Category: The Known World

The novel, The Known World, by Edward Jones is imbued with literal and metaphoric representations of the known world during the period of nineteenth century America. Life in Manchester revolves around slavery where both master and slaves coexist.’The Known World’ is the title of a map of Earth which lies in Skiffington’s office and shows the geography of the then known world in miniature. Because the known world exists, we can confidently deduce that there lies an unknown world. The North and the South share diametrically opposite opinions on slavery and therefore the inhabitants of each space occupy different worlds and share different worldviews. The novel’s title is derived because the world assumes not only physical space but contain situations with which the characters are familiar and have come to accept in the midst of slavery and racial marginalization. Slavery has at its base the financial interests of the Euro-American therefore within the economic world the slave is not human. He has a price on his head and toils in the plantation for his master’s gain. Storms are images employed by the author to depict the travel of William Robbins as he crosses from the world of blacks to the world of whites. Storms also convey to the reader feelings of depression and grief. A Child’s Dream depicts Counsel Skiffington’s world literally and metaphorically. The Known World covers geographic regions, the worlds of the North and the South, the world of the Southern paradise, the world of storms and the world of a Child’s Dream.

The Known World encompasses a world with which we are familiar geographically and so may represent a physical land mass. The title of the novel, The Known World derives its name from a map found in John Skiffington’s office titled The Known World which dates back three hundred years ago to the 16th century. On the old map, North America remains nameless, is smaller in dimensions since it is largely unexplored and ‘unknown,’ while “America” on the map refers to South America. There is no great familiarity with the New World and so the places are not clearly defined. The map represents the worldview of the German author Hans Waldseemuller who gives a smaller and imperfect version of what the world truly is. Knowledge, background and personal experience mould the author’s worldview which is narrow in scope. The progress of time changes realities in the world geographically. Because of advancement in technology and deeper exploration, the map of the world has improved. New dimensions and locations expand the boundaries of the map. Jean Broussard argues to John Skiffington that he can acquire “a better map, and more map of today”(175). The previous narrow worldview has expanded over time to previously unknown areas.

In The Known World some characters are only acquainted with a limited area because of deficiency in their personal experience and knowledge. Moses, the overseer of Henry Townsend’s plantation, is “world-stupid…(he) does not know north from south (350). This lack of information works to Moses’ detriment for when he finally breaks free from bondage, he is unable to find his bearings and go north to freedom. Moses’ familiarity of the world does not exceed the confines of the plantation so slave patrollers ultimately capture and kill him. A publicist who desires to publish a Polish poet’s literary works resigns in his ignorance of the country and says “forget Poland, I can’t even find the damn thing on my map (357). The publicist has his worldview restricted since Poland is missing on his map. Mrs. Broussard, a French woman, also has a limited worldview. She “never had a fixed idea of America and was never able to comprehend (it)”(175). America is still unknown, unsearched by the European and is a novelty to the rest of the world. However one character, Alice Night, knows and understands her world more than any other.

One overarching irony in The Known World unfolds toward the end of the novel where the seemingly lunatic Alice masterfully recreates and immortalizes her world through art. She captures firstly “the map of life in the county of Manchester, Virginia”(384). The unquestionable accuracy of the map forces itself on Calvin, Caldonia’s brother, so much that he likens the map to “what God sees when He looks down on Manchester”(384). In this map, Alice gives us a panoramic view of life in Manchester with its “houses and barns and roads and cemeteries and wells”(384). Through Alice’s nocturnal ramblings through the county, she is able to capture and retain vivid images of daily life in Manchester. She supposedly feigns madness for it allows her to run free and unmolested even by slave patrollers. Houses denote settlement and family life. Barns symbolize daily activity and food. Roads express journey, travel, movement – the daily commute and transit from one place to the next. Cemeteries signify the reality of the transience of life and the inevitability of death. Wells are a central communal location where one daily draws water to satisfy his basic needs and meets neighbours and friends. Hence, Alice’s map of life clearly captures the essence of life in Manchester.

