Being Independent and Strong

I personally have learned a lot of valuable information from reading Beloved. This is because this book has strengthened my knowledge of how slaves were treated back then and more specifically, how women slaves were treated. I knew that slaves were treated in horrible ways but, through learning about all of the bad things that happened to Sethe throughout the book and at Sweet Home and how they  “stole her milk,” it helped me to realize the extent to which slaves were treated unfairly. My past knowledge was vague and I only had a small idea of how African American’s were treated in the south from learning about Emmett Till’s death in 8th and 10th grade. Other than this I had a very small amount of knowledge of how they were treated and most of my knowledge was about African American and slave men. I saw life through the eyes of an African American when we read Malcolm X in 10th grade, but this book was from the perspective of a male and so I did not have any women perspectives in my mind.

Looking specifically at the text through the feminist lens has greatly strengthened my belief that women are often seen inferior or submissive to men. Although Sethe, at time, seems to have more power and control in 124, Paul D. seems to have more control than she does, which is seen in how he is able to get rid of the ghost spirit Beloved, when Sethe was unable to do that. This relates to my everyday life, because even in today’s society, men seems to have more power than women. This can be seen in how we have never had a female president or how men are still being paid more than women are. Another connection between the book and my life is that in the book Sethe is able to hold her ground and stand up to those who are considered above her such as Paul D. This can be seen when she is talking to Paul D and she says that he has to come and sleep in her bed where there are sheets and not on sacks of potatoes in the shed. This relates to my life because as a woman I am confident enough to voice my opinion about topics even when they may contradict the ideas of teachers or family members. This all relates to the feminist lens because women are stereotyped to be the ones who listen to the men and obey what they say and Sethe goes against this stereotype breaking away from societal norm.  Overall, women are seen as weak, but it can be seen in both Sethe’s actions and my own that women have the ability to be strong and independent from a male counterpart or authority figure.