May 2015: The Invention of Wings (Kidd)

Post date: May 16, 2015 6:17:24 PM

A number of regulars were not able to make it so a slightly smaller group than normal met on May 13th at Sherrill's to discuss Sue Monk Kidd's historical novel, The Invention of Wings.

All of us thought the book was great. Betsey was very impressed with Kidd's ability to wind so many details together so effectively, and loved the character of Handful. We mused on how vivid a character she was, and wondered if writing the imagined life of historical figures such as Sarah and Angelina was more constraining than creating a completely fictional character such as Handful. The horrors of slavery, the appalling support of the Christian church for it, and humankind's ability to see what we want to see were also mulled over. And of course we touched on current events, with Betsey expressing concern that increased reporting of police shootings by African Americans would fan the flames of prejudice. Catherine said she thought not, that people generally felt that danger was part of what the police signed up for. As in a past meeting, we discussed body cameras and how they are used in her department, and her hopes that they will help improve policing. She related the story of a protester critical of police who underwent a use of force scenario training session with the police, and came away with greater understanding of just how fast decisions have to be made.

Jennie was unable to make the meeting, but sent along a text with a favorite quote that is prescient, and still rings true today: “It has come as a great revelation to me,” I wrote her, “that abolition is different from the desire for racial equality. Color prejudice is at the bottom of everything. If it’s not fixed, the plight of the Negro will continue long after abolition.”

Catherine was especially taken by Handful's observation to Sarah: “My body might be a slave, but not my mind. For you, it's the other way round.”. We pondered the inner life of those enslaved, and the relationships between slaves of various positions and their owners, focusing on Charlotte's value as a seamstress giving her some power, but not enough to save her from the one legged punishment.

Mary Ann brought these great pictures of Angelina and Sarah from Wikipedia:

Both Betsey and Nancy remarked on the strength of these women who gave up everything they had known including family, church, and marriage (for Sarah) to pursue what their conscience urged. We discussed the intertwining of the rights of women and slaves, and were all very happy to have learned about these amazing women, whom none of us were familiar with beforehand. I'll end this with a quote from Sarah on her view of women's position which Kidd made use of in the book: "men and women were CREATED EQUAL.... Whatever is right for a man to do, is right for woman....I seek no favors for my sex. I surrender not our claim to equality. All I ask of our brethren is, that they will take their feet from off our necks and permit us to stand upright on that ground which God destined us to occupy."