Mr. Garner: The "Nice" Slave Owner

A theme that I found to be intriguing was that of Mr. Garner.  He is reported as a nice man, a man who calls his slaves "men," never yells, and one who teaches Halle how to "figure."  Everyone, including his slaves, is sad when he passes.

Sethe as a young girl specifically thinks that Sweet Home is a fine place to be because no one ever yells at her.  He even let Halle buy his mother with work, something that was almost completely unheard of.  After all, who pays their slaves for work?  A slave by definition is someone who works unpaid labor.

The irony of the situation is that while Mr. Garner is considered such a nice man, he still has slaves.  He is still racist, whether or not he is "nice" about it.  If he was truly a good man, he wouldn't have slaves at all.  He would understand how unjust, how inhumane it is to have slaves.

This idea is finally questioned by Paul D as he sits reflecting on the night of Sethe's escape:  "Garner called and announced them men--but only on Sweet Home, and by his leave.  Was he naming what he saw or creating what he did not?" (260).  This insight to Paul D's mind gives a more realistic view of Mr. Garner.  Sure, he called his slaves men, something other slave owners would never do.  But Mr. Garner would not call them men if they were not specifically his slaves.  Paul D's question is essential:  Did Mr. Garner really see them as men, or did he believe that he personally made them into men?  Of course the answer is the latter.  Mr. Garner prides himself in having slaves that are "men," but he does not believe that all slaves are men.  In fact, if he believes blacks should be slaves at all, then he cannot consider all blacks to be men.

I would argue that this kind of attitude toward slavery is almost worse than violence.  If Garner had not died suddenly and Schoolteacher had not shown up to make their situation worse, the slaves at Sweet Home may have lived complacent, sedentary lives.  The Garners' practice of slavery had tricked them into believing that things weren't so bad.  Sethe was satisfied with her life working with Mrs. Garner who never said a mean word to her.  She liked bringing flowers into the kitchen to pretend it was hers.  Imagine if everyone in the south took this approach!  Slavery probably would have drawn much less attention and lasted much longer in America, as long as it was "nice" slavery.  Sethe may have never even understood her own oppression or what it was like to have her own house, her own kitchen, to love her children as her own.  That, to me, would have been the biggest travesty of all.