Discussion:Someone Knows My Name/The Book of Negroes, Pt.II

[Ksab]

Hi All-I hope you are enjoying reading "Someone Knows My Name". I am now "re-reading" the book so I discuss it with you all. My first thought/question for readers is"What is the significance of the title-"Someone Knows My Name"? Why is it important for someone to know one's name/ how does it make you feel when folks know your name? I would submit that people knowing your name( in a positive sense) gives one a feeling of belonging and comfort-a feeling of community-like on the old tv show "Cheers" where the theme song alludes to coming to a place-the bar cheers every week-a place where everyone knows your name"!. throughout the book -our heroine-Aminatta( from Amin-trustworthy) is seeking a community-Let's think about this!-K

[Janet]

before my copy arrived from Powells, I read the first 70 pages on line. The significance of the title is breathtaking in its simplicity and power:
I am not unknown. Someone knows my name.

[Ksab]

Janet wrote: "before my copy arrived from Powells, I read the first 70 pages on line. The significance of the title is breathtaking in its simplicity and power:
I am not unknown. Someone knows my name."

Janet wrote: "before my copy arrived from Powells, I read the first 70 pages on line. The significance of the title is breathtaking in its simplicity and power:
I am not unknown. Someone knows my name."
Hi Janet-Yesterday I found out that Hill had originally titled the book "The book of Negroes". It was released in Canada under that title-The US publishers did not think it would sell here under that name! Actually the oriiginal "Book of Negroes" is the historical resource document which inspired Hill to write "Someone Knows My Name". It is a list of "folks" authorized to emmigrate from NYC. to Africa! Happy reading!

[Janet]

oh - *that* significance..

sorry

[Wilhelmina]

Janet wrote: "before my copy arrived from Powells, I read the first 70 pages on line. The significance of the title is breathtaking in its simplicity and power:
I am not unknown. Someone knows my name."

I agree, Janet. I think that we all probably know people from Africa whose names are anglicized to be more "American". Think of our president Barack, and how different being called "Barry" is. I was pleased to hear him claiming his middle name today, because that is a part of who he is as well. It was no accident that our ancestors' names where taken when they were enslaved. Even poor immigrants from Europe and Asia found their names changed as they passed through immigration. And think of those strong Black men in the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters who all lived with the indignity of being called "George" after George Pullman, their boss. Erasing a name is the first step in erasing an identity. Our heroine, Aminata, wants to be known as the African woman she was born to be, not some creation of a slave system.

As Ksab mentioned, the actual Book of Negroes is an amazing document. There's info about it on the "Canada Reads" website:

http://www.cbc.ca/canadareads/bookclu...

[Wilhelmina]

Speaking of Aminata and her name, this is from an interview with Lawrence Hill at the "Canada Reads" site mentioned above. I'll admit that it brought tears to my eyes.

...I loved Aminata from the moment that I first started imagining her face, hearing her voice, seeing the way she walked with a platter on her head. My daughter - Genevieve Aminata Hill - was eleven years old when I started to write this story, the same age as my character when she is kidnapped by slave traders. I named Aminata after Genevieve and tried to love my protagonist the way I love my daughter. What if this had happened to my own child? How would she have carried on, after losing her parents, her religion, and her language, and after being cast into an alien world that saw her as little more than a work animal? So Aminata, the character, grew up under my tutelage. She learned to walk and then to read and to navigate her way into the world, and now this fictional creation of mine is all grown up and gone from the house. She is no longer mine. She belongs to the world of readers now.

[Ksab]

http://www.lawrencehill.com/bio.html -Lawrence Hill's bio-Apparently he is the son of a "mixed" ( sorry-old fashioned word) couple who emigrated from the US to Canada -so he can relate directly to Aminata and the Black Loyalists and the people of the "Book of Negroes". PS-If this link doesn't work just type it out!-

[Wilhelmina]

Since I haven't been able to find out how to merge the two discussions, I changed the titles to reflect their connection. Please continue the discussion, which is being led by Ksab, here on Pt. II.

Thanks!

