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The Wedding Gift
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The Wedding Gift (2009) (edit title/settings)

by Marlen Suyapa Bodden (Author) (edit contributors)

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Description edit see section history

When wealthy plantation owner Cornelius Allen marries off his daughter Clarissa, he presents her with a wedding gift: a young slave woman called Sarah. It just so happens that Sarah is Allen’s daughter as well, the product of a long-term sexual relationship with his slave Emmeline. When... read more

Summary edit see section history

Set in the Deep South during the years preceding the Civil War, The Wedding Gift spins a compelling tale of racism and misogyny. At the core of this historical novel is the wealthy Allen clan, led by domineering patriarch Cornelius Allen. Master of a vast Alabama plantation, Cornelius has... read more (warning: may contain spoilers)

Set in the Deep South during the years preceding the Civil War, The Wedding Gift spins a compelling tale of racism and misogyny. At the core of this historical novel is the wealthy Allen clan, led by domineering patriarch Cornelius Allen. Master of a vast Alabama plantation, Cornelius has surrounded himself with the trappings of power, including a circle of women he lords over with cruel authority. In the big house are his wife Theodora and their daughter, Clarissa; in the slave quarters, his concubine Emmeline and their daughter, Sarah. Despite their disparate circumstances, the lives of the women are inextricably entwined.

When Clarissa marries into another planter family, Cornelius presents her with Sarah as a wedding gift. Helpless to prevent herself from being uprooted from her family, Sarah is forced to accompany her mistress to her new home. She quickly realizes that Clarissa has merely traded one tyrant for another, a man who has little respect for his wife but considerable interest in his pretty new slave. When Clarissa’s son is born, suspiciously premature, her husband rejects her and the child, sending them back to the Allens and setting in motion a series of events that will destroy the once-powerful family.

Shifting between Sarah and Theodora’s points of view, The Wedding Gift draws readers into the brutal world of American slavery and provides an unflinching account of the intimidation, threats, and violence used to control women. Through the Allen women, Marlen Suyapa Bodden explores spirituality, family life, sexual coercion by slave owners, abortion and childbirth, and the tactics used to hunt and capture escaped slaves. The Wedding Gift twists and turns through the wealthy planter and merchant societies of Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana, and New York, culminating in the British West Indies, where its controversial and shocking conclusion is sure to leave readers aghast.

Characters/People edit see section history

  • Clarissa Allen: Daughter of the plantation owner.
  • Sarah Campbell: Young slave woman. Leading character and a narrator. Daughter of plantation owner with his concubine.
  • Cornelius Allen: Plantation owner.
  • Emmeline: Concubine to the plantation owner and Sarah's mother.
  • Theodora Allen: Wife of plantation owner. Leading character and narrator.
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Quotes edit see section history

  • “My dear, these men are such rascals, and I fear that their decadence will be the ruin of us all.... Your husband isn’t the only one; Mr. Tutwiler, by my count, has at least eight children, with field hands, no less. But if you add eight to the balance sheet at the prices they fetch at auction, when you reflect up on it, it is a benefit to us, is it not?”
    Theodora's friend, Mrs. Tutwiler

First Sentence edit see section history

It is daytime, but the path is dark.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

  1. Marlen Suyapa Bodden (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Original Language: English
Publisher: BookSurge Publishing
Country: United States
Publication Date: December 7, 2009
ISBN: 1439269890
Page Count: 324

Classification edit see section history

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