Women In Toni Morrison's A Mercy

Most women, especially in the seventeenth-century, are not given the right to choose their own destiny. Women are expected to serve for others, whether it is a husband, or owner, and not to have real fulfilling, genuine roles in the world. This restrain against women detains them from living the independent and free life that everyone deserves. In the novel, A Mercy, by Toni Morrison, the main female characters, Rebekka, Florens, Lina, and Sorrow, are victims of a controlled lifestyle, and are forced to live in a world that is shaped for them. Toni Morrison reveals the inferior, degraded, and vulnerable role of women during the late-seventeenth-century.

First of all, women are considered inferior to men and are more of a burden than a convenience for them. During the time of this novel, fathers were expeditious when it came to selling their daughters away to be married. Having to take care of their daughters became too much for them when there was another man available who could make her a priority, so the solution was easy. Rebekka, for example, is sold by her father and sent from Britain to America to marry Jacob Vaark, despite of how Rebekka feels. Without ever considering Jacob’s looks or personality, since he is looking for a wife, and Rebekka is available, her father immediately takes the

opportunity. The narrator says, “Already sixteen, she knew her father would have shipped her off to anyone who would have booked her a passage and relieve him of feeding her” (Morrison 86). This shows exactly how little women meant during this time, and how their overall happiness and independence didn’t matter. Although Rebekka is not treated incompetently by Jacob Vaark, she still doesn’t get to make her own decisions and Jacob is able to have his life exactly the way that he wants it.
Also, women are constantly degraded by men, and are treated with no respect. Women who are slaves and even free women are expected to serve their husbands/owners, without hesitation or defiance. This means that men have the power to treat a woman however they want to, even though they would potentially damage the woman physically, mentally, and emotionally. In the novel, when Jacob insists on buying Florens’ mother from D’Ortega, D’Ortega immediately declines his offer, and allows Jacob to choose from his other slaves. The narrator writes, “Jacob drew closer and, recognizing the clove laced sweat, suspected there was more than cooking D’Ortega stood to lose” (Morrison 27). This is an implication that D’Ortega sexually assaults Florens’ mother, and that he can’t lose her. If he does, D’Ortega would no longer be able to fulfill his needs. This proves that in this time period, women are not admired in any way, and that men are able to demean them. If it is convenient for a man, that is all that matters. Although Florens’ mother is being violated and abused, there is nothing she could do. She is a woman, and women obey men, no matter the cost of dignity, and freedom.
Finally, women are extremely vulnerable, and reliant on those around them. Females, especially slaves, depend on their owners to keep them alive. Without anyone to claim them, they feel defenseless against the world, and that anyone could hurt them if they are alone. As Mistress is quickly deteriorating, Lina, Florens, and Sorrow begin to realize that if Rebekka were to die, they would have no one to protect them. Considering that Jacob had also died previously, that would leave the 3 women on their own, open to the world and all of the harsh people in it. The author writes, “Female and illegal, they would be interlopers, squatters, if they stayed on after Mistress died, subject to purchase, hire, assault, abduction, exile” (Morrison 68). This quote shows precisely how fearful women are, whether it is losing their husband, or losing their owner. They feel as if they can’t fend for themselves, and that without the help of another person, they are not be able to go on. The sense of independence that each individual should have is not vested in women, and instead, they live fearful and powerless in such a vast world.
Overall, women during the late-seventeenth-century are insignificant, treated with no respect, and are helpless in the world.

Rebekka, Lina, Florens, and Sorrow all experience the unimportant role of females during this time. The four women live in fear for their lives, and are subject to the merciless world filled with men and hierarchy. It does not matter whether you are a slave, free, European, or African. If you are a woman, you are presumed to aid for others, and anything that you want to do or be in life is disregarded. Women are not given the chance to truly live they way that they want to, and are stripped of their right to freedom and an unrestricted

life.