Welcome
back to your favorite activity of the week!
Since I accidentally included chapter three’s exciting details in my
last entry, I’m going to pick up in chapter four this time. So this Bledsoe guy seems to be a little sketchy
and fairly unforgiving as he quickly judges our mysterious narrator. After the excitement from the first three
chapters, our beloved narrator brings Mr. Norton back to his room, only to be
met with hostility from this Bledsoe guy.
Bledsoe chastises the narrator for bending to the wishes of Mr. Norton
and taking him to the slave living areas by saying they “take these white folks
where we want them to go, show them what we want them to see” (102). The narrator claims Bledsoe has been kind to him
in the past, but it seems interesting that he would advocate for only showing
the prominent white folks certain aspects of the black peoples’ lives, as if
trying to keep up the preconceived stereotype many white folks of the day most likely bought
into. Why do you think Bledsoe was so
adamant in his point of only letting the white folk, namely Mr. Norton, see
certain aspects of the slave life? Chapter
five is very insightful into the desires of the narrator’s heart. While hearing the chapel speaker, Reverend
Barbee, a chord is struck in the narrator’s heart about the founder of the
college and his story of overcoming violent beginnings, escaping slavery, learning
to read and write and ultimately founding this institution. Do you
think the narrator thinks of himself as a slave, even though he has a job? Chapter six is pretty strange as well. Bledsoe is still angry with the narrator for
taking Norton to the slave region, and admonishes him that he should have been
able to lie his way out of following Mr. Norton’s orders. Bledsoe threatens to
punish the narrator, but ends up sending him to New York for a summer to earn
his way back to school. The narrator
still seems to be passive and meek in the eyes of authority, which he remembers
his grandfather warned against on his deathbed.
Can’t wait to hear your responses!
Hey Hannah! Great stuff as usual! To answer your question, I think that Bledsoe only wants to show the white people what they want to see. He doesn't want to frighten them away because of their donations. He sees them like walking money and he wants them to stay put which they will only do if they think that everything is good. Bringing up the bad and dark truth is bad for Bledsoe's college and he does not want to lose his power/status no matter the cost. Secondly, I think that the author might relate to the struggles that the Founder went through. He doesn't really posses a strong view of self yet but he does criticize the way that Bledsoe acts which shows that he does not want to hide the truth. He also dwells on what his grandfather told him which shows that he looks to the past to find truth. He might feel like a slave in that he is trapped by Bledsoe and the university. He must act and live according to the strict guidelines in order to put up a good front for the school. Good questions Hannah!
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