What do you think of the portrayal of enslaved people in this novel?

What do you think of the portrayal of enslaved people in this novel?

I was actually pretty surprised that there was no push-back from the boat passengers, allowing slaves in the rescue boats. I would have thought it would have been a "whites-only" situation.

I felt like the enslaved people with the exception of Priscilla, received very little, a secondary, mention in the book. However, with what was mentioned I did find it a little hard to believe, given that the prejudices of white Southerners were so ingrained, that the wreck seemed to bring a semblance of equality amongst the survivors.

I was also surprised that the enslaved people were allowed on the rescue boats. I don't think the author did enough to portray the lives of the slaves, but then that's not what the book was about.

I can only remember one or two references as to how slaves were treated during the sinking of the ship. Only one slave was portrayed during this time, Priscilla, and she was rescued, brought to a new life and found a home and freedom. It seemed a bit strange that so little was written about the slaves on the Pulaski during the rescue. so much was written about the slave ships and the inhumane treatment of then during their capture and aboard the slave ship, captained by the infamous profiteer, Charles Longstreet, the Red Devil.

I tend to agree with the others who have answered this question. While the book is not actually about slavery, it appears to be questionable that slaves were allowed on the boats with their owners.

The portrayal also reflects our current "politically correct" mind set - it seemed odd to me that in the deep South (Savannah) there would have been any consideration for slaves especially considering the timeframe.

I thought it was unrealistically positive. I am not saying that the closeness of Lilly and Priscilla was bad or unwelcome, just not believable.