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Morrison's Summary : A Mercy By Toni Morrison

Decent Essays

A Mercy is a fictional work that centers on the lives of both slaves and the slave owners. One of the main characters that Morrison is focused on is Florens, a sixteen-year-old slave girl who lives on the D’Ortega tobacco plantation in Virginia. The D’Ortegas are notorious for their cruelty toward their slaves. It is revealed that the D’Ortega family has spent some time in Angola, where the Portuguese were known historically for their severe and inhumane treatment of slaves. As such, Morrison’s fictional narrative places itself in the realistic, historical context surrounding the extreme violence and human cruelty associated with many slave owners. Early on, the reader learns that the D’Ortegas are in financial trouble. A trader, Jacob Vaark, arrives to the plantation to collect a debt owed by the family. Vaark stands in direct contrast to the D’Ortegas, and his disproving attitude towards the cruel family is evident. Jacob Vaark does not support the family’s arrogance and political/religious views either. The D’Ortega family is not able to make payment, but offers a slave to Jacob as partial payment. Minha mãe, another slave living on the D’Ortega plantation who also happens to be Florens’ mother, sees Jacob as a better option than D’Ortega, and decides to convince Jacob Vaark to take Florens as partial payment for the debt. Florens feels that she is being abandoned by her mother, though Minha mãe is simply trying to protect her child. Surprisingly, when Florens arrives at

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