Thursday, July 24, 2008
Module 5: Historical Fiction - THE LAND
BIBLIOGRAPHIC DATA:
Taylor, Mildred D. 2001. THE LAND. New York: Phyllis Fogelman Books. ISBN 0803719507
PLOT SUMMARY:
THE LAND is the compelling tale of one man’s struggles and accomplishments as the biracial child of a white landowner and former black slave in the post-Civil War time period. With three white brothers and one black sister, Paul-Edward struggles with understanding his place in his family. He is educated and treated fairly by his father and brothers while he is a young child, but tensions rise as Paul-Edward enters his teen years.
His father begins treating him differently in order to prepare him for the harsh realities of persistent racism during that time period. His brother, also his childhood best friend, turns on him in favor of keeping his white racist friends. Paul-Edward eventually runs away with a friend named Mitchell at the age of fourteen after feeling betrayed by his family and about to get caught for disobeying his father’s command not to race another man’s horse. Throughout a series of work experiences and adventures (lumber camps, turpentine camps, working with horses, racing horses, furniture making), Paul’s one true dream is to own land like his daddy. Paul’s many hardships include being hated and treated poorly for being biracial by both blacks and whites, dealing with dishonest businessmen, being accused of stealing, having his hard work and land stripped out from under him by a double-crossing landowner, his best friend unknowingly falling in love with and marrying the woman he loved, losing his best friend Mitchell, and being turned down for help because of his ethnicity. In the end, his sister Cassie is able to give him a gift that will make his dream of owning land come true just when it seems like Paul is about to lose everything. Paul’s mama owned a small piece of land surrounded by his daddy’s land, and Cassie was given directions before Mama’s death to sell the land to help Paul out when the time was right. Cassie decided the time was right, and Paul got his land. Paul then married Caroline, Mitchell’s widow, after promising Mitchell he would take care of her and their unborn baby before Mitchell’s death. Paul and Caroline fell in love, married, lived on and worked the land, bought more land, and had several more children.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS:
THE LAND is rich with exceptional and strong characters. Even readers unfamiliar with the other books featuring the Logan family will be able to appreciate the remarkable traits of these characters. As the main character, Paul-Edward Logan is the embodiment of honesty, integrity, and hard work. Readers will immediately view Paul-Edward as a hero and easily sympathize with the hardships he faces, keeping the pages turning in the hopes that Paul will find success. From Paul’s point of view, his hardships and difficult experiences are clearly explained to the point that the reader feels like he/she is there experiencing those things with him. It is interesting to note that because of Paul’s ethnicity, the racism he experiences is not one-sided; he has difficulty being accepted by both blacks and whites because he is biracial. Cassie Logan, Paul-Edward’s black sister, and Mitchell, Paul-Edward’s best friend are also remarkable characters that will capture the reader’s attention and give deeper meaning to the incredible plot.
This amazing piece of historical fiction takes place in Georgia and Mississippi during the post-Civil War time period. The setting is integral to the story because race relations in America during this time period have a major impact on the characters and their lives.
THE LAND beautifully unfolds a deeply moving story about determination, hard work, independence, and overcoming obstacles to achieve dreams. Dealing with racism and prejudice is one of the major themes prevalent throughout the story. In addition to this strong theme, there are also a variety of other themes that readers will be able to detect. Paul-Edward’s transition from childhood to adulthood is exceptionally difficult for him given the circumstances of his life, giving the theme of growing up a deeper meaning for Paul-Edward. Also, Paul-Edward discovers that he is torn between two racial groups, and he struggles with not being fully accepted by either group. The complex nature of Paul-Edward’s family and his relationships with them are also important to the story. Finally, Paul-Edward confronts romantic difficulties when he falls in love with the same woman his best friend is in love with. All of these themes blend together well to give depth and authenticity to Paul-Edward’s character.
Taylor’s style can be described as to the point, authentic, and accurate. While some people may find some of the language used in the book to be offensive, the language and examples of racism lend authenticity to the story. Taylor does not attempt to gloss over or sugarcoat the difficulty that a person of Paul’s heritage during that time period would have faced. The difficult nature of some of the experiences makes the story credible and is necessary to truly understand Paul’s life. The story does a great job of encouraging the reader to examine racial issues and think about life in another time period. Taylor also uses heavy accents when quoting the characters, again adding authenticity to the story and allowing reader to get a better feel for who the characters are.
THE LAND deserves a place in any collection for young adults. With Taylor’s incredible combination of remarkable characters, strong themes, and engaging plot, readers will easily forget the lengthy nature of this book as they keep the pages turning to figure out what will happen next.
REVIEW EXCERPTS:
From BOOK REPORT (January/February 2002):
“This is a rich, mature coming-of-age story, full of complex, often painful issues of race and prejudice, the nature of love, and the power of family bonds. High school readers who have grown up with the Logan family will relish this latest installment. Highly Recommended.”
From HORN BOOK starred (Spring, 2002):
“Race complicates every relationship in young Paul Logan's life in this Reconstruction-era prequel to Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. The son of a white land owner and his former slave, Paul comes to realize that to white folks he's "my daddy's colored son" and that black folks "think I think I'm better than they are." Taylor masterfully uses harsh historical realities to frame a powerful coming-of-age story that stands on its own merits.”
From SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL (August 1, 2001):
“In this prequel to Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry (Dial, 1976), readers meet the relatives of the Logan family who lived during Civil War and Reconstruction times… It is wonderful historical fiction about a shameful part of America's past… For fans of the other Logan books, it is not to be missed.”
Awards:
*2002 Coretta Scott King Award winner
*2002 Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction winner
CONNECTIONS:
*Other historical fiction novels by Mildred D. Taylor:
Taylor, Mildred D. 1987. THE FRIENDSHIP. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers. ISBN 0803704178 (1988 Winner of Coretta Scott King Award)
Taylor, Mildred D. 1987. THE GOLD CADILLAC. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers. ISBN 0803703422
Taylor, Mildred D. 1981. LET THE CIRLCE BE UNBROKEN. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers. ISBN 0803747489
Taylor, Mildred D. 1990. THE ROAD TO MEMPHIS. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers. ISBN 0803703406
Taylor, Mildred D. 2004. ROLL OF THUNDER, HEAR MY CRY. New York: Puffin. ISBN 0142401129
*Activities:
THE LAND is an excellent book to incorporate into a unit on prejudice and race relations in post-Civil War America. The unforgettable characters present a multitude of viewpoints, and nearly all aspects of race relations are explored. Since the novel explores so many perspectives on this topic, students will be able to see and further explore the complex nature of this topic during this time period.
Since one of Paul-Edward’s biggest struggles in the novel is purchasing his own land, students could be encouraged to elaborate on this struggle and outline the obstacles that stood in his way. This discussion could also lead to a look at budgeting and spending money.
Since Mildred D. Taylor has written many novels with some of the same characters or relatives of the same characters as THE LAND, Taylor would be a great author for students to read and compare several of her works. After comparing and contrasting some of her novels, students could be encouraged to create a family tree highlighting the connections between the various characters in Taylor’s novels.
*Websites:
http://www.teachervision.fen.com/reading/multicultural-literature/31177.html
http://www.olemiss.edu/mwp/dir/taylor_mildred/
http://www.carolhurst.com/titles/land.html
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