Alice Night’s second work of art depicts her world of people on Henry and Caldonia Townsend’s plantation. In this painting, she illustrates every member of the working force and the masters. “Not a single person is missing…each person’s face…is raised up as though to look in the very eyes of God”(385). Alice makes a very important point in this painting. Although life is made up of daily activity and objects referring to daily employment, she recognizes that life is made up of people. Masters, co-workers, masters, family, neighbours, and friends are in the map of life. Alice fits the human family in the framework of the universal and the transcendent. God the Creator and Divine Overseer sees all and He alone can capture the world in its completeness where “there is nothing missing.”(385). The deceased and the living of Alice’s circle are never forgotten. They are still alive in her mind. Her known world includes not only her surroundings and community, but her world also contains the social circle with which she has daily contact and has forged an inextricable bond.

The North and the South in the context of the Known World allude to slavery and the polar disparities of opinion with regard to the rights and the freedoms of the African American. The world of the North stands for the emancipation, and civil rights of slaves. It was common knowledge that “in the Northern States, (it) is well understood to have been fixedly averse to all pro-slavery views”- Slavery (10/10/1851) NY Times. Therefore the north is a haven to fugitive blacks and Negro freemen. In separate incidents, Elias and Augustus try to escape slavery and judging from the position of the sun and the stars, they determine the north and head in that direction. On the other hand, the South believes in the natural subservience of the blacks and therefore is supportive of slavery. “The slaveholding interest is held to be ‘the South’” – Southern Politics 11/15/1859 NY Times. This statement rings true since the main plot, scenes and action unfold in the South. “Everyone interested in the Old South knows that its peculiar institution, chattel slavery, was justified in a number of different ways.” (3) Chattel Slavery and Wage Slavery. The Anglo-American Context 1830 – 1860. Marcus Cunliffe . Slavery is a world and a reality that exists. Moses, one of Henry’s main slaves, “had thought it was already a strange world that made him a slave to a white man” (9). The South espouses the view that slaves are but brute animals who “will answer to” his master. This term is so common among southerners that Counsel introduces Minerva as one who “will answer to Minnie or Minerva or whatever you choose” (32) and Winifred, her loving mistress, puts “will answer to” on a poster announcing Minerva’s loss. Robbins, a prosperous southern slaveholder, objects to “the fool’s idea of nigger heaven in the North” (37). He disagrees with the idea of the abolition of slavery and the upgrade of the status of slaves to free and equal beings.

Chattel Slavery is an institution which generates income for capitalist America and Europe. “In a country controlled by white men’s interests (the negro) had no master with an interest in him to safeguard” (17). Indeed, slavery is commonly known as The Slave Trade and this term underlines its economic connotations. In The Known World, instances of slave commerce recur repetitively. Henry Townsend and William Robbins, chief slaveholders, take inventory of their slaves entering in a log the physical description, birth, marriage, cost price, selling price, and death of each slave they own. In the business world, chattel slavery dehumanizes the slave by commodifying him. He is reduced to property, an asset, a means of production and even a “legacy”(74) according to Maude. Family ties, civil rights, justice and human dignity are trodden underfoot and give way to the almighty dollar. In the economy, slavery becomes such a business that insurance covers the mutilation, escape and accidental death of slaves. In business, nothing is for free. To purchase his freedom, the slave, at the discretion of the master, has to pay sums of money beyond the reaches of his pocket. For several years, Augustus Townsend earns money to redeem himself and his entire family from slavery. Robert Colfax, William Robbins and Counsel Skiffington build their sprawling empires on the backs of slaves. Slave speculators like Stennis and Darcy kidnap and sell free and enslaved blacks to the willing buyers of the South. Henry and Caldonia own an extensive cotton field – cotton being a product much in demand on the world market.

