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In The Underground Railroad, the plot takes place in the midst of slavery where the
Underground Railroad is a literal running train that tries to save escapee slaves from their
masters by moving them to different states. The book took place in the midst of slavery, but even
decades after slavery ended, African Americans lived under Jim Crow laws in the United States,
laws that in todays society should have disappeared by now. However, in current times African
Americans convicted of felonies and sent to prison are, if they are released at all, are released
back into an 1870s Jim Crow south experience all over again. What African Americans are met
with, where they cant vote, find employment, or receive their full rights back is shocking and
problematic because often it is perceived that we left that all behind when we left slavery behind.
The Underground Railroad helps us understand how history has created our current structural
problems as well as this, how these ideas play out differently for men and women. Although the
main character is female, the men in the story constantly move the plot which is another one of
the authors choices to explore through the feminist lens. From being chased and saved by men,
the main character Cora still expresses her own individualism, but is one of the only female
characters discussed in the whole story. Using Postcolonial and Feminist lenses to analyze
Gyasis novel allows readers to see issues of both Postcolonialism and sexism through one
insightful novel.
1865 was the year slavery ended; The Underground Railroad takes place between
1850-1860, which was the non-fictional railroads most popular years where 100,000 slaves had
escaped through it. In the book, however, the railroad is a literal train (opposed to secret routes
and safe-houses) that transports the slaves to other states as far as possible from their masters.
The book obviously addresses racism and multiple forms of abuse slaves endured; such as
females being raped by their masters and both men and women being beaten as punishment. For
example, in (find page number/chapter), Cora takes a beating for a young boy on the plantation
shes on. Later, the narrator describes how Cora has experienced and witnessed multiple beatings
in her lifetime. Even though Jim Crow laws are not around yet, it is still part of postcolonialism
As previously mentioned, Jim Crow laws began in the year 1877 and ended in the
1950s. Jim Crow laws started segregation in forms of banning colored people and white people
from sharing: restaurants, schools, housing, means of transportation, hospitals and healthcare
facilities, prisons, theatres, places of recreation, and more. They also forbid interracial
relationships, marriages and/or having interracial children. While Jim Crow laws have
supposedly disintegrated, they are still very present in todays society; instead they are just
slightly altered and less obvious. Until the connections are strung together between then and
now, it is very hard to notice that laws made to design institutionalized racism still exist.
After serving time in prison, on the day of the inmates release (if they are given one),
they walk into the world hoping to be a free person. Instead, they will soon come to find that
they have been stripped of many rights that some wouldnt expect them to be stripped of. They
already served their time, and still have a permanent branding that keeps them from being able to
fully rejoin their community again. While many would agree with ex-convicts who committed
violent offenses not being granted their full civil rights, theres a gray area when it comes to
whether or not non-violent crimes, specifically drug crimes, should be so heavily effective on the
rest of your life after prison. According to the National Association for the Advancement of
Colored People, (or the NAACP), 5 times as many Whites are using drugs as African
Americans, yet African Americans are sent to prison for drug offenses at 10 times the rate of
Whites. In addition, while theres more white people in the U.S., theres more black and
hispanic people in prison. As previously stated; having certain civil rights revoked after
etc.) where you affect someone elses body or life, therefore affecting their rights, is
understandable. But when it comes to someone doing a drug, not only should there be
rehabilitation rather than jail time, but this should not be a permanent stain on someones record
that costs them their entire life when they did nothing to affect anyone elses violently. As the
statistic above proves, imprisoning black and other people of color for drug crimes is how they
are kept within Jim Crow laws; otherwise white people would be incarcerated just as often, and
face the same struggles of their rights being revoked for doing drugs.
To quote The Underground Railroad; Freedom was a thing that shifted as you looked at
it, the way a forest is dense with trees up close but from outside, the empty meadow, you see its
true limits (Whitehead, page #). The large limitations governed against ex-convicts are: losing
the right to vote, traveling abroad, the right to bear arms, employment in certain fields, public
social benefits and housing, and parental benefits (J. Hirby). Some criminals may deserve
rights being taken away from them if theyve done a violent crime; for example allowing them to
travel abroad wouldnt be a good idea, because they may cause harm in another country which
implodes into a bigger problem. But the rights taken away from the people who havent caused
Moving forward, the feminist perspective of the story is interesting and slightly complex.
While the women are easily outnumbered, the main character is female. On the other hand, all
the men in the story are the ones constantly moving the plot along. For instance, Caesar being the
one to suggest fleeing to the railroad with Cora rather than her deciding to herself or attempting
it alone; while doing so would be a risky decision, it could have further proven the point that she
is a strong individual who earned her freedom single-handedly. Another example is how when
the slave-catcher Ridgeway retains her, shes rescued by two male slaves who help her escape
again. The most influential and important scenes in the story were led by males but ultimately
affected Cora, (the one female the reader reads about), the most.
When thinking about the story as a whole, taking away the genders of every character,
Cora appears to be one of (or the most) strong characters. She kills a white male in the beginning
of the novel which becomes the primary reason for her recapture, she remains on the run and
experiences the deaths of her friends, but looking through a feminist lens, it can be questioned if
the males moving along the story weakens the power of the one female in the story. Would her
escape be more driven by feminine influence had she had the idea, or another woman addressed
her and planned out the idea? Would her rescue had been more meaningful to a feminist if just
one of them were female? Lastly, would the outcry had been the same, smaller, or larger if she
Questions like these easily come to mind when reading the book; why is every main
character outside of Lovey and Mabel (Coras mother who she hates for escaping and inevitably
abandoning her), male? Why are there no other women moving along the plot or making big
decisions and memorable roles in the story outside of the main character? Was that another
social issue the author tried to address, or did he simply accidentally not create any other female
characters? It seems like thatd be hard to do, compared to so many other novels, The
Underground Railroad portrays a large gap between the number of important male and female
characters. As previously stated, a remaining question for the author would be; is this a writing
In conclusion, The Underground Railroad captured many lenses, beyond even these two.
While the reader may be left with similar questions especially regarding the feminist lens, Gyasi
overall does a sufficient job in telling an important story by discussing a historical event told in a
unique way that can be related to current events. The use of teaching both feminist and
postcolonial lenses are significant lessons that should be further explored. Theres no question
why the book has had the impact and success it has, including the National Book Award for
Fiction.
Works Cited:
Hirby, J. "What Rights Do Convicted Felons Lose?" The Law Dictionary. N.p., n.d. Web. 06
June 2017.
13th Documentary