Once again it is left to Annie to penetrate to the real meaning of the story which she exhibits in this case by informing John that she told the grandson they would give him one more chance, thereby overruling John’s earlier pronouncement that the decision to let the boy go had been made and would not change. Operating at once on several different ironic levels, Julius so lacks trust in John’s ability to understand the deeper implications of his stories that he actually voices its moral to which John replies “I am glad, too, that you told us the moral of the story it might have escaped us otherwise.” The big irony here is that even after displaying his superiority with this remark, John’s actions reveal that he the real moral of the story did escape him. One of the best examples is a story told specifically with the intent of changing John’s mind about firing Julius’ grandson. ![]() This superiority is often deflated for the reader in a way that deepens the irony as a result of John’s obliviousness. The white Northerner displays a cringe-worthy predilection toward condescension toward the former slave which eventually reveals John as low-level example of how racism so pervades white society. Some of the most satisfying irony in the story is watching how slyly Julius outwits John. The ironic result is that the Yankee has duped the greedy master into buying a product that actually winds up killing the grapevine and, of course, his profitable slave as well. This greed eventually moves the master to take a chance on increasing the productivity of his vine (and by extension the slave) by making a deal with a Yankee businessman to try out a powerful new fertilizer. The master figures out he can keep the slaves from eating the grapes while also profiting from particular slave by selling him at above average price during the spring and then buying him back at bargain prices each fall. By mistake, a newly arrived slave does eat the grapes and is magically transformed into a literal personification of it: he is spry and energetic during the spring, but lethargic and aged when the fall comes. ![]() One of the most corrosively ironic moments in the book occurs when a plantation master orders a conjure woman to poison his grapes to keep the slaves from eating them. Uncle Julius ironically subverts this popular image by constructing Julius in the guise of this familiar trope only to have stories reveal subtly reveal plantation life as the utterly evil system of dehumanization it really was. Most famously incarnated as Uncle Remus, this broad character type was an old former slave who regaled with slavery-era plantation tales that painted a portrait of happy times with kind masters. ![]() Uncle Julius represents a character stereotype that was incredibly popular at the time. We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make your own. These notes were contributed by members of the GradeSaver community.
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