Daughters of the Dust

Amelia’s return to Dawtuh Island on a boat establishes the recurring motif of migration. The physical and metaphorical migration of Black people, whether forced or voluntary, is a key image throughout Daughters of the Dust. After her family’s migration to the North decades ago, Amelia’s trip to Dawtuh Island can be interpreted as a journey of homecoming. Arriving on Dawtuh Island, Amelia experiences intense culture shock. The schism between the Varnes and the Peazants functions as a microcosm of the larger division between Black people in the North and South, especially between those who have chosen to leave the Sea Islands and those who have stayed. Amelia is wary of the Gullah-Geechee culture, which she perceives as “backward” when compared to urban life in New York. Likewise, those on the island are mistrustful of Amelia, whose lighter skin and Northern mannerisms mark her as an outsider.

In Chapter 1, Dash briefly touches on the source of Amelia’s prejudice. Haagar has imbued Amelia with the belief that her proximity to whiteness—lighter skin and her use of the mainland’s standard English dialect—make her somehow “better” than the people who remained. This mindset reflects internalized racism. In a society where Black people experience systemic racist discrimination, Haagar seeks to give herself an advantage by placing herself above others in similar straits. Thus, Dash offers glimpses of the systemic racism that pervades the lives of the Gullah-Geechee people. Likewise, Chapter 2 reveals that the school board deliberately prevents teachers at the Dawtuh Island school from “making the colored children smart” (38) to prevent them from seeking future prospects outside of the islands. Limited access to jobs and education makes leaving the islands a challenge even for those who want to do so. This knowledge helps to contextualize why Haagar is so proud of having left the island decades ago. It also invokes the motif of migration once again, for young people on the islands must choose between the desire to stay in their established community and the pressure to seek greater opportunities in the North, thus introducing the tension between Cultural Preservation Versus Assimilation.

Despite Elizabeth’s role as the preserver of the old ways, she clearly struggles with her own feelings of restlessness. Her finishing-school education has exposed her to the world outside of Dawtuh Island, but now she wonders “what good [it does] her to read about places she had never seen and people she would never meet” (79). Elizabeth recognizes that both leaving and staying have their disadvantages. The Peazants who leave lose their closeness to the family, becoming “just another letter on the wall,” but those who are left behind remain stationary, “eagerly waiting for the letters to come” (79).

As the stories of the Gullah-Geechee community begin to unfold for Amelia, Dash starts in earnest to develop the theme of Building Identity Through History and Storytelling. Ayodele’s story, told by Elizabeth in Chapter 2, explains why the preservation of culture and traditions is such an important element of Gullah-Geechee culture. Aboard the ship that transports Ayodele and other enslaved people to the islands, enslavers flagrantly ignore customs that once brought comfort and protection to enslaved women, such as “the ritual washing of the body, the braiding of the hair and the oiling of the skin” (88). The denial of these rites “[breaks] the pride” (88) of the enslaved people, a desirable outcome from the enslavers’ perspective as it makes their prisoners easier to control.

The knowledge that traditional practices were stripped away from enslaved Africans emphasizes the importance of Elizabeth’s determination to practice the “old ways.” From making scented body oils to braiding the hair of her female relatives, these acts are a reclamation of autonomy, and of the culture that enslavers once tried to destroy. Accordingly, Elizabeth holds vigil and keeps the remembrance of her ancestors’ struggles alive by telling Amelia key stories about their people’s past. Her story about Ayodele therefore makes mention of the frequent sexual abuse and assault suffered by Black women at the hands of their enslavers. This grim reality will also become a recurring motif in the stories shared by other characters, both in the past and the present. These accounts reflect a brutal true history of rape; when slavery was practiced, some sources estimate that over half of enslaved women were raped by their enslavers. Amelia recalls that Haagar refers to Yellow Mary as “ruint” after her rape by the white planter, suggesting that women who have been assaulted also risk being spurned by their own communities afterward.

Underlying Amelia’s negative reaction to her relatives is jealousy at how tight-knit the Peazant family appears to be. Amelia’s world in Harlem is small, consisting of her mother, father, and grandmother. On the islands, she encounters a deeply interconnected community of which she is not a part. Despite her education and comparative wealth, her family on the island shares something precious that has always been denied to her. Unlike the people of Dawtuh Island, the Varnes family has not been close since their move to the mainland.

This section of the novel emphasizes the importance of Building Identity Through History and Storytelling. Part 5 is subdivided into 12 stories, each narrated by a different character. By allowing each character to fill in a different part of the narrative, Dash depicts the way each person plays a part in preserving the collective oral history of the Sea Islands. For example, Ben’s story of “Ibo” (Igbo) Landing demonstrates the utility of storytelling as a tool for survival and identity-building. The story of the Igbo walking on water is based on a mass suicide of enslaved Igbo people, which took place in 1803 on St. Simons Island in Georgia. Although there are several conflicting accounts of the events in circulation, the generally agreed-upon version is that 10 to 12 Igbo men and women walked into the waters of Dunbar Creek and drowned.

The Gullah version of the tale told by Ben overwrites the tragic deaths of the Igbo people with a hopeful account of a return home to Africa. This version emphasizes the courage of the Igbo. In Ben’s hands, an account of generational trauma thus becomes a story of hope and resilience. The ability of the Gullah-Geechee people to draw strength from mythologizing the tragedies of the past will become a recurring theme throughout Daughters of the Dust. Additionally, Ben’s story portrays the belief in mighty ancient spirits that protect the Igbo from harm. This belief in benevolent ancient deities is also a key feature of Gullah-Geechee culture. It is important to note that the stories told by Ben and Elizabeth incorporate elements of magical realism alongside real, historical events. This blending of the supernatural and the historical is a standard aspect of the tales contained within Daughters of the Dust. Many of the Gullah-Geechee characters believe in the existence of ancient, protective spirits that are as much a part of daily life as their friends and family.

In addition to listening to people’s stories, Elizabeth advises Amelia to pay attention to what they don’t say. Gullah-Geechee culture was forged amidst the trauma of racism and enslavement. While some members of the community cope by reliving stories and memories, others cope through silence. Even Ben’s story hinges partially on what is not said (i.e., the fact that the tale is an overwritten account of a mass suicide). Elizabeth’s reminder calls to mind Haagar’s own refusal to talk about her past.