My Jim
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One of the biggest factors in the development of the African American culture since the 19th century is obviously slavery. My Jim takes an in depth look into the life of Sadie, a woman who survived both slavery and Reconstruction. The author, Nancy Rawles, brings the reader back to one of the darkest times in American history. Though Sadie is a fictional character, she is a very accurate portrayal of an African American woman bound to slavery in the 1800’s. My Jim reveals more than just the physical turmoil slaves had to go through, the book takes it one step further and shows the psychological effects as well. Sadie’s definition of freedom changes dramatically during her life, and she also experiences first hand the powerful effects love can have on an individual. In many cases throughout My Jim, Sadie deals with times where love and freedom conflict and other times when they go hand in hand.
It is a very safe assumption that all slaves dreamed of getting their freedom. No human being wants to live life as a slave. Some slaves even took their dreams a step further by attempting to escape the plantations they worked for in hopes of starting a new life as freedmen. After Sadie fell in love with Jim, he always talked about how they were going to be free one day. The thought of freedom was sweeter than anything Sadie could imagine, but she was never one who was brave enough to attempt escape. Her thoughts about Jim’s bold escape strategy are revealed in the book. “I aint so sure bout none of that. Only niggers I knows run off come back dead. But when I looks at Jim and sees him pining for his freedom I knows he need me to believe” (pg 79). Despite the high risk of getting caught and punished, Sadie supports Jim with his plans for escape. Though these plans fail, Jim never gives up his hope of one day being a free man. When Sadie and her two children are sold to another plantation and Jim is left behind, he sneaks out at night so he can go see them even though he knows he could be beat severely or even killed if caught. The love that Jim and Sadie have for each other drives them to take extraordinary risks that most slaves would’ve never even thought about.
Eventually, Jim is caught and Sadie never hears from him again during her time at the new plantation. When she is sold from that plantation, she comes to the realization that, “Us slaves works and waits works and waits. We works for the mas and we waits on freedom. I aint knows if I can waits no more. I waits on Jim. Waits for something good to come. It aint always come in time. Thats what you find in life” (pg 128). At this point she begins to lose the two things that kept her going in life: love and the hope for freedom.
Jim, however, has been granted his freedom due to the death of his owner and comes to find Sadie so her can buy her freedom. When he finds her, she’s already been sold and