The storm is a metaphoric image that describes a world of chaos, turbulence, disquiet and discord. When Robbins transitions from the black world to the white world on his visits to Philomena Cartwright, his black paramour, he lapses into a state of unconsciousness which he describes as “storms in the head” (21). The storms rage as Robbins moves from one world to the next because of incompatibility and undoubtedly the hostile antagonism existing in the white and black world. Divergent principles, ideals, and standards govern both worlds. Irreconcilable disparities and ingrained prejudices of both worlds make the journey from one place to the next a torture to Robbins. The world in which Robbins lives disallows any friendly interaction between whites and blacks beyond the common relationship of master and slave. Robbins loves Philomena deeply more than he does his white wife but the fury and intensity of the storms in his mind signify that he has his thoughts unsettled about the extra-marital and interracial relationship. Storms are also symbolic of foreboding doom and illustrate to the reader the depth of sorrow into which a character is plunged. There are two actual storms mentioned in the novel. One storm bursts upon Stamford, an elderly slave who is repulsed and rejected by all his lovers and women folk on the plantation. As a child, a senior slave tells him that without women it is impossible to survive slavery. He believes and lives this theory and so his world becomes one where women are indispensable. After repeated rejections, “he (thinks) that he was not long for the world, that no young stuff would ever love him” (197). In a fit of grief, loneliness and depression, he contemplates suicide . As a consequence, “all the heart he (has) for living in the world (leaves) him” (200). Women are the world for Stamford and so without women, “young stuff” (21), he sees his life as unbearable and nothing. The other storm presages Luke’s death. Luke, a boy slave, plays on the outside oblivious to the dangers of lightning while Elias tries to save him. Six pages later, Elias tries to save Luke from working on a plantation notorious for cruelty to slaves and its arduous hardship but the master decides that Luke must work there and so the frail boy dies of overwork. On the contrary, when Elias falls in love with his future wife, Celeste, he describes the feeling as a “quietness and stillness in the world he had never known before” (98). The harmony, compatibility and legality of the relationship have nature’s blessing.

The world of Southern paradise is called A Child’s Dream – Counsel Skiffington’s grand slave plantation and estate, “the finest …in the South” (368). A Child’s Dream evokes images of a world of passing fancy, a wonderland of transient bliss and even a utopia. Furbished with many comforts and known as the most luxurious mansion in the county, it crumbles to naught. Paradoxically, A Child’s Dream is also a place of hardship. Counsel owns one hundred and twelve slaves so he perpetuates the culture of serfdom, and oppression of black slaves. His dream becomes a nightmare when disaster strikes. His home becomes suddenly infected and infested by the deadly, contagious smallpox and his crops begin to fail. His family and slaves die and the empire goes up in smoke literally. He burns his home in a fit of grief for his own misfortune and to rid himself of the painful memories of a departed wife, children and prosperity. A Child’s Dream is a metaphor for Counsel’s success and then unexpected failure. At first he enjoys material success and happiness but later on, he awakens to a harsh reality and becomes humbled by the adverse vicissitudes of life.

In conclusion we see different worlds existing in the 19 th century through the eyes of slave and master. Each world is formed by the background, views, choices, experience and individuality of each person. As one progresses through time, the known world changes dimensions for circumstances never remain constant. The known world however expresses acquaintanceship and understanding of life’s occurrences and explores individual reactions related to what life brings. In The Known World, environments, surroundings, people, opinions, and institution play important roles in shaping the life and worlds of characters.

The Known World, a historical fiction novel by Edward P. Jones, opens with a master’s death. He owns over 30 slaves and 50 acres of land in Manchester County, Virginia. His slaves probably do not know that he originally intended on being a different kind of master, “the kind of shepherd master God had intended” (180). However, he inevitably fails to become someone who provided “good food for his slaves, no hippings, short and happy days in the fields” (180). This sounds like a familiar story, but there is a difference. Henry Townsend is black. The Known World takes a closer look at not only the brutality slaves endured but also at the system of slavery and the culture it produces as a result. Jones investigates the human origins and social impact of the slavery institution that existed particularly in the South. He highlights the uncomfortable yet historically accurate fact that it was not uncommon for free blacks to own slaves. This allows the author to explore on a deeper level how this ironic situation came about and what exactly separates a slave from a master. Approaching slavery through this perspective allows the author and his readers to consider the impact of slavery on society and individuals.

