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3.16 AVERAGE
3.16 AVERAGE
challenging
funny
lighthearted
I read this for my grad-level folklore class, so my approach to the book was predominantly critical. However, I was surprised by the intricacy of the tales and genuinely enjoyed many of them. Brer Rabbit is an authentic Afro-American figure, evolved from the the trickster hare character of African folktales. Slaves found revolutionary recourse embodied in this ever-cunning underdog. Brer Rabbit is no goody-goody; he is possibly one of the first real bad-asses to grace the American folklore canon.
Nevertheless, while the folktales themselves are valuable in terms of their authenticity, the character of Uncle Remus, ultimately a construction of white author Joel Chandler Harris, delivered a gift-wrapped stereotype that mainstream American culture has yet to shake off. For Reconstruction-era white Southerners, who were anxious about reprisal from freed black slaves, Uncle Remus hit a serious sweet spot. Remus doesn't want retribution for hundreds of years of oppression. All he wants to do is perform menial labor and tell stories to white children. In fact, he looks back nostalgically on his slavery days. He has nothing but praise for his former masters. Much of the reason Remus became popular was his ability to magically alleviate white America's fear and guilt.
In all, this book is a fascinating and problematic artifact of its time. It may have done a service by bringing these folktales into the mainstream, but its framework (including the Uncle Remus character and his cultural context) should be read with critical and historical awareness.
Nevertheless, while the folktales themselves are valuable in terms of their authenticity, the character of Uncle Remus, ultimately a construction of white author Joel Chandler Harris, delivered a gift-wrapped stereotype that mainstream American culture has yet to shake off. For Reconstruction-era white Southerners, who were anxious about reprisal from freed black slaves, Uncle Remus hit a serious sweet spot. Remus doesn't want retribution for hundreds of years of oppression. All he wants to do is perform menial labor and tell stories to white children. In fact, he looks back nostalgically on his slavery days. He has nothing but praise for his former masters. Much of the reason Remus became popular was his ability to magically alleviate white America's fear and guilt.
In all, this book is a fascinating and problematic artifact of its time. It may have done a service by bringing these folktales into the mainstream, but its framework (including the Uncle Remus character and his cultural context) should be read with critical and historical awareness.
challenging
funny
informative
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Read: The Wonderful Tar-Baby Story, Why the Negro is Black, Uncle Remus Preaches to a Convert, Mr. Fox is Again Victimized, Mr. Rabbit Finds His Match at Last
I‘ve had a beautiful 1921 copy of this book on my shelf for years, so I finally decided I should read it. I actually opted to listen to the audiobook while I followed along. I do recommend the audiobook! The heavy written dialect is difficult to follow, so the audio helps with that. I felt like I was sitting at Uncle Remus’s feet, listening to his tales. And, I loved the warm laughter in the reader’s voice!
I understand that there are many people who are opposed to this book. I get it, and there are parts that are hard to read/hear. I hate that “n-word” as much as you do, and it‘s hard to stomach it. There are some brief mentions of heavy-handed owners and cruelty as well. Please don’t let that keep you from the richness of the storytelling. The majority of this book is a nod to the oral tradition of storytelling and time spent with those of different generations, upbringings, and experiences. It is a collection of folktales, many of which I was already familiar.
I understand that there are many people who are opposed to this book. I get it, and there are parts that are hard to read/hear. I hate that “n-word” as much as you do, and it‘s hard to stomach it. There are some brief mentions of heavy-handed owners and cruelty as well. Please don’t let that keep you from the richness of the storytelling. The majority of this book is a nod to the oral tradition of storytelling and time spent with those of different generations, upbringings, and experiences. It is a collection of folktales, many of which I was already familiar.
challenging
dark
funny
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs
Moderate: Animal death, Slavery
Minor: Cannibalism, Murder
Interesting read
I’ve wanted to pick this up for some time, I’m glad I finally did. The book took some getting used to as the dialect is difficult to read straight from the page. I found myself whisper reading to make sense of what was on the page. Unfortunately I feel like I missed some of the tales due to the fact that the dialect wasn’t easy to decipher. I know there is controversy around this book, but the language seems fitting for the time it was produced. The fact that this was written allows these oral tales to not be lost for coming generations.
I’ve wanted to pick this up for some time, I’m glad I finally did. The book took some getting used to as the dialect is difficult to read straight from the page. I found myself whisper reading to make sense of what was on the page. Unfortunately I feel like I missed some of the tales due to the fact that the dialect wasn’t easy to decipher. I know there is controversy around this book, but the language seems fitting for the time it was produced. The fact that this was written allows these oral tales to not be lost for coming generations.
While I love the clever wit of these stories, as well as the mischief between Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox, the broken English of these stories is so very difficult to read. I would love my children to one day read about the antics of these animals and see stories of the south, but I wouldn't necessarily prefer them to read the grammar and English of these tales.
It has taken me a long time to write a review for this book that I have finished reading a while ago. I should point out that I listened to the audiobook and I admit it has left me somewhat stumped. But perhaps not quite as stumped as I felt after reading some of the reviews on here and coming face to face with some of the ignorance regarding Harris and the subject matter.
It is true that Joel Chandler Harris had a significant role in the documentation of the Afro-American folktales and putting them into writing. His books, for good or bad, have brought attention to these tales. His use of what he thought was 'authentic' dialect and slang in his writing is definitely interesting if not somewhat problematic. Whether these stories would have been lost without him, I cannot say other than looking into this I am not convinced they would have. It is not a far stretch to think that we should be grateful for slavery for creating those folktales.
