The Yemassee: A Romance of Carolina

by William Gilmore Simms, John Caldwell Guilds (Editor)

Viewed from today's perspective, The Yemassee dramatically and unflinchingly bares the manipulation, exploitation, and eventual genocide of a proud indigenous nation that preferred extinction to the surrender of its land and the subjugation of its people.

Genres: Fiction, Literature

467 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1835

About the author

William Gilmore Simms (April 17, 1806 – June 11, 1870) was a poet, novelist and historian from the American South whose novels achieved great prominence during the 19th century, with Edgar Allan Poe pronouncing him the best novelist America had ever produced. In recent decades, though, Simms' novels have fallen out of favor, although he is still known among literary scholars as a major force in antebellum Southern literature. He is also remembered for his strong support of slavery and for his opposition to Uncle Tom's Cabin, in response to which he wrote reviews and a novel.

Reviews

[J. Alfred]

Read just for the storybook value, this is a pretty good one. Read for the historical/sociological value, this is a treasure trove. Written just before the outbreak of the Civil War, Simms, a partisan Southernor, tells this tale, where a disguised aristocrat, by virtue of his intrinsic superiority, leads the inferior whites and comedic, loving black slaves to defend themselves against the noble yet demoniac Indians. Near the end of the novel, the hero frees his slave because he saved his life, or rather attempts to: the slave wants nothing to do with "the boon of liberty" ("inalienable right" my foot) and, before bursting into comedic doggerel, expresses his hopes that "he wun't bodder me any more wid he foolish talk 'bout freedom." I usually don't hold with psychoanalytic readings, but if this is not outright fantasy/wish fulfilment, I don't know what is.

[Pat]

Dated writing style (early 1800s) and attitudes, but a good story based on real incidents.