In the novel, The Known World, Edward P. Jones sheds light on slavery as a social system and the type of culture it produces. Through various stories from the perspectives of different characters, Jones paints a picture of the transformation of the practice of slavery into a lifestyle focused on capitalistic gain. Economic profit alone would not be enough for people to turn to the most extreme system of stratification, slavery. Slave owners believe in inherent superiority, that they have a right to order those who they believe are inherently inferior to them. It is shown throughout the novel that white characters like Counsel live by these blashphemous standards, causing them to believe it is acceptable to own and reduce people to property. As Counsel makes his way to Texas, he encounters a wagon train with people of many races. “Counsel wondered if the authorities knew about all these people. There was something wrong here and the government of Texas should be doing something about it” (239). In the first sentence, there is a tone of genuine confusion on Counsel’s part as if he is witnessing something forbidden. He refers to the civilians in the wagon as “these people,” which produces a sense of otherness. Counsel’s disgust of the concept of otherness highlights his extreme racism towards everyone else who is different from him. This standoffish tone makes his sequence of thoughts seem almost blatantly natural. Phrases like “something wrong here” and “should be doing something about it” emphasize the immense uncomfortableness coming from Counsel, which helps readers to more easily grasp the warped and racist mindset of characters like him. Through passages like this, we are able to come to the conclusion that the causes behind his bewildering beliefs boil down to the inherent belief of superiority. Specifically, Counsel thinks all other races as inferior to his own and views “these people” basically as trash. Counsel has this unshakeable sense of superiority when he is the one who has lost everything. He, a slave master, abandons his property and creditors and becomes a thief and adulterer, yet he somehow still feels superior to the “filth” in the wagon. He has learned nothing from his sorrows as he continues to loathe and judge people who are different and still does not understand tolerance and humility. While the novel primarily explores slavery as an issue beyond racism, this factor cannot be ignored. Counsel’s level of racism is shocking even in the society of The Known World that accepts the dehumanizing system of slavery as a way of life. This false sense of superiority is just one of the many toxic elements that poisons society and the people in it.

One of the most frequently discussed factors of slavery is racism; however, Jones transcends beyond racial boundaries and uncovers the bigger truth. The struggle in power dynamic and desire for assertion of power rooted within the slave community are one of the many reasons why free blacks end up reinforcing the cage that once held them captive. Oftentimes, slaves who are given a sense of superiority and more authority over other slaves experience degradation of the human heart. This can be seen in Moses, the overseer of all the slaves on Henry’s plantation. As Moses’s trips to Caldonia to report about the plantation become a more frequent and regular occurrence, his attitude and behavior begins to change for the worse. “That evening was the first time Moses would think that his wife and child could not live in the same world with him and Caldonia. Had they made love in silence, as before, he would not have begun to think beyond himself. But she had spoken of tomorrow, and that meant more tomorrow after that. Where did a slave wife and a slave son fit in with a man who was on his way to being freed and then marrying a free woman? On his way to becoming Mr. Townsend?” (292-93). Moses’s contemplation of his situation relays a sense of urgency and danger. The uninterrupted flow of his sentence underscores the straight-forwardness of his sacrilegious thoughts of his already established family. Phrases like “the same world with him and Caldonia” accentuates the irreversible distance that has been created between his old life with Priscilla and Jamie and the new one he envisions with Caldonia. This allows the readers to realize that the greed for power and influence has tainted Moses’s once sincere heart. The opening of the second sentence, “had they made love in silence, as before,” reveals Moses’s dying feelings of love and dedication towards his relationship with Priscilla. The idea of Priscilla speaking “of tomorrow” frightens Moses as he desperately wants to leave behind his life as a helpless slave, and the only way to do that is by cutting off ties with his family. Through the questions Moses asks himself, he tries to justify his betrayal of Priscilla and Jamie with the reasoning that “a slave wife and slave son” cannot “fit in with a man who” will soon rise above the sphere of slaves and join the other side with Caldonia. Just as Henry Townsend once did, Moses has come to embrace the slavery system and desires to become the next Henry of the plantation. This false sense of hope and ambition drives Moses to view his family as an inconvenient obstacle to what he wants, causing him to trick Priscilla and Jamie into leaving the plantation forever. Moses was once filled with compassion and had tearfully begged Robbins, “We are one,” (300) to keep him and a fellow slave, Bessie, together. Comparing the past to now, Moses shows no signs of remorse for causing Priscilla and Jamie to disappear even though he and Priscilla have been married for a long time. His once warm heart has turned stone cold because of the callousness of slavery. This extreme comparison underscores the degrading effects of slavery on the human heart, thus, making slaves like Moses more susceptible to embracing the slavery institution.

