The moment that Sethe found out that schoolteacher was there to take her and her children back to slavery, she didn't have many options. Disregarding that the community should have told Sethe in advance, Sethe had little time to think and act. I wonder if Sethe ever thought about what she would do if schoolteacher arrived as he did. Did Sethe plan to kill her child, or did it just happen? What was her plan?
Regardless, it brings up an interesting question. Did Sethe do the right thing? and if not, what should she have done? I believe that it is impossible to come to a conclusion. None of us know the horrors of slavery, nor can we know if we would ever kill our own child under any circumstance.
Nice post! I totally agree that we can't come to a conclusion about what the "right thing to do" would be. We have no idea what it would feel like to be in her position so we can't judge her actions. I can't even imagine how difficult her decision must have been.
ReplyDelete