[Wilhelmina]

Thinking about Ksab's comment about Aminata seeking community and wanting to be known and understood, do you think that this is a major reason for her relationship with Chekura, her husband? He was originally working for the people who captured her, but she was able to develop deep feelings for him in spite of this inauspicious beginning.

[Rashida]

I think that Aminata's relationship with Chekura was very deeply informed by the fact that he was her connection back to her home. She loses everyone else who started with her, but for as long as she can hold on to him, and their children, she has a life line back home. In terms of knowing her name, their start together means that Chekura knows who she is better than any other person in her life can. The horror of the middle passage erased the fact that Chekura started out working with the captors. Interestingly, her relationship with him had me thinking back to this idea that's bandied about in the ultra right wing that there's no blame on the Western world for the slave trade since Africans participated in the trade themselves. I loved that Hill didn't hide from this fact in the novel.

[William]

Perhaps Aminata felt Chekura got his just desserts when the taobob proved that no one was immune from their wickedness when they enslaved him too. And as proven time and again Aminata had an almost too big to be believed forgiving heart. But really what other choices in a friend/mate did she have?

[Ksab]

That's true Bill-Throughout the book there are many there's a lot of "taking one step forward to take one step back"!. That's how Aminatta's life was-I agree with you about Chekura. So many events and people in Aminatta's life-journey are initially seem positive and hopeful, all to turn into "near" tragedies. Just when we all rejoice for !minatta-she has a setback! Somewhat like our (African-am.) history as well as the present/ Yes Aminatta seems to have an unbelievably forgiving heart but then one may view this as a testimony of her faith.perseverance, and survival.

[Rashida]

"we're so remote from the world that any day now, we shall no longer know who we are, or even remember our names, and besides, what use would names be to us, no dog recognises another dog or knows the others by the names they have been given, a dog is identified by its scent and that is how it identifies others, here we are like another breed of dogs, we know each other's bark or speech, as for the rest, features, colour of eyes or hair, they are of no importance, it is as if they did not exist,"

"…What is your name, Blind people do not need a name, I am my voice, nothing else matters, But you wrote books and those books carry your name, said the doctor’s wife, Now nobody can read them, it is as if they did not exist."

Both of these quotes are from Blindness by José Saramago. In that book an entire civilization goes blind and as a result loses its humanity. Here, he is speaking to the importance of naming in retaining our humanity and also on feeling as though we've left an impact on the world. How important must it have been for Aminata to feel that somebody knew her name and also for her to participate in writing down the names of so many others.

Has anyone seen the Book of Negroes in person?

[Ksab]

Hi Rashida-I agree wholeheartedly agree with you concerning the significance of names to our humanity. In my work with kids I often ask them what their name means-they usually have no clue so we look it up. Who you are-what your name is-who your people are all go into identity-self esteem-respect for others-the way we conduct ourselves and treat others and thus our humanity.During her days in slavery whenever Aminatta would meet someone-whether it be a slaver or fellow slave-Homelander or African bornin America, she would recite"I am Aminatta Diallo-a freeborn -daughter of Mamadu and Sira,from the village of Bayo near Segu" She was giving her name-the name of her people(parents) and where she was from-but no one could relate until Chekura-upon meeting him and hearing him say her name Aminatta states'Someone knows my name. Seeing you makes me want to live." And with-or mostly without Chekura-Aminatta survives.... I believe identity and home are the main focus of the book. I'd like to take note of the many different names Aminatta was called by including "Meena. and even Mrs.Diallo( while transcribing the "Book of Negroes'.

[Ksab]

PS I'd like us readers to ask ourselves ,"What words would you use to describe Aminatta? And...what significance does language have for identity? Aminatta had to learn English names for everything-she had to learn what to say and what not to say( eg.-don't mention Africa-your homeland is here now).Haapy reading-Karen

[Wilhelmina]

Ksab wrote:During her days in slavery whenever Aminatta would meet someone-whether it be a slaver or fellow slave-Homelander or African bornin America, she would recite"I am Aminatta Diallo-a freeborn -daughter of Mamadu and Sira,from the village of Bayo near Segu"

Naming the place where she was born was so important also, as you said, Ksab. Aminata became so frustrated when those whom she met said that she was from Guinea, or Ethiopia, or even Africa, because those terms meant nothing to her. She was from the village of Bayo near Segu, and that was as firm a part of her identity as her own name. She searched maps whenever she could, hoping to find some indication of the world she had lost.