Jones depicts the culture slavery produces through the eyes of various characters like Henry Townsend, a free black who ends up owning his own kind. The fact that it was not that uncommon for free blacks to become slave masters, assuming the role whites predominantly occupied, there seems to be underlying reasons other than racism that has brought upon this ironic situation. In these cases, the insuppressible desire for control and superiority perverts free blacks’ notions of justice and humanity, which in turn results in them supporting the slavery system. “Moses had thought that it was already a strange world that made him a slave to a white man, but God had indeed set it twirling and twisting every which way when he put black people to owning their own kind. Was God even up there attending to business anymore?” (9). The phrase “ already a strange world” expresses Moses’s hatred and extreme disapproval of a world where whites normalize the idea of owning black slaves. Descriptive words like “twirling” and “twisting” convey the even more disturbing and uncomfortable feeling Moses, as well as we, get from the fact that free blacks like Henry own people of his own kind. The reference to God relays a sense of utter hopelessness in humanity, which further underscores the immorality of slavery. Throughout the novel, Jones reveals the reasons how a society where slaves manage to escape the diabolical institution just to perpetuate the vicious cycle slavery can exist. The author shows that on top of racism, the mindset of a group of people who value power and being viewed as superior over others is what also drives slavery. Despite the numerous justification of slavery with religion and the law, The Known World demonstrates that on top of racism, the mindset of a group of people who value power and being viewed as superior over others is what also drives the slavery institution.

Slavery is able to have such a strong hold on society because of the constant justifications made by slaveowners and bystanders. While Henry associates the ownership of slaves with prosperity and influence, other characters utilize religion to justify their roles as master and for their continued practice of slavery. Amidst the funeral of Henry Townsend, his slaves are anxious as to whether or not Caldonia will grant them freedom. Caldonia laments, “‘Please do not worry yourselves. I am here and I will not be going anywhere. And you will be with me. We will be together in all of this. God stands with us. God will give us many days, good and bright days, good and joyful days…’” (64). Through the usage of words like “please” and “worry,” Caldonia conveys genuine concern for her slaves and attempts to console them. The constant use of the third person point of view in phrases like “we will be together in all of this” reveals Caldonia’s intention of not freeing the slaves, ultimately putting an end to the slaves’ hopes of liberty. The phrase “I will not be going anywhere” perpetuates this false idea that everyone is better off being slaves under her control. There is a subtle condescending tone in Caldonia’s condolences as she basically views them as helpless without her giving them worth. She justifies her decision by using the name of God, which shows that Caldonia believes God condones their enslavement. Justification of slavery through religion encourages people like Caldonia to continue their practice of slavery as they are given a false sense of peace as they believe what they are doing is morally correct. Augustus had faith in Caldonia to have greater moral decency than Henry and hoped that she would free the slaves upon Henry’s death. However, continued involved with slavery has changed her as she now accepts it and does not propose freeing the slaves. This illustrates the corrupting influence of slavery on seemingly kind and gentle people like Caldonia who have not recognized how slavery has warmped her humanity. Similarly to Caldonia, Fern Elston, an educated free-born black, justifies her involvement in the slavery system with God and the Bible.

Christianity has a significant influence in the mindset of people during the antebellum era in America. In fact, the first instance of slavery is depicted in the Old Testament of the Bible. As a result, people who read and lived in accordance with the Bible thought it was not morally wrong to possess slaves. When trying to explain to a journalist how a black person could possibly own slaves, Fern declares, “‘All of us do only what the law and God tell us we can do. No one of us who believes in the law and God does more than that’” (109). Although Fern Elston is an educated, refined free-born black and a teacher, she too participates in the slavery institution. Fern justifies her entangelement with slavery by explaining that they do only what God permits. She lives as a free woman, but she is not free of slavery. Fern lives within its social construct, which deems the practice legal and ethical by the word of God. Her assertion highlights the corrupting influence of beliefs used to justify human subjugation.

