Please don t throw me in the briar patch

Jamal Branbo

Ryan Garcia

English 1B

6 March 2018

The Wonderful Tar Baby

The Tar Baby story is a fable kind of story written in an African-American dialogue to carry on the legacy of Uncle Remus stories