The American writer Charles Chesnutt published his novel The House behind the Cedars in 1900. However, the plot of the book develops in the states of South and North Carolina shortly after the end of the American Civil War. According to the plot, the main character, being of mixed origin, pretends to be a white woman but soon falls in love with an aristocrat. The mystery of her identity leads to various consequences, difficulties, and even conflicts. Thus, in the novel, the author identifies two main themes: racial relations during the post-Civil War period and the racial identity of Americans of that particular period. Certainly, such topics are important not so much for the average American reader as for critics. In this regard, Sally Ann Ferguson presents a series of essays in which she assesses Chesnutt and his expressed thoughts in The House Behind the Cedars. In these essays, the author evaluates not only the literary features of the novel but also Chesnutt’s ideas themselves, confirming the thoughts with facts from the book. Analyzing the House behind the Cedars, Sally Ann Ferguson gives a fairly accurate and fair assessment.
Sally Ann Ferguson’s essays focus on Charles Chesnutt’s fundamental idea of the Future American. As the writer’s novel focuses on the racial difficulties of America after the Civil War, he puts forward his hypothesis about what an ideal society should be. In his view, the ideal community will be one where there are no racial differences in general (Chesnutt, 2007). The Future American that Chesnutt reflects on is a seemingly white man formed from different cultures and colors. Thus, according to the author, such a person will be able to rid the US population of racial strife and prejudice. His desire to build such a society is clearly seen in the scenes where he confronts the two potential suitors of the main character of the novel. In this sense, for example, the scene where Frank Fowler, being a black man, gets wounded during a fight does not cause readers’ pity. On the contrary, the author indicates that this person is not suitable for Rena, the main character, while George, a white man, seems to be a better match for women. Accordingly, Sally Ann Ferguson notices these parallels, using these scenes as proof of Chesnutt’s commitment to his idea.
Among other things, Chesnutt pits black and white characters against each other throughout the novel. The theme of the Future American closely intertwines the entire plot of the House behind the Cedar, explaining why this theory has a right to exist. However, as Sally Ann Ferguson points out, Chesnutt does not believe that blacks are worse than white people, for instance (Ferguson, 1988). On the contrary, he notes that any so-called pure blood poses a threat to peace in society since it is the color of the skin that is the catalyst of the oppression. In this sense, Chesnutt is confident that by mixing cultures and traditions, people will be able to completely eliminate all their prejudices. Thus, analyzing the comparisons and contrasts of the characters in the novel, Sally Ann Ferguson notices how Chesnutt distinguishes the main character and her brother among them (Ferguson, 1985). It is they who, being of mixed race, appear to be the people farthest from any racial prejudices.
In conclusion, in the essays, Sally Ann Ferguson gives a fair and accurate assessment not only of Chesnutt’s novel itself but also of his theory about the Future American. Analyzing the hypothesis that a person will be able to eradicate their prejudices only if there is mixed blood, she gives a number of examples from the novel. Moreover, Sally Ann Ferguson notes that it is the main character and her brother, being of mixed race, who are detached from all the racial stereotypes. At the same time, Chesnutt exposes all the vices and sins of those characters who are pure-blooded, regardless of whether they are white or black.
References
Chesnutt, C. (2007). The house behind the cedars. Modern Library.
Ferguson, S. (1988). Charles W. Chesnutt’s “Future American”. MELUS, 15(3), 95-107.
Ferguson, S. (1985). “Frank Fowler”: A Chesnutt Racial Pun. South Atlantic Review.