The Good, the Bad, the visions?
After today's class discussion, the topic of supernatural came up briefly and it sparked some thoughts. Supernatural would be the last thing word I would use for this book. However, with ghosts and Jesus and other faith needed visions, maybe supernatural is not that far off. Also, with each supernatural vision there was a good or bad/evil connotation. Legree has visions of ghost and being haunted which is not a good omen. Then you have Uncle Tom, who has the vision of Jesus and his faith is renew and the spirit of Christ is with him 'til the end. Jesus appears to only the "good" I would assume. If there was a supernatural event in the book, the character was either "good" or "bad."
Thought?
There's also the moment when Eva's lock of hair seems to wrap around Legree as if it has a mind of its own!
ReplyDeleteIf we think of the supernatural as projections, even exaggerated echoes of ourselves, I think that lock of hair says alot about Legree's mother's grip on his heart. I think we see the actions of an incredibly guilty man-- not to in any way redeem or excuse his behavior.
ReplyDeleteI think the supernatural elements of the book are actually quite interesting. As you mentioned, most of the supernatural elements are portrayed as one-sided. On the other hand, I learned last semester in Ethnic Literature that a lot of different cultures are highly in-tune with the spiritual world. So, in a way, I think it makes sense to have supernatural elements in Stowe's book, as there is certainly more than enough death surrounding the plantations and the surrounding areas to think of ghosts. What does surprise me, however, is that Stowe does not make many connections between the slaves and ghosts--that part really confuses me, especially if Stowe argues that everyone has a soul.
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