It is important to note that Harris was a problematic figure and a supporter of slavery, even if it was a 'liberal' kind of slavery. He romanticised the South and its values, which included slavery. He is considered to be a prominent spokesman of the 'uncle Ben and aunt Jemima' type of view of slaves. He ignored, most likely on purpose, the contradiction between the extreme violence and insanity of the stories, attributing them to 'the roaring wild nature of the animal kingdom' and his romantic view of the South and slavery.
Furthermore, he was highly misguided and quite single-minded. He was convinced he had a 'hotline' to the life of the Afro-American folktale and that his and his alone were the 'authentic' and true stories. Despite researcher, even in his time, pointed out that some of the stories he documented, most notably the famous Tar Baby story, did not and could not have originated in Africa, but rather in India, possibly America, or Europe. There is some mistral aspect to Harris too, he prided himself on his ability to speak in the same accent and dialect as the African-Americans and often spoke in this way in real life. He wanted to be identified as uncle Ramous and often sign his letters as him. Most importantly perhaps, Harris has taken what were meant to be adult stories, for Black people and turned them into children's stories for white children. It is this, I think, that brought Alice Walker, author of The Colour Purple, to accuse him of stealing her heritage.
Many of the reviews on here consider these stories a piece of history, which I think is as misguided as Harris himself was. This is not a history, this is a point of view about a history. I would not recommend reading these stories out of context, or without background. The language and dialect are difficult and to modern ears could sound even offensive. After listening to this book that has left me confused and uncomfortable, I was loaned another book Annotated African American Tales. This book is an in-depth overview of African-American folktales. This book has a clear distinction between folktales that originated in Africa and those that were told by the African-American slaves. It gives a lot of background to the legends and has a whole section about Joel Chandler Harris, it includes his notable stories. It is thanks to this book that I learned, for example, that there were hundreds of Tar Baby stories, only one version is told by Harris. The Annotated African American is a better book, better researched and really interesting. Thankfully, we live in a time where we don't have to and we shouldn't rely on Joel Joseph Harris and his worldview to get to know these interesting stories. I would recommend reading those books instead.
A little note about the stories themselves, despite Harris' best effort to make them seem like they are for kids, they are not. They are extremely violent and brutal. It is part of what is interesting about them. But while the Annotated book provides context to this extreme and often seemingly unjustified brutality (the rabbit attacks innocent animals as well as those who are trying to kill it), the Uncle Remus books do not.
It is true that Joel Chandler Harris had a significant role in the documentation of the Afro-American folktales and putting them into writing. His books, for good or bad, have brought attention to these tales. His use of what he thought was 'authentic' dialect and slang in his writing is definitely interesting if not somewhat problematic. Whether these stories would have been lost without him, I cannot say other than looking into this I am not convinced they would have. It is not a far stretch to think that we should be grateful for slavery for creating those folktales.
It is important to note that Harris was a problematic figure and a supporter of slavery, even if it was a 'liberal' kind of slavery. He romanticised the South and its values, which included slavery. He is considered to be a prominent spokesman of the 'uncle Ben and aunt Jemima' type of view of slaves. He ignored, most likely on purpose, the contradiction between the extreme violence and insanity of the stories, attributing them to 'the roaring wild nature of the animal kingdom' and his romantic view of the South and slavery.
Furthermore, he was highly misguided and quite single-minded. He was convinced he had a 'hotline' to the life of the Afro-American folktale and that his and his alone were the 'authentic' and true stories. Despite researcher, even in his time, pointed out that some of the stories he documented, most notably the famous Tar Baby story, did not and could not have originated in Africa, but rather in India, possibly America, or Europe. There is some mistral aspect to Harris too, he prided himself on his ability to speak in the same accent and dialect as the African-Americans and often spoke in this way in real life. He wanted to be identified as uncle Ramous and often sign his letters as him. Most importantly perhaps, Harris has taken what were meant to be adult stories, for Black people and turned them into children's stories for white children. It is this, I think, that brought Alice Walker, author of The Colour Purple, to accuse him of stealing her heritage.
Many of the reviews on here consider these stories a piece of history, which I think is as misguided as Harris himself was. This is not a history, this is a point of view about a history. I would not recommend reading these stories out of context, or without background. The language and dialect are difficult and to modern ears could sound even offensive. After listening to this book that has left me confused and uncomfortable, I was loaned another book Annotated African American Tales. This book is an in-depth overview of African-American folktales. This book has a clear distinction between folktales that originated in Africa and those that were told by the African-American slaves. It gives a lot of background to the legends and has a whole section about Joel Chandler Harris, it includes his notable stories. It is thanks to this book that I learned, for example, that there were hundreds of Tar Baby stories, only one version is told by Harris. The Annotated African American is a better book, better researched and really interesting. Thankfully, we live in a time where we don't have to and we shouldn't rely on Joel Joseph Harris and his worldview to get to know these interesting stories. I would recommend reading those books instead.
A little note about the stories themselves, despite Harris' best effort to make them seem like they are for kids, they are not. They are extremely violent and brutal. It is part of what is interesting about them. But while the Annotated book provides context to this extreme and often seemingly unjustified brutality (the rabbit attacks innocent animals as well as those who are trying to kill it), the Uncle Remus books do not.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I read this book for a research paper for school and I have to say that it was a struggle. I enjoyed the book for the parts where I could understand it, but the English was so hard (I didn't read this exact edition but one from 1880 so that probably made it hard, or just the fact that English isn't my native language so English with a dialect is kind of a nightmare at times). I did read through a little summary or analysis of one of the chapters (had to highlight it in my paper so I wanted to make sure that I fully understood it) and that was quite interesting so I might go back to this book if I can find a modern version of it.