book of night women
The "Book of Night Women" by Marlon James is an incredibly authentic-feeling novel that brings into play many deep issues for being a piece of fiction. I found this book to be a real page-turner that helped, among other things, to widen my understanding of the institution of slavery in the West Indies as well as the dynamics of the relationships between the slave and master. It is this often confusing relationship that I wish to further explore in this paper. In the story our main character, Lilith, ends up developing feelings for her master, an Irishman named Robert Quinn. The character Quinn is a white slave owner that seems to understand that the institution of slavery is an evil one, but does not know what to do about it, so he goes on with life the way it is. It is hard to hate him, but it's hard to like him as well. Being an Irishman, he is lower on the social hierarchy put in place by the slave owning community, and because of this he searches for pity and tries to relate to Lilith, his slave. He compares their lives and social standings, which to me seems almost ridiculous, but to him is a completely legitimate understanding. He does treat Lilith with a certain respect that no other slave owners in the story gives to her. One example that stands out in my mind is the matter of their sexual relationship being more tender and loving than the usual "animalistic" approach that many of the other masters take out on the slave women. "No, fucking. No, rutting like animals, like the animal all white man think black woman be. But he say something when he coming and he hold on to her so weak, like she be the master and is all he can do to hold on." However, Robert Quinn and Lilith are still clearly not equal to one another in the way that Quinn so desperatly tries to convey to her. I feel that the time period placed on this story plays a significant role in Robert Quinn's treatment of Lilith as a woman. At first glance, even if he is a bit