This made the Sierra Leone section of the book very heartbreaking to me. Aminata held on to that dream of returning to Bayo for so long. Even though she had seen her parents killed and the town devastated, she risked her life to try to find some trace of her home.

I haven't seen the real Book of Negroes, Rashida, but the Canada Reads website mentioned before gives the following link:

http://museum.gov.ns.ca/blackloyalist...

This link takes you to the Nova Scotia museum virtual exhibit "Remembering Black Loyalists, Black Communities in Nova Scotia". There, if you download the correct software (I haven't yet), you can see the whole book. What was equally interesting to me is reading the stories there of actual people who were a part of the Nova Scotia resettlement. Here's an example:

Hagar and Benjamin Gero, Tracadie, were the ancestors of a long line of Geros in many areas of Nova Scotia today. Hagar escaped at age16 from Thomas Broughton, owner of Mulberry Plantation in South Carolina. It was 1779, the year of the first British land invasion in that colony. Hagar made it to New York, working in the Wagon-Master General's Department of the British Army; from there she came on the ship Nisbet to Port Mouton, Nova Scotia.

Benjamin Gero, age 25, was on the same ship. He had been owned by a poor French-Huguenot silk weaver, Peter Giraud (pronounced Gero), who had a shop on King Street in Charleston, South Carolina.

After the 1784 fire at Port Mouton, Benjamin and Hagar moved to Chedabucto and received land in the 1787 Brownspriggs grant, where they farmed and raised their children.

There are also lists of surnames in The Book of Negroes and tons of historical information.

[Ksab]

http://www.blackloyalist.com/canadian... This is the Link to the Black Loyalist's transciption of the "Book of Negroes"-Hey It sounds like the Bible-"The Book of Ruth",etc-K

[Ksab]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_... -I guess we have to go to London to see the original "Book of Negroes!"-K

[Mary Anne]

Ksab, and all,
More than anything, I think of the word steadfast when I think of Aminata. She experienced so much devastation with losing her parents, having her children stolen from her, not knowing whether her husband was dead or alive. And yet, she could always be counted on when her writing skills, her teaching ability, or her midwife skills were in need. And in the end, when she was needed by the British abolitionists to speak, and even though their progress was moving at slower-than-snail pace, she pitched in there as well.
Which reminds me the remark on the sickening political irony of having to settle for abolishing slave-trade first, then slavery later.

[Ksab]

Steadfast,mm-sounds good MAP-Steadfast is our first word -submitted to describe Aminatta-sounds good to me-let's hear what other descriptors folks may have-

[Rashida]

resilient- right along with MAP's steadfast.

But also, a bit surprisingly: Funny.

[Wilhelmina]

Very funny, starting with the first line of the book, "I seem to have trouble dying." She has the sense of humor seen in people who have lived long lives and experienced plenty of good and bad. (I'm thinking of the Delany sisters in Having Our Say.) I thought that I would fall over laughing at her description of her visit to the Anglican church. (I'm an Episcopalian - American version of Anglican - so it was especially funny to me.) I kept going around reading to people the passage on p. 234 in my book:

The people of Great Britain and other seafaring nations have devised unspeakable punishments for the children of Ham, but in that moment and in that time, none seemed worse than their own self-inflicted torture: to sit, unmoving but forbidden to sleep, in a cavernous room with arching stone and forbidding windows while a small man adopted a monotone for the better part of a villainous hour.

Hey, they don't call us the "frozen chosen" for nothing!

I'm still thinking of words, but steadfast and resilient are right on point.

