The Wonderful Tar Baby Story: The Story Of The Tar-Baby

The Wonderful Tar Baby Story†The story of the Tar-baby is perhaps the best-known of the Uncle Remus tales

Mr. Ryan Garciaalfarouk Akilienglish 1b6 March 2018the Wonderful Ta

Mr. Ryan Garciaalfarouk Akilienglish 1b6 March 2018the Wonderful Ta

Mr. Ryan Garcia Alfarouk Akili English 1B 6, March, 2018 “The Wonderful Tar Baby Story†The story of the Tar-baby is perhaps the best-known of the Uncle Remus tales. Uncle Remus also was known as a traditional character in the Antebellum, slave era. The themes surrounding both stories dissect and discuss the relationship between the Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox; quite frankly there is a deeper in depth message behind the two tales. “The Fox, Tar Baby and the Rabbitâ€, these two characters represent tales that reflect historically and national facts.

Taking a closer, analytical look at “the Wonderful Tar Baby Storyâ€, it demonstrates how Joel Chandler Harris’ work falls in the American literature. But not just any American literature, the literature that only sought to exploit the culture of African-Americans. We can slightly see a hint of the message behind the story from its title. How could a Tar Baby be wonderful? The fact is, a Tar Baby is a meaning of complicated random manipulated concepts, especially when it was made by brer Fox.

An author's purpose is his reason for writing. In other words, the author’s goal is to convince the readers to agree with the author. With that being said, I believe Harris’ motif in writing these two tales was simple. I strongly believe that harris wanted to give a message to his readers. The message of keeping the legacy of the Uncle Remus tales alive along with the Southern dialect used to describe the tale.

To put it differently, there is a deeper meaning behind the two tales. As we know, the uncle remus story was published in 1880 at the end of the Civil War and the economical American growth and also when the union soldiers took over the plantations. Harris lived among a poor family in Georgia and grew up with the slaves, with that in mind, Harris saw the miserable slave life and witnessed the disaster they lived in. All of these experiences led Harris to create this genius short story tales with the famous fictional character Uncle Remus and its folklore. With that being said, Uncle remus was an old slave of the owner of the plantation, also he was telling the tar baby story to the son of the owner. ‘“Didn’t the fox never catch the Rabbit uncle remus?’ asked the little boy next morning.†(Wonderful tar baby) The little boy was speaking proper english and he was white, on the other hand, Uncle Remus was uneducated and African American.

Going more in depth with the analysis of the characters, Harris was trying to send a deep message to the world through these two characters. Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox are both a reflection to historical facts back in the Civil War and the antebellum era. For instance brer fox made the tar baby as a trap for brer rabbit and to capture him and torture him in any painful way there is; Brer rabbit was walking peacefully on the road with no intention to hurt anybody. Brer fox was hiding and waiting for brer Rabbit to fall in his trap with the tar baby, until brer rabbit finally did. Rabbit walked by, noticed the tar baby and greeted him, no response came from the tar baby and this upset the rabbit.

I must say as reader, there was a sense of pride coming from the rabbit when he said,. But also in return, Brer rabbit outsmarts brer fox by manipulating him and using his wit, giving him a taste of his own medicine. How did he do this? Well it's very simple. While brer Fox was celebrating that he captured the rabbit but little did he know the rabbit was already thinking of a plan to survive.The plan was to convince the fox that the rabbit is venerbole on purpose to give the fox an illusion in order to manipulate him into throwing him in the Briar-Patch, not only is this a creative act but it's also very brave.

Each one of these characters play a significant role when it comes to the morals and ethics behind this tale. To put it differently, after reading and analysing the two tales, I come to the fact that Harris chose the rabbit and the fox because of their characters and personalities, that is to say that the rabbit is known as a friendly, lovable animal, on the other hand the fox is known for its games and backstabbing, not safe to be around and more importantly, if it wasn’t for him there wouldn’t be a tar baby and there wouldn’t be a story after all. According to all the facts and the analysis we can derive that Brer Fox is a representation of The northerns and the Union soldiers when they came to the south to take over the plantations, most certainly they enslaved african americans and took over their lands Cultural Experience Template - Amadeus Template for movie AMADEUS Use this template to format the answers to the questions for the movie AMADEUS.

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The story of the Tar-baby, as part of Uncle Remus tales, holds significant cultural and historical implications rooted in the Atlantic African-American tradition and the broader context of American history. Analyzing Joel Chandler Harris’ rendition of this tale reveals layers of social commentary about race, power dynamics, and cultural legacy. Harris’ use of characters such as Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox functions as allegories reflecting historical figures and societal structures, providing insight into the complex racial relationships and stereotypes prevalent during the post-Civil War era.

Historically, Harris was influenced by the folklore of enslaved Africans and their descendants, which he adapted into stories intended both to preserve African-American culture and to entertain a broader audience. The tale of the Tar-baby exemplifies these dual purposes: it preserves cultural identity while also subtly critiquing societal oppression. The “Tar Baby” itself symbolized a sticky situation—one that ensnares individuals who provoke conflict unwittingly. In the story, Brer Fox’s creation of the Tar Baby was a manipulative device meant to trap Brer Rabbit, which mirrors the manipulative tactics used during the era of slavery and racial oppression to entrap and subjugate African Americans.

The character of Brer Rabbit, witty and resilient, embodies the cunning and resourcefulness often attributed to oppressed peoples in folklore. Conversely, Brer Fox’s craftiness and betrayal align with the treacherous tactics employed by oppressors who sought to maintain dominance over marginalized groups. Harris’s depiction of these characters pointedly reflects the socio-political dynamics of the Civil War period and its aftermath, highlighting themes of resistance, cleverness, and the struggle for freedom.

Moreover, Harris’ representation of Uncle Remus as an elderly storyteller from the oppressed class affirms the importance of oral traditions and folklore in maintaining cultural identity. Through these tales, Harris aimed to keep alive the wisdom, humor, and resilience of African-American ancestors amid a society intent on erasing their heritage. The story’s context in 1880, during the post-Reconstruction era, further intensifies its significance as a subtle form of cultural resistance and survival.

The characters’ relationships also mirror the racial tensions of the time. Brer Fox’s role as a cunning predator and Brer Rabbit’s as a clever survivor serve as metaphors for the societal struggle between oppressors and the oppressed. Harris’s story employs allegory, analogy, and irony to emphasize the importance of wit and perseverance as tools for resistance in an oppressive environment. These themes continue to resonate today, illustrating the power of folklore to comment on societal issues covertly.

References

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• Gates, H. L. (2009). The Signifying Monkey: A Theory of African-American Literary Criticism. Oxford University Press.
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• Wright, B. (2008). “Folklore as Resistance: The Case of Uncle Remus.” Journal of African American History, 93(2), 150-169.