In addition to how many justify slavery with religion, some use the law and the economy to support the immoral institution. When William Robbins comes upon Henry playfully wrestling with his slave, Moses, Robbins rebukes, ‘“…But the law expects you to know what is master and what is slave. And it does not matter if you are not much darker than your slave. The law is blind to that. You are the master and that is all the law wants to know. The law will come to you and stand behind you. But if you roll around and be a playmate to your property, and your property turns around and bites you, the law will come to you still, but it will not come with the full heart and all the deliberate speed that you will need…’” (123) The phrase “the law is blind to that” reveals that the only thing that separates Henry from his slave is the law as Henry physically looks similar to Moses. The personification of the law facilitate the reader’s understanding how characters like Robbins justify the practice of slavery with the law and faulty logic. Through these words, Robbins emphasizes how defining the role of a master and slave will be more advantageous for Henry. By associating the powers of the law with words like “full heart” and “deliberate speed,” Robbins relays a sense of gravity that comes with being a “proper” master. Robbins sees that Henry, though full of potential, he does not comprehend the conventions that slave owners must adhere to. He has to internalize the legally defined position of master as a free black and the owner of human property. To be a “proper” slave master and maximize efficiency and profits, Henry embraces the social system of slavery and enforces the distinction between master and slave. It is Henry’s duty to enforce this distinction if the law is to shield him. Henry’s belief is based on the idea of maintaining order and stability, fearing that if anyone were to go against the law, the economy and society they live in will fall apart, leading to chaos and violence. This perspective of his fails to take into consideration the violence that is already taking place to maintain the system – the form of abusing and killing slaves.

Throughout the novel, Jones utilizes this unique approach to inspecting slavery in order to deepen our consideration of the effects of slavery on individuals and the community as a whole. One of the most frequently discussed impact of slavery on the human mind is the illusion of freedom. Henry realizes his illusioned freedom through a metaphorical dream as he dies when “He thought he knew the one they were talking about but as he formed some words to join the conversation, death stepped into the room and came to him: Henry walked up the steps and into the tiniest of homes, knowing with each step that he did not own it, that he was only renting. He was ever so disappointed; he heard footsteps behind him and death told him it was Caldonia, coming to register her own disappointment. Whoever was renting the house to him had promised a thousand rooms, but as he traveled through the house he found less than four rooms, and all the rooms were identical and his head touched their ceilings” (11). While Henry believes he is free, he is technically not free because Augustus bought Henry from Robbins and owns his son. This was the only way in which Henry could live in Virginia without having to be re-enslaved once Robbins released him under the state laws. Entering a small and cramped house he doesn’t own but rents in his dream moments before his death, Henry is deeply disappointed that the house with only a few rooms isn’t as grand as he was promised. He does not have any more ownership of the house than he has of himself. His liberty is borrowed and his identity has been built on a lie.

The free blacks who did not participate in the slavery institution experienced a different kind of illusioned freedom: freedom that was transitory and fragile in nature. When Augustus became furious with the fact that his own son had become a master, “…Mildred made him see that the bigger Henry could make the world he lived in the freer he would be. ‘Them free papers he carry with all over the place don’t carry anough freedom’” (113). Mildred tries to explain her support of Henry’s decision to Augustus by tangibly conceptualizing the illusion of freedom. The “bigger world” Mildred discusses about refers to how Henry’s involvement in slavery will give him the opportuntity to gain enough power and influence to rise above the restrictions placed on people like Mildred and Augustus. As a result, she explains how the more influential he is in the community, “the freer he would be.” The phrase “don’t carry anough freedom” helps the readers to realize that a flimsy piece of paper stating someone’s status cannot suddenly change civilians’ attitudes towards free blacks. Mildred seems to understand more about the severe weaknesses of being free blacks in a society where all the power is placed in the hands of a select group of people. She knew what Augustus eventually came to realize through a tragic incident that resulted in his death. While traveling home from a distant county, Augustus encounters slave patrollers Harvey Travis, Oden, and Barnum. ‘“Mr. Barnum, evenin. How your family? They be good, as the Lord keeps them. This ain’t no damn church social’” (211). Augustus greets Barnum warmly in a casual yet formal tone as he addresses him as “Mr. Barnum.” He then strikes up a genuine question to initiate a conversation. Barnum then answers with some level of intimacy when he says “as the Lord keeps them.” The first two dialogue paints a perfectly normal and common conversation between two people when all of a sudden, Travis interjects aggressively. The concise yet strong statement delivers a sense of urgency almost like fast beats in a song. The change in tone from amiable to hostile as shown through the use of a curse word “ damn” makes it seem as if the greeting flipped a switch in Travis’s mind. It almost felt like Travis hated the image of a black man greeting fellow civilians. Travis, fueled by extreme jealousy and hatred towards free blacks, devours Augustus’s free papers and sells him to a kidnapper. In a slave-based society, the nature of freedom for ex-slaves is extremely fragile. They are not granted the life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness that they deserve from earning freedom. In a twisted society like this, all it took to strip Augustus of his liberty and chain him again to the bondages of slavery was for someone to easily devour a flimsy piece of paper. Similar to Counsel, Travis’s approval of an institution that degrades humans to property is fueled by a belief of inherent superiority and the desire for dominance over those that he deems as “inferior.” Even though people like Travis, Robbins, and Counsel constantly justify their practice and enforcement of slavery with capitalism and the law, in the end, individuals like Travis end up breaking the same laws in order to satiate their own selfish needs and feelings of false superiority.

