of his father.
3. The Description of Jerry Letlow
Jerry Letlow, “a very good negro” (Chesnutt, 2002: 99), is a porter at Major
Carteret’s newspaper office. It can be seen in the following quotation:
The whole office force, including reporters, compositors, and pressmen, came in to congratulate the major and smoke at his expense. Even Jerry, the colored porter,—Mammy Jane’s grandson and therefore a protégé of the family,— presented himself among the rest, or rather, after the rest” (Chesnutt, 2002: 61).
Therefore, Jerry is a black porter who works at Major Carteret’s newspaper office.
Jerry wants to be white. It is revealed when General Belmont observes Jerry
and asks him:
What, in h—ll is the matter with you, Jerry? Your black face is splotched with brown and yellow patches, and your hair shines as though you had fallen head-foremost into a firkin of butter. What’s the matter with you?” (Chesnutt, 2002: 194).
Although Jerry answers “nothin’, suh, nothin’,” General Belmont knows that Jerry
uses some cosmetics to lighten his skin and to straighten his hair. The general says to
Jerry: “You have been reading the Afro-American Banner.” Then the general opens a
newspaper “which he had retained in his hand” and reads one of the advertisements:
“Kinky, curly hair made straight in two applications. Dark skin lightened two shades;
mulattoes turned perfectly white.” The quotations show that Jerry uses some
cosmetics to lighten his skin and to straighten his hair after he reads an advertisement
