Isanilda Isanilda Conceição Ferreira Silva Soares Almeida by José Evaristo D’ Evaristo by José O O Escravo Isanilda Conceição Ferreira Silva Soares Racial Stereotypes in Fictions of Slavery: Fictions in Stereotypes Racial by Harriet Beecher Stowe and Stowe Beecher Harriet by Racial Stereotypes in Fictions of Slavery: Uncle Tom´s Cabin Uncle Tom´s Uncle Tom´s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe and O Escravo by José Evaristo D’ Almeida Dissertação de Mestrado em Estudos Ingleses e Estudos Americanos, orientada pela Professora Doutora Maria Isabel Caldeira Sampaio dos Aidos, apresentada ao Departamento de Línguas, OIMBRA Literaturas e Culturas da Faculdade de Letras da Universidade de Coimbra C E 2013 D NIVERSIDADE NIVERSIDADE U Faculdade de Letras Racial Stereotypes in Fictions of Slavery: Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe and O Escravo by José Evaristo D’ Almeida Ficha Técnica: Tipo de trabalho Dissertação de Mestrado Título Racial Stereotypes in Fictions of Slavery: Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe and O Escravo by José Evaristo D’Almeida Autora Isanilda Conceição Ferreira Silva Soares Orientadora Doutora Maria Isabel Carvalho Gomes Caldeira Sampaio dos Aidos Júri Presidente: Doutora Maria José Florentino Mendes Canelo Vogais: 1. Doutora Catarina Isabel Caldeira Martins 2. Doutora Maria Isabel Carvalho Gomes Caldeira Sampaio dos Aidos Identificação do Curso 2º Ciclo em Estudos Ingleses e Estudos Americanos Data da defesa 24-09-2013 Classificação 16 valores Table of Contents Epigraph……………………………………………………………………………...…iii Abstract……………………………………………………………………………....….iv Resumo………………………………………………………………………….….……v Acknowledgments………………………………………………………………….…..vii Notes on references and abbreviations………………………………………………...viii Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...…1 Chapter 1 Slavery in the United States of America: A historical and social overview…………..…3 Slavery in Cape Verde: A historical and social overview…………………………..….11 Stereotypes as the dominant strategy of colonial power………………………….……18 Chapter 2 Harriet Beecher Stowe………………………………………………………………….25 Historical context to Uncle Tom’s Cabin………………………………………………29 Stereotypes in Uncle Tom´s Cabin………………………………………………..……35 The representation of blacks, mestizos, and whites …………………………...….……58 i Chapter 3 José Evaristo D’Almeida…………………………………………………………….…67 Historical context to O Escravo …….…………………………………………………68 The origin of Cape Verdean society and the formation of Cape Verdean identity…….75 Stereotypes in O Escravo……………………………...……….………………………82 The representation of blacks, mestizos, and whites………...………………………..…91 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………...……95 References……………………………………………………………………….……103 ii The starting-point of critical elaboration is the consciousness of what one really is, and is “knowing thyself” as a product of the historical process to date which has deposited in you an infinity of traces, without leaving an inventory. Antonio Gramsci As objects one’s reality is defined by others, one’s identity created by others, one’s history named only in ways that define one’s relationship to those who are subject. bell hooks iii Abstract Most stereotypes about Africans and their descendants started with colonialism in the fifteenth century. The encounter between Africans and Europeans facilitated the creation of myths and stereotypes about the colonized peoples, which were made effective through the naturalization of differences. The relationship between skin color and slavery developed to produce a racialized system of forced labor on which colonialism depended for its survival. Stereotypes functioned to legitimize colonial authority by building the notion that the colonizer ruled over the colonized because of an innate superiority. Therefore, stereotyping is an effective "discursive strategy" (Bhabha) based on fixity and repetition with the aim of controlling the other. Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin and José Evaristo D’Almeida O Escravo both denounced the evils of slavery in the United States of America and Cape Verde respectively, claiming for the end of the institution. However, they are both ambivalent towards slaves and blacks, being unable to envisage social equality for the two races. Both authors construct their black characters as stereotypical others, but they depict the light-skin characters as superior both culturally and physically. The bi- racial characters are portrayed as the ones who possess beauty and intelligence as an inheritance from their European ancestry, while blacks are relegated to the margins. We need to consider, however, that slavery in Cape Verde had different characteristics from its counterpart in the United States of America. In Cape Verde the Africans outnumbered the Europeans and that circumstance favored miscegenation and the