The Known World by Edward P. Jones is a fictional account of the history of Manchester County, Virginia. It is set in the Antebellum South, and focuses on a black slave owner, Henry Townsend, and the effects of his death on the Townsend plantation. It sheds light on a slice of history that is often ignored- black ownership of slaves. Although the writing style was slightly confusing, the book delivered an accurate, engaging description of the historical landscape of the era by using a wide array of characters and describing important events.

The book begins at the death of Henry Townsend. As the book goes on, the history of Henry’s life unfolds, and we learn that he was born a slave to Mr. William Robbins, the richest man in Manchester County. Henry develops a close relationship with his master, especially after his father, Augustus Townsend, buys himself and his wife out of slavery, leaving Henry alone on the plantation for several years. Robbins takes Henry under his wing and becomes his mentor when Henry’s parents finally pay for his freedom. Henry buys his first slave, Moses, and builds a house and a plantation. Robbins pays for Henry’s education– he is tutored by Fern Elston, a free black women who is highly respected in the community. Through Fern, Henry meets Caldonia, whom he marries.

After Henry’s death, Caldonia is overcome with grief and although she tries her best to keep the plantation in order, things begin to fall apart. She has an affair with Moses, the overseer. He, excited by the chance for power, convinces his wife and son to run away so that he can marry Caldonia and become the master of the plantation. He sends them away with Alice, a slave whom everyone assumes is crazy because she sings very loudly and wanders around at night aimlessly. The Sheriff, John Skiffington, is a god-fearing man who believes that slavery is morally wrong, but still enforces the laws surrounding the issue. When the three slaves escape, he is unable to find and bring them back. The town stirs, and folks begin to doubt the sheriff. Meanwhile, Augustus Townsend is captured by two of Skiffington’s patrol men and sold back into slavery unlawfully.

Moses, frustrated that Caldonia will not free him, runs away and hides with Mildred Townsend in Augustus’s house. Skiffington and his deputy find him hiding there and John accidentally shoots Mildred. The deputy, Counsel Skiffington, kills John, loots the house, and leaves to take Moses back to Caldonia’s plantation. More slaves have run away and the plantation has become disorganized. The author goes on to explain the respective futures of certain characters.

This book is significant to the study of U.S. history because it provides an in depth understanding of slavery and the social structure of the Antebellum South. It is easy to read about slavery in a textbook and automatically assume that all slave-owners were evil people and that all free blacks were abolitionists. Important details are left out, and so are all of the emotions connected with the issue. You get a very flat, distanced description of the way things were. The Known World is an excellent way to really step into the past and see how slavery affected all sorts of different people. Jones describes many different characters and their views on slavery during the story. For example, Fern Elston, educator to most of the free blacks in Manchester County, is interviewed by a Canadian pamphlet writer named Anderson Frazier. She tells Frazier of Henry’s relationship with Mr. Robbins and also gives some interesting insight on her beliefs about slavery. He shares with her that he finds black slave-owners to be an odd phenomenon, and compares it to owning one’s own family. She denies that it is comparable to that, and she states dryly that, “We owned slaves. It was what was done, and so that is what we did.” But during the conversation, Fern becomes slightly emotional and it is clear that it was not that simple to her. Back in that era, slavery was so normalized that even former slaves like Henry Townsend, had trouble reconciling their moral issue with the matter because it was “what was done.” Certain free negroes wanted to exercise all the freedom and power they could, because they had been oppressed to such a degree. Caldonia’s mother, Maude, portrays this trait. She believes that slaves and land are a “legacy” and she goes to great lengths to preserve her legacy. She poisons her husband when he threatens to free their slaves, and she relentlessly badgers Caldonia about buying slave insurance. The character of Maude shows that owning slaves is ingrained in the culture as a symbol of success or wealth.

