Kristen Grazia                                                                                               

February 11, 2015

Professor Young

Essay 1: Freedom

Freedom Varies

            The power to determine action without restraint and having the liberty to do as you please is the standard idea of freedom. In The Good Lord Bird, James McBride describes two characters, Sibonia and Pie. These individuals are strong women who share some of the same qualities. The readers are brought into the worlds of these two slaves, Pie, the “whore” and Sibonia, the working slave. Pie lives under better conditions than the others, which seems to make her freer, but Sibonia recognizes what real freedom is. Pie is freer than Sibonia, but she is still a slave who has to take orders and work to stay alive.

            Individuals have their own idea of what freedom is depending on his or her background. However, the ability to make choices, control personal thoughts, have a voice, and express or carry out basic human rights is the freedom that is deserved for every person. These expected rights are often taken away when living as a slave. For example, Sibonia and Pie have separate lifestyles, with different freedoms considering the circumstances of many slaves. For example, Pie has formed a unique relationship with the whites, which has resulted in benefits, such as the different amenities she has access to. While Sibonia is seen as less fortunate, but has powers of her own that can be good. After talking with Onion, the “girl” living in the big house about not sharing information, Sibonia states, “If you do, I’ll know about it, and you’ll wake up with a heap of knives poking out that pretty neck of yours” (McBride 166). This intimidating statement implies that Sibonia has the power to get herself in the big house or hire someone to commit a vicious attack. This is meaningful to everyone that lives in the house, because it shows how Sibonia can be courageous and aggressive.

             As for Pie, she is living a more civilized life due to her luxuries of the big house as her home and with the same amenities that a white person has. Pie is seen as desirable and spoken of highly by Onion who states, “This woman had the kind of rhythm that you could hear a thousand miles down the Missouri. I wouldn’t throw her outta bed for eating crackers. She was class” (McBride 144). Making a statement like this coming from a twelve-year-old boy shows how seductive Pie can be to all ages. Not only being a beautiful mulatto woman, Pie is bold and sharp; she is able to recognize a phony instantly. Onion tells, “White fellers on the prairie, even white women, didn’t pay two cents’ worth of attention to a simple colored girl. But Pie was the first colored woman I seen in the two years since I started wearing the getup, and she smelled a rat right off” (McBride 145). Knowing that Onion is impersonating a girl, was information she kept to herself for an unknown reason. Pie, a beautiful brown whore with a strong personality, is able to express more personal traits than the other slaves, by having the ability to wear fitted clothing and give an opinion to Miss Abby. However, she is still a slave that doesn’t have the freedoms of a white person.  

            With the responsibility given to Pie is a form of freedom that the other slaves don’t get to experience. “Miss Abby gived her the run of the place, let her choose her

own customers more or less, and live as she wanted. Pie even closed down the saloon at times” (McBride 159). Miss Abby allowing Pie to do such things caused a relationship to form that isn’t commonly shared between slaves and their owners. Letting a slave live under the same roof as the owner and sharing thoughts forming bonds is unlikely.  When Onion first got to Miss Abby’s house, Pie said to Onion, “Go in there. Tell Miss Abby I sent you, and that you come to work. She’ll see you get a hot bath first” (McBride 147). This shows how Pie has a comfortable relationship with Miss. Abby and is confident that she wouldn’t get punished for sending a stranger into Miss. Abby’s room. Pie looked after Onion in the big house. Onion goes on to tell, “Then she turned to me and pointed to a room two doors down”(McBride 147). Pie pushed Onion into Miss Abby’s room without a knock. Doing an act like this without thinking twice also shows Pie’s confidence and relationship with her white owner. This is a certain freedom that can’t be taken for granted and isn’t common. However, Pie isn’t free and can’t leave the plantation.

            It is seen that Pie has more freedoms on the property than Sibonia, although Pie can’t get away with what some of field slaves do. Pie expresses to Onion, “I can’t ride no place, child…Still, it’d be nice to pass the time reading dime books like the other girls. I seen it done”(McBride 155). Sharing this, Pie reveals that she has looked to the other slaves with a little bit of envy. Pie is just as much a prisoner but obtains more authority than the average slave.

            Sibonia stands in her own truth, which allows her mind to be freer than Pie. Living a life having to take orders for someone else takes away the rights that should

be universal, no matter the race. With the common privileges stripped away from both Pie and Sibonia, they each take different actions to survive. The initial impression one gets from Sibonia is that she is “crazy,” this keeps people at a distance from her. People believing that Sibonia is mentally unstable allows an advantage, over the other slaves, because they will listen to her due to intimidation. The idea of being free varies on the individual.

            Freedom, having the ability to do as you please is non-existent in The Good Lord Bird. Sibonia has fewer privileges than Pie, but Siboni’s mentality displays courage and knowledge. Sibonia is able to connect with people off the property, but doesn’t have all of the white opportunities as Pie. Pie is able to have more luxuries then the other slaves by living in the house and interacting with the whites often. Although Pie doesn’t have any connections off the property she is freer on the land, which makes her at a high status than Sibonia. Pie’s perception of freedom is different than Sibonia’s, Pie exhibits traits that has her thinking freedom is having opportunities that the other slaves don’t. Pie is more free due to her control in the house.  

                                                                                                           

Works Cited

McBride, James. The Good Lord Bird. New York, NY: Penguin Audio, 2014. Print.