So, is it racist?

So recently, I heard that both the Elsie Dinsmore series and the G.A. Henty series are racist. Frankly, I was quite surprised because I've read both books before and I've never noticed the racism. Since I had a G.A Henty I was trying to finish, I figured I should read both critically (paying particular attention to any racist overtones).

Elsie Dinsmore is a rich heiress who happens to be a devoted Christian. She also lives with her extended family, where they emotionally abuse/bully poor Elsie, who bears all things with a patient and meek spirit. Basically, she is as near to a Mary Sue as one can be, except that she cries so often she annoys everyone. Strangely, though, I found the book addictive.

As for the charge of racism, there is, in this first book, a comment by a black slave that Jesus loves her as though she is white. But on the other hand, we do have a white character treating her like a human being, saying

"How do you do, Aunt Chloe? I am very glad to know you, since Elsie tells me you are a servant of the same blessed Master whom I love and try to serve."

So, I'm quite willing to say that in the first book at least, there isn't much overt racism, and what there is, I can safely attribute to the mis-guided values of that time. At the very least, there are characters who (although they accept the concept of racism), treat the black slaves as human.

What disturbed me more was the strong patriachism in the book. To me, Elsie's father is much too overbearing, a fact that is commented on by the other characters. However, by presenting this as good, I'm uncomfortably reminded of the teachings of To Train Up A Child. But if I remember correctly, he does change in the later books. Still, quotes like this is uncomfortable:

"I love you all the better for never letting me have my own way, but always making me obey and keep to the rules."

Perhaps there's a more wholesome meaning, but in the light of the 21st century, I can't say it has a very positive message.

The main problem with Elsie is that it presents a role-model for girls, which means that it will probably appeal more to the pre-teen. However, due to some elements of racism and patriachy, I would only recommend it to older girls who have more discernment but may not want to read such saccharine books. I do wonder who would want to read the book (apart from the weird kids like me)

G.A Henty's stories, on the other hand, are aimed at boys and are super patriotic, to the point of offending those that aren't British. As a result, all his heroes are blond boys. Thankfully, this is believable in The Dragon and the Raven, unlike The Cat of Bubastes (really, a blond boy in Ancient Egypt?). Apart from being suspiciously similar to English boys, his characters also approach the Gary Sue character, being brave and heroic and .. and ... zzzz. I actually read it more for the descriptions of the period of the time than for the characters.

The Dragon and the Raven is set in the period of King Alfred, where the Saxons were fighting against the Danes (the Vikings). It's got a lot of fighting scense, which are long and to be honest, kind of boring, but is quite an interesting read nonetheless. However, early on in the book, our protagonist (not even a supporting character) speaks against equality.

There is always a romance in these books, and thankfully, the romance between Edmund (the protagonist) and his love interest is more believable because it wasn't added last minute. I actually knew it was coming, although I'd have liked it to be a bit more developed (well, at least he fought for her).

"Why father" Edmund exclaimed in astonisment, "surely you would not have all men free and equal."

"The idea seems strange to you, no doubt, Edmund, and it appears only natural that some men should be born to rule and others to labour.... their race is no doubt inferior to our own, Edmund."

But compared to the mis-understood theory of Christianity in the book, the racism is almost excusable. Although all characters claim to be Christians, they don't seem to have any real love of Christ or understanding of Christianity. There is no reference to the changing power of the Grace of Christ, but rather, the main impetus for conversions would be the "peacefulness" of Christianity. It's not the peace that surpasess understanding, but mainly the lack of war. I think this next quote sums up the author's understanding of Christianity, that it is for civilised people rather than being Truth that is for everyone:

"So long as men's lives are spent wholly in war they may worship gods like yours, but when once settled in peaceful pursuits they will assuredly recognise the beauty and holiness of the life of Christ."

Seriously, "beauty and holiness"? It should be something like "Christ died for all men, and we believe that when you experience the truth of this, you will come to love him as we do". But then again, none of the characters appears to have understood the heart of Christianity (but they definitely have the trappings of religion down pat).

For all her faults, at least Elsie does love Christ (although she verges on legalistic most of the time).

Before I forget, I won't be posting for the next 3 days because I'm going away for camp! (I have another camp shortly after that :D) So in the meantime, have fun, read books and join my giveaway!