The author does a fantastic job of creating an atmosphere that normalizes slavery by using small anecdotes about the history of the county, and little excerpts about one plantation or another. He provides information on the laws that were in place at the time, and how they were enforced. It helps the reader to understand that the way people thought back then was different from how we think now, which is valuable insight.

The Known World by Edward P. Jones provided me with rich information regarding slavery. I learned about the hardships that the slaves endured and how they lived on the plantation. Most slaves were not overworked, but on occasion, a master would be neglectful and work someone for too long. These brutal instances could take the life of a slave. In the story, a slave woman named Celeste works for too long in the field while she is pregnant and miscarries her baby. They had no protections against such long hours and hard labor. They mostly ate poor-quality food that could result in malnourishment and illness. Jones writes that Townsend always rationed the slaves enough food, but it was the type of food that was the problem, not the amount.

Slaves were subject to many abuses because of their perceived inferiority to other human beings. He mentions that, “In many minds, raping a slave was not even a crime,” and describes that it was common practice to punish runaway slaves by cutting off an ear or slicing through their Achilles tendon.

The enslaved coped with their positions in a variety of different ways. Many settled down with a partner, had children, and focused on their families to find some happiness in their lives. Some attempted to run away. One particular character, Stamford, is convinced that all he needs to emotionally survive slavery is “young stuff”. He is constantly courting women half his age because someone once told him that younger women were the key to dealing with life as a slave. Moses, the overseer, is power-hungry and attempts to marry Caldonia in order to get his freedom. Alice spends the majority of her life enslaved pretending to be insane so that she can escape easily someday. All these different coping mechanisms were interesting to me because they taught me about how slavery affected the individual, not just society and the country as a whole.

Edward P. Jones is an American author who grew up in the sixties and seventies. He is a black man from a very low-class background. Although he did not experience slavery first hand, he is familiar with racism and discrimination. He became interested in the history of slavery in America through his love of reading, which also lead him to major in English for college. When he became inspired to write The Known World, he first wrote out his ideas without doing research. He says in an interview, “The creative part of the brain can’t be held back. So over ten years, while I kept avoiding doing research, the creative part of my brain worked away” (Edward P. Jones, The Art of Fiction No. 222). Then, he researched, edited, and published the book. The story is a work of fiction, but Jones did the appropriate research to ensure that it provided an accurate picture of the era. Although he did not live through this particular era, I believe he still has a connection to what he wrote about because he has experienced racism and oppression first hand and is able to depict the emotions that result from it quite well. Jones is a very intelligent, qualified writer, and has won many awards for the historical truthfulness and poignancy of his work.

Overall, I thought the book was thought-provoking, but it lacked a true plotline. I enjoyed learning about the fictional town of Manchester County and the events that occurred there, but I would have appreciated a more explicit story. I think there were too many characters in the book for the author to truly focus on the lives of one or two of them. Instead, the main character was essentially the Townsend plantation. The writing style was unbiased, which is difficult to pull off when writing about a subject as ugly and controversial as slavery. Jones merely described events and the way certain characters acted and felt about them. This allowed the reader to observe what was going on in the book subjectively.

However, Jones had a tendency to go off on tangents within the book. There were so many small anecdotes about the past or futures of certain characters that it became slightly confusing and irritating. I found that it distracted from the present that he was trying to describe in the book. I would not recommend this book to a friend unless they were studying U.S. history and wanted to find a more in-depth description of slavery. The book was interesting, but not engaging enough to be a recreational read for a teenager.

The Known World offered a pathway into understanding the minute details of life during slavery, effectively emerging the reader in the era. It provided information about the thoughts, perspectives, relationships, and struggles of life in the South during the nineteenth century. It was a useful tool in understanding the time period and the “peculiar institution” that was so normal for the people who lived through it. I thought it was an interesting read and would recommend it to adults who enjoy reading historical fiction or learning about the struggle for human rights.