emergence of forms of mixed culture, which came to be seen as positive and natural. In the United States of America miscegenation was regarded as a taboo since early. And even after Emancipation, “the one-drop rule” made the offspring of an African descendant black, however 'white' he or she might be. Keywords: slavery, stereotypes, otherness, miscegenation, racism, blacks, mestizo, whites, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, O Escravo, The United States of America, Cape Verde. iv Resumo A maioria dos estereótipos sobre os Africanos e os seus descendentes começou com o colonialismo no século XV. O encontro entre Africanos e Europeus facilitou a construção de mitos e estereótipos acerca dos povos colonizados, os quais foram eficazes através da naturalização das diferenças. A relação entre a cor da pele e a escravidão foi desenvolvida para criar um sistema racial de trabalho forçado do qual o colonialismo dependia para sobreviver. Os estereótipos funcionaram para legitimar a autoridade colonial através da concepção da noção de que o colonizador governava o colonizado por causa de uma superioridade inata. Portanto, os estereótipos constituem uma "estratégia discursiva" eficaz (Bhabha) com base na fixidez e repetição, com o intuito de controlar o outro. Ambos os romances Uncle Tom’s Cabin de Harriet Beecher Stowe e O Escravo de José Evaristo D’Almeida denunciaram os males da escravidão nos Estados Unidos da América e Cabo Verde respectivamente, reivindicando o fim da escravatura. No entanto, ambos são ambivalentes em relação aos escravos e negros, sendo incapazes de prever a igualdade social para as duas raças. Ambos os autores constroem as suas personagens de raça negra como o outro estereotipado, mas descrevem as personagens de pele clara como indivíduos superiores quer culturalmente e fisicamente. As personagens bi raciais são retratadas como aquelas que possuem beleza e inteligência como uma herança de sua ascendência europeia, enquanto os negros são marginalizados. Precisamos considerar, no entanto, que a escravatura em Cabo Verde tinha características diferentes da sua análoga nos Estados Unidos da América. Em Cabo Verde, os africanos excederam em número os europeus e essa circunstância favoreceu a miscigenação e o aparecimento de formas de cultura mista, que veio a ser encarado como algo positivo e natural. Nos Estados Unidos da América a miscigenação foi encarada como um tabu desde o início. E mesmo após a Emancipação, "the one drop rule" fez negra a prole de um descendente Africano, por mais 'branco' que ele ou ela pudessem ser. Palavras-Chave: escravatura, estereótipos, alteridade, miscigenação, racismo, negros, mestiços, brancos, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, O escravo, Estados Unidos da America, Cabo Verde. v For Adriano, I love you son! vi Acknowledgements I am deeply indebted to my parents, brothers and husband for their unconditional love, unwavering support, continued encouragement, patience, and support. Word cannot explain my gratitude to my professor and supervisor, Maria Isabel Caldeira, whose inspiring seminars on African American literature, suggestions, academic and personal support will be forever remembered. I also extend my sincere gratitude to all my professors at the University of Coimbra: Adriana Bebiano, Ana Mendes, Maria Irene Ramalho, Teresa Tavares and Stephen Wilson. I am thankful to all my colleagues, especially Sifa Nur Yapici and Bernardino Tavares for their friendship and encouragement. Heartfelt thanks to all my close friends for their support, especially to Megan Pierce. In addition, I would also like to thank D. Dina Almeida, from Instituto de Estudos Norte-Americanos, for her support. vii Notes on references and abbreviations I have followed the MLA guide to referencing in this thesis. The following abbreviations are used in this thesis: UTC – Uncle Tom’s Cabin UTCI - Uncle Tom’s Cabin - Volume I UTCII - Uncle Tom’s Cabin - Volume II OE – O Escravo viii Introduction In this thesis I shall explore stereotypes in two novels: Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe and O Escravo by José Evaristo D’Almeida. My main motivation in choosing novels on slavery has to do with a seminar I attended during my master’s course, but also stems from the fact that I found the study of African American literature very challenging. Fictions dealing with slavery call my attention because of my background as a Cape Verdean woman. Reading about the horrible effects of slavery in the United States of America has made me wonder about the nature of slavery in Cape Verde. My thesis focuses primarily on racial stereotypes (its causes and consequences) in O Escravo (1856) by José Evaristo D’Almeida and Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852) by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Both novels discuss the same theme: slavery and the