[Wilhelmina]

OK, I can't get a word, but I keep thinking of the old civil rights/spiritual song:

I shall not, I shall not be moved,
I shall not, I shall not be moved,
Just like a tree planted by the water,
I shall not be moved.

Aminata stands on her own solid foundation, regardless of the situation in which she is placed. She knows who she is, she is grounded, and no one can change that.

[Heather]

I noticed as I read this that the only White people Aminata felt unconditional affection for were women: Mrs. Lindo and Anna Maria Falconbridge come to mind. She respected and trusted some White men throughout the story as well - Solomon Lindo, Clarkson, Alexander Falconbridge - but in all those situations she was compromised in some way, or had her guard up and with good reason. Did anybody else notice this? What do you think the authors intent was here?

Of course, I am leaving the Witherspoons out of this. =)

[Ksab]

That's an interesting idea Heather-I'll have to think about it..What I just recently re-read was the chapter when the Nova Scotians arrived in Sierra Leone-they were arriving as free people while some poor souls were being shipped off-"traded" to America as slaves. Meanwhile-you had the "native' Temne folks along with the illustrious King Jimmy-there's so much symbolism -not to mention irony-craziness in that situation. you have the white guy Clarkson-representing theCompany and "shepherding" the new free black immigrants-you have the white slavers and their ally big King Jimmy;and..last but not least Aminatta and the Nova Scotians( not called Afro-Canadians-yet).Wow-Speak about identity and all those cross relationships-resentments-confusion!Aminatta ( my sis in law's name) concludes that she will never feel truly at home until she finds a way back to Bayo(actually I think Mina put this out on another post). Wow!Anyway-another idea,comparison,juxtaposition I'd like to put out there is the relationship of language to acculturation,affinity,identity. In the initial Sierra Leone chapter the author notes that Aminatta is "desperately" trying to learn the Temne language-she has already tried to speak to them as well as to that poor girl in coffles-marching to the slave ship(like Aminatta did some 20 years prior)-to no avail.Let's recall that when Aminatta first got to the plantation in SC she was "desperately" trying to learn English-to speak to the other slaves and also learn what and what not to say to the slave masters. There's a lot to think about here!-K

[Wilhelmina]

Heather wrote: "I noticed as I read this that the only White people Aminata felt unconditional affection for were women: Mrs. Lindo and Anna Maria Falconbridge come to mind. She respected and trusted some White me..."

Certainly the white men in the story gave Aminata small reason to trust them. Mrs. Lindo and Mrs. Falconbridge both treated Aminata like a fellow human being. They could have discussions and disagreements without spoiling their friendships. While there were certainly women around who were at least as cruel as the men, these two women were not. Aminata, like most women, longed for women friends and she could hold her own (and then some!) with anyone. Men, even the well-intentioned ones, all had the need to control Aminata or, in the case of the abolitionists, her story. Perhaps, because white women had such limited control over their own lives, some of them could see the arrogance of that attitude and take a better approach with another human being. Of course, we have all heard the horror stories about white women who were extremely cruel to enslaved women who had children from their slaveholders. I don't assume that the women were intrinsically more humane, only that their own experiences might give them different viewpoints. There's always a choice to be made.....

What did everyone feel about Solomon Lindo's character? It's interesting to me that we have seen so many books in which there is an attempt to walk a delicate path through the evil of slavery. Inevitably, these characters find themselves mired in the muck in spite of believing themselves to be morally superior to the people around them.

[Ksab]

Hi Mina and all-My view on Solomon Lindo is that despite being well-intentioned ,he fell prey to the overriding pressures of the sociey. Financial,family,personal,survival issues often force the well-intentioned to yield-despite their better judgement -to the social mores and customs of the larger-in this case-slave state. Being Jewish-the Lindo's were a minority themselves-albeit a minority that could better blend into the white society-They could relate but then again they too needed to survive in the slave society-despite their personal beliefs. This was made clear-when Lindo's wife passed away and Solomaon yielded to his sister's pressures took on the "Master" role with Aminatta. I believe Hill's inclusion of the Lindo's in this story was to fully depict the slave state in which Aminatta lived. Everyone did not support slavery-but everyone was profoundly affected by slavery-Slavery was the norm of the day-Being minorities themselves and moral intellectuals-the Lindo's could relate-However-they too had to survive and-to some extent-subscribe to the "party line" if they did not want to be ostracized. We've seen throughout history-but most vividly stories in which the slavemaster or a member of the family"fell in love" and married a former slave or free person of color only to become a pariah to there family-a "black sheep" if you will-and maintain their Black family in secrecy. WE have a prime example in the Thomas Jefferson/Sally Hemings situation. When it comes down to it-sad to say-for survival purposes many compromises are made.-Well-that's my Monday morning treatise-At least Solomon came to New York and did "right" by Aminatta-assuaging his own guilt and acting on his personal mores! Sorry to go on so long-Happy reading-Sincerely-Karen S.

[William]

As countless books scholarly writings and historical evidence points out, slavery dehumanizes all involved, master and slave, apologist and abolishionist alike. The mental gymnastics and Faustian bargains neccessary to rationalize and support that institution are illustrative of its inherent evil. So-called gentle and supportive Lindo must sell Aminata's child to save her from a life of unrelenting physical misery only to plunge her into a mental one of the same dimensions by the loss of her child. Regardless of the personal morality noble intentions of any participants in the slave trade when one endorses a system of unbridled capitalism where profit is the only motive and workers no more than beasts of burden then every willing participant is tainted. While we applaud ourselves for enacting laws against slavery can we really be so smug? Slavery is alive and well in many parts of our global economy and even here at home as we make sure that the masters of the economy stay afloat while the workers and families are told to suffer gladly. As from Karl Marx to Robert Riech point out the business of capitalism is profit and nothing else, (slavery is certainly capitalism at its most brutal), not social policy or even political democracy. I wonder how history will judge our current crop of politicians. As Lindo's who tinkered around the edges enacting a limited adgenda of reform or harbringers of a movement to make human capital and social profit paramount?

[[deleted user]]

yes!
i liked how you linked marxism to slavery in the form of capitalism.

[Ksab]

Amen!

[Rashida]

The other parallel to our present that I saw represented in Lindo: Being a minority and/or subject to your own discrimination does not entitle you to perpetuate injustice onto others. Too often, I see people, institutions, governments forgetting that we all have privilege in some form or another, and there is always someone else that we can marginalize or harm through our actions. The fact the we ourselves have suffered does not give us a pass on our actions towards those who are different from us. So, yes, Lindo was undoubtedly discriminated against as a Jew in the colonial south. He thought, mistakenly, that somehow his action would automatically be more "noble." I think that by the end of the book, what we saw was him realizing that this was not the case.

[Qiana]

Good morning and Happy Juneteenth, everyone!

As usual, I am late to the conversation, just having finished Hill's excellent book two days ago. I've already decided to skip next month's discussion and start reading the book for August now (has it already been chosen?) so that I can keep up with you all!

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the previous comments and following the great questions that Karen raises. I particularly agree with the remarks about Lindo - the moral dilemmas and ethical questions he represents are key, I think, to connecting this story to our contemporary moment. And how great is it that Hill focuses on the Colonial era? Much like Morrison's A Mercy, he sheds new light on our understanding of the late 18th, early 19th century slavery.

By the way, I read this book entirely on my iPhone Kindle!

[Qiana]

So now, some specifics:

As I said in my own review of the book, I think the first half of the story is virtually flawless. Some of Aminata's thoughts read like poetry and I was especially struck by her observations about the slave ships and watery crossings as a kind of predator or beast that haunts her. Her relationship with Chekura was beautiful and heart-breaking.

My one concern, however, is not so much about the novel's themes, but about its narrative structure. I think that in his rush to bring the story full circle to Aminata in her older years, Hill moves us too quickly through her time in New York, Canada, and Freetown. Something about the writing changed when she arrived up North. Did anyone else notice this?