Among Malay Pirates by G. A. Henty

I know I said I wanted to challenge myself by reading all of G. A. Henty's books, but I promptly forgot about it. Or rather, I had so many other books I wanted to read and I'm not good at e-books. All excuses I know, but well, I've finally finished another book(:

I started reading Among Malay Pirates for two reasons - the word Malay (which means it might be close to Singapore) and the fact that it began with an A. But unlike the other Henty Books I've read, this isn't a novel but a collection of 3/4 stories set in Asia.

The first story is the only one that's set around Malaysia/Indonesia. And, I'm very glad to see that Singapore gets a brief mention (although I also wish a story was set there). And I found the description of Durians very amusing:

"... and those who could overcome their repugnance to the disgusting odor of the durians found them delicious eating."

Strangely, I've always thought durians smelt nice. Then again, I love durians so the their smell means that a treat is coming.

And of course, rice gets a mention, although it's called "beastly". Again, I don't get it.

The stories themselves? Well, the plots are all pretty much the same. The brave soldier gets captured and then finds a way to escape. I believe there was only one of the stories where the plot differed (It was set on the ocean and about storms).

Personally, I think the stories were too short for the characters to develope fully. After reading this book, I realised that the strength of G.A. Henty would be the world-building and the characters. The plots feel the same (somehow), and although the characters are, to be frank, two-dimensional, they're somehow very endearing. It's a paradox I can't fully explain myself.

I liked the first story the best, and I think I would have liked the book a lot better if it focused on developing this story fully.

My Short Trip to Malaysia

The reason why I haven't posted since Saturday is that I've been at my Malaysia home since Sunday and I only got back last night. Despite the lack of Internet there (and now, I don't have my laptop for a week), it was an extremely productive trip in terms of reading. I finished 5 books!

Two of those books are G. A. Henty books. G. A. Henty wrote a lot of books (99 in total). And, my aunt has all of them. So I borrowed two - When London Burned and The Cat of Bubastes: A Tale of Ancient Egypt. Both stories follow blond haired blue eyed boys (in The Cat of Bubastes, the protagonist is a Rebu prince who was made a slave), who are typically brave, moral, humble and all other good qualities.

In terms of plot, the stories follow the boys life more than they do any plot. This is why in When London Burned, the fire was at the end of the book, and even then, only an incident in Cyril (the protagonist's) very eventful life thus far. This is also why the cat in The Cat of Bubastes is killed near the half-way mark rather than the beginning of the story.

But what you should do is enjoy the details in each book. As far as I know, each book is meant to be historically accurate. which is why for some homeschooling programmes (like the Robinson curriculum), it's used as part of unit studies. Plus, the books really are enjoyable to read, although it might take some time getting used to the pace of the book.

The best part of this is that the books are now in public domain, so you can get an ebook for free from Project Gutenberg or ManyBooks (I like ManyBooks cause the covers are nicer, but that's all). I'm going to set myself the personal challenge of reading all 99 books(: oh, and without a time limit.

I also read Lee Kuan Yew's latest book: Hard Truths to Keep Singapore going. I admire Mr Lee for what he has done for Singapore (this does not mean I agree with everything he does), and it was interesting reading about his thoughts on various subjects. If he speaks as how the book reports, I can see why he's a very persuasive leader. And it's really cool that he doesn't take bullshit from anyone else, and by extension, that he speaks his mind (astonishingly frankly for the age of political correctness we live in). I disagree with his stance on intelligence and homosexuality and a few others, but it's still, there's much to admire in him.

For some reason, I read another 'old' book: The Lais of Marie De France. At first, I didn't think I would find it, but yay! It was on Project Guternberg! The book is basically a collection of medieval love stories. Although it's explain in the preface why all of them feature adultery in a positive light, I don't understand how they can see the Church condoning this. There is a very clear stance in the Bible, which makes me think that the characters in the book were only nominal Christians.

Finally, I re-read one of the books I have there: Different Dragons by Jean Little. It's a very simple story, for kids younger than me, but I still love it. The book spans 2 days and in those two days, Ben (the protagonist) grows. He doesn't go on any heart-stopping adventures, he just makes friends with a dog (he hated doges previously) and gets trapped in an attic for about 2 hours. It may sound boring, and I don't know why, but I really enjoy reading it. I suppose it's the way it's told, letting you sympathize with Ben and cheering him on to make friends with the dog. Or maybe it's because I like animals but never had a pet (fish don't count, and mine committed suicide after a day...)

And that, in a very long post, is what I read in Malaysia.