Uncle Remus Essay, Research Paper

Uncle Remus

The Reversal of Power in Remus

In Joel Chandler Harris & # 8217 ; Uncle Remus: His Songs and Sayings, Uncle Remus frames the black folk tales as amusement for the immature male child with the similar attack Joel Chandler Harris writes this entertaining novel. Both the writer and Uncle Remus employ the format of amusement to further convey the issues of black and white race dealingss. One issue that dealt with bondage is the distribution of power. Pre-Civil War the white race lawfully held power over the black race. Chandler uses a reversal of power in the relationship between the black Uncle Remus and the white small male child to expose the gradual alterations in the power construction among inkinesss and Whites postwar times. Uncle Remus possesses ways of commanding the male child and his actions by endangering to non state him narratives for bad behaviour and for with keeping narratives until the male child will obey his wants. Uncle Remus tells the narrative of & # 8220 ; The Deluge and how it came approximately & # 8221 ; to the little male child evidently for amusement but for another intent. The narrative contains deeper significance in that it can besides be read to demo the change of the conventional clasp of power among the larger animals to the smaller animals which reflects the relationship of Uncle Remus and the small male child, and moreover reflects black/white issues.

As Chandler tells the narrative of Uncle Remus and the little male child, the power that the black adult male holds over the white kid is evident. Uncle Remus can be seen as a representative for the black race while the small male child can be a representative of the white race. The control that Uncle Remus possesses over the male child reflects the issue of possibility for power alteration in station war times.

Uncle Remus illustrates his power control in make up one’s minding when he believes a narrative should be told and if a narrative should be told harmonizing to the male child & # 8217 ; s behaviour and actions. On one juncture Uncle Remus tells the male child that he & # 8220 ; ain & # 8217 ; t tellin & # 8217 ; no narratives ter bad chilluns & # 8221 ; because he suspects that the kid severely behaves by making Acts of the Apostless such as & # 8220 ; chunkin & # 8217 ; dem chickens dis mawnin, & # 8221 ; & # 8220 ; knockin & # 8217 ; out fokes & # 8217 ; s eyes wid that Yallerbammer slin des & # 8216 ; field-grade officer dinner, & # 8221 ; and & # 8220 ; flingin & # 8217 ; stones on top of [ Uncle Remus & # 8217 ; ] house, which a small minute & # 8217 ; en one of un mutton quad would er drap on [ Remus & # 8217 ; ] head. & # 8221 ; The extent of Uncle Remus & # 8217 ; power over the kid is shown in the kid & # 8217 ; s response to the alleged behaviour. He claims, & # 8220 ; Well now, Uncle Remus, I didn & # 8217 ; t travel to make it. & # 8221 ; The male child thrives on hearing the entertaining narratives so he even goes every bit far as to squeal and state Uncle Remus & # 8220 ; I won & # 8217 ; t do so any more. & # 8221 ; The extent of what the male child will make to hear the narratives is farther exhibited as & # 8220 ; Miss Sally & # 8217 ; s & # 8221 ; small male child coerces Remus with & # 8220 ; teacakes & # 8221 ; so he will go on the narratives. The old adult male believes that & # 8220 ; seein & # 8217 ; um & # 8217 ; s better & # 8217 ; n hearin & # 8217 ; state un um & # 8221 ; so the male child & # 8217 ; s liking of the narratives creates in him a willingness to make whatever Uncle Remus asks even though the pickings of his female parent & # 8217 ; s tea biscuits once more shows bad behaviour. It seems non to count to the kid if he is making incorrect or what he has done incorrect. All he wants is to hear Remus & # 8217 ; narratives. The male child flees in hunt of the bars to return within proceedingss & # 8220 ; with his pockets full and hands full & # 8221 ; to Remus & # 8217 ; universe of fantastic folklore. Uncle Remus besides shows power when on juncture he will stop stating the narrative towards the terminal of it merely because he can, merely because he has that pick. Uncle Remus believes that he should non & # 8220 ; give out excessively much cloff fer ter cut one dad & # 8217 ; R bloomerss, & # 8221 ; which expresses the belief that if he tells the male child all the narrative he will non come back for more. Then the old adult male would restart in the place of non

keeping power over him because he would hold nil the male child desires to return for. The withholding of information allows Uncle Remus to maintain a twine attached to the male child that he can draw at any clip to do the male child semen at his call or to puppet maestro his actions.

The relationship between Uncle Remus and the male child is reflected in the folklore narrative of & # 8220 ; the flood and how it came about. & # 8221 ; The narrative of the flood concerns the reversal of power ownership. The wood of animate beings in the narrative can stand for the American black and white society, and the black folk tale even supports this comparing and association to people by saying that the animals & # 8220 ; had the sense same like folks. & # 8221 ; Besides, the manner in which the names of the animate beings are displayed as capitalized, such as Elephant alternatively of elephant, assigns a more human like characteristic because of the similarity to the presentation of human names. At the beginning of the narrative while all the animate beings are keeping an assembly a big elephant stairss on and crush a little Crawfish. The Elephant truly pays no attending to his action because there & # 8220 ; wuzn & # 8217 ; t nuff Er digital audiotape Crawfish lef & # 8217 ; ter Tell dat he & # 8217 ; d [ even ] bin dar. & # 8221 ; In this state of affairs the elephant can be looked upon as the & # 8220 ; big, powerful, and of import & # 8221 ; white race while the crayfish can stand for the & # 8220 ; weaker, smaller, and less & # 8221 ; of import black race. The careless suppression of the crayfish executed by the Elephant may typify the changeless slave repression and reprimanding because the elephant ulterior stairss on another crayfish. The lone persons that seem to care are the other crayfish, which is similar to the manner that the slaves may experience towards one of their ain that has been & # 8220 ; squshed. & # 8221 ; When the crawfish decide to talk, none of the larger animate beings regard their presence ; merely smaller and weaker animate beings, such as themselves, take to listen to their ailments. Even the crawfish province that the animate beings that do listen, the Mud Turtle and the Spring Lizard, have influence that lacks power. The smaller animate beings represent the other slaves that care about the state of affairs but have no power or influence near to that of the elephant, who represents the powerful non-listening white race. When the elephant returns to step on another crayfish this pushes them into a rebellion where they bore holes into the land and make a inundation, which could be associated with a slave rebellion & # 8212 ; or even greater, a war. The crawfish as one could do no difference but as a immense group of smaller animate beings they do. This can be compared to the thought that many slaves as opposed to one can do a difference. The choler of the crawfish because of the careless elephant push them to revolt merely as the black slaves can revolt against the careless white slave holders despite size and the trouble of get the better ofing something or person more powerful. Of class the reversal of power seen in the relationship between black Uncle Remus and the white male child is non as dramatic or characterized by choler as the narrative of the little spiny lobster and big elephant.

Uncle Remus & # 8217 ; power over the white male child allows him to keep the male childs attending by stating a more intensified version of the reversal of power in the narrative of & # 8220 ; The flood and how it came approximately & # 8221 ; that is utilized in Joel Chandler Harris & # 8217 ; Uncle Remus: His Songs and his Sayings. Uncle Remus is certain to hold several other narratives so he does non take this narrative for the exclusive intent of amusement but it seems as he does this in hopes of relaying the deeper significance. Although the male child may merely see this now as an amusive narrative he may retain the narrative because of its whimsicalness and unconventionality. Later in life he can retrieve it and detect that a deeper significance is present.