In South Carolina, I think we had a chance to see her relationships grow and develop (with Georgia for instance), but once she arrives in New York, she befriends so many new characters and years pass in a few paragraphs. I felt less connected to Sam, the tavern owner, or Clarkson, the British captain who transported them to Freetown - although Aminata was supposed to be very close to both of them. I had also hoped to learn more about her brief time as a djeli in the African village, since that moment - more than anything else - constituted the realization of a life-long dream.

Other than this, though, there is much to admire in this novel and I would love to teach it alongside Morrison's Beloved or The Known World.

[Janet]

interesting observation - and I'm still about 100 pages away from the end

I wonder if another analysis might be that those first new years (with Georgia, Lindo et al) *seemed* to have moved more slowly to her (to Amanita) - and that as she grew older, new experiences came and went with less - or different - degrees of saliency?

but it would be lovely to think of the book encompassing the same beautiful prose throughout ..

[Ksab]

Hi-On the one hand I agree with Qiana in terms of the books structure-I actually enjoyed reading Aminatta's pre NY,Canada, and Freetown odysseys. However if you consider Aminatta's age and all that she had been through you could say that Hill wrote her later narrative to reflect her age,exasperation, and just plain fatigue. That being said, early on in our discussion I asked everyone to think what words come to mind when thinking of Aminatta. Here are my entries: fearless,funny,resilient,loyal,practical,responsible,comitted,faithful and....Optimistic-God Bless her-God Bless our ancestors!!-K. Sabur

[Wilhelmina]

Considering the structure of the book, I thought about the quote from the Canada Reads website mentioned earlier:

With The Book of Negroes, Hill brings together two popular literary traditions. One is the slave narrative, in which blacks recount their journey from bondage to freedom. The other is the Victorian novel, à la Charles Dickens, with its well-crafted, picaresque plot; vivid, often larger-than-life characters; mysterious coincidences; and examination of social ills of the day.

For all of you who are students and professors of literature (as opposed to me, just a reader), does the structure adhere to these two traditions? Could that explain the structural changes that you talked about, Qiana? I haven't reread any of the slave narratives lately, but my memories are that the books are much more detailed about the authors' early lives than about their later lives.

[Ksab]

Hi all-I've been out of circulation lately! I hope you all enjoyed Someone Knows My Name. I'd also be interested in someone responding to Mina's question regarding possible similarities between the book's structure and those of the traditional slave narrative's. Perhaps we need to ask the author-Mr. Hill,himself! The only question/comment I have regarding the books's end is how folks feel about Aminatta-a survivor of slavery ending her life as the "mascot/spokesperson" for the British abolitionists. It would appear to me that African-americans-people of color have been teaching the mainstream society about our lives and experiences-ostensibly to help those in powere help US. This is an ongoing task/fate(depending on my frame of mind) from which I-for one sometimes have to take a rest!!! Be well-Happy Reading!-Ksabur

[Fodowo]

I really enjoyed this book. I gave it 5 stars. I would give it 10 if that was an option! I agree with all of the adjetives for Aminata - resilient, steadfast, grounded, optimistic and I would add caring and focused. She remained Aminata of Bayo. She was recognized as an "African" throughout her life because that was the way she presented herself. I think the end, writing her story and participating in the only way she could to end the enslavement of Africans (if not slavery) was a logical conclusion of her life. I was glad that she was given the gift of the return of her daughter. So many enslaved Africans lost their children forever. I agree with the discussion that everyone who participated in the economy of enslaving people was tainted. The author did well to show and not excuse anyone - European, Jew, African. I was not familiar with the history of Africans in Nova Scotia and the Book of Negroes and the journey to Freetown. I found that very interesting and well done. All in all it was an excellent book. I thank Wilhelmina and group for introducing it to me. Has anyone read anything else by Laurence Hill?

[Wilhelmina]

I have his book Any Known Blood, but I haven't read it yet. If it's half as good as this one, I'll be happy!

Today is June 30, so we officially begin the discussion on Graceland, led by Rona, on tomorrow. But please continue to leave any comments you wish on this discussion topic at any time. Thank you, Karen, for your leadership in this discussion and thanks to all who participated!