Whose story is being
told in The Road to Frogmore? Who is
most affected by the events? Who has the most to lose? I thought I knew that my
focus would fall on Laura Towne, the founder of the Penn Center, but she was
not yet in the area when some of the crucial events took place. In almost every
case, the slaves were the ones whose lived were being turned upside down. But
could I write the story from the slaves' point of view? That would be a real
stretch, for a couple of reasons.
First, there is almost
no evidence of what the slaves thought about the goings on in the Low Country
during the Civil War. It would be
accurate to say they were confused, I suppose, but there is no evidence to back
up even that claim. It was against
state law to teach a slave to read or write, so there are no letters or
diaries. Most of the slaves spoke the Gullah language among themselves, so the
first whites who came to work with them found them almost intelligible. With no
record of what they thought, I would be unwilling to trust my creative ability
to fictionalize their attitudes.
Second, the slaves
in South Carolina were not in a position to understand much of what was going on around
them. This was especially true in the Low Country , where fear of slave uprisings lead the plantation owners to keep their slaves as much in the dark as possible. Even if we could find some
record of their reactions, they were limited because no one had ever let them know
about politics, or military strategy, or religious differences. Some of them
had heard about Baby Jesus and Uncle Sam, but they had no real understanding of
those concepts. Their white masters had wanted them kept as ignorant as
possible because they knew that knowledge would make them dangerous. No, the
slaves will not do as the narrators of my story. And yet . . . .
And yet, I need their
point of view! As I struggled to deal with this issue, I realized that I do
have a bit of evidence about the slaves after all. In the Laura Towne diary and letters, Laura makes repeated
references to Rina, the woman who did her laundry and ironing for a small
salary. Rina held an important place in the slave matriarchy, evidenced by the
fact that when the slaves assemble for a "Shout," they did so at
Rina's cabin. Laura, too, found that Rina was invaluable. The diary echoes with one phrase —
"Rina tells me that. . . . " As trust built up between the two women,
Rina became Laura's window into the world of the slaves. Rina also functioned
as something of a one-woman Greek chorus, commenting on the events of the day
and the foolishness of the people around her.
Once I understood
Rina's role in my story, the point of view decision became clear. This book will use a mixed point of
view. Rina's comments and stories
will appear in short chapters written in first person. Laura's diary provides a close enough
approximation to allow me to record Rina's own words, and I must let her speak
for herself. But she cannot speak about all the ideological differences that
erupt into crisis points in the story. Since she does not understand what the
cotton agents are trying to accomplish, their part of the story must appear in
a third-person narrative. The same
is true of the soldiers and of the
missionaries who come to South Carolina from a variety of backgrounds
and with diverse motives.
Because there are so
many stories to be told, I plan to use a limited third person point of view for
all of the characters except Rina. Each chapter will clearly designate the
character who appears as the subject of that chapter. Switching the point of
view will allow the reader to relate to one character at a time as the focus
shifts to those who are most affected by events at any given time.
The result, I hope,
will allow the reader a clearer understanding of what the Gideonite Experiment
was all about. When Rina speaks, she knows only what her own experiences have
taught her. She may make assumptions
about the other characters, but she will be presenting a single opinion that is
already formed. She speaks her mind, allowing the reader to understand her,
even if the truths she speaks are unwelcome. When the book turns to the people
who surround Rina, the third person point of view allows the reader to form his
own opinion about each of the characters because it offers many views.
And that, I think,
will be the real message of the book. It will present as dispassionately as
possible the ideological clashes that make up the great divide during the Civil
War. It will not choose between North and South, Evangelical and Unitarian, abolitionist
and slave owner, civilian and soldier, businessman and humanitarian, states rights
advocate and federalist. The
one constant feature will be the voice of Rina, reminding the reader that she
is the one with the most to lose when the people around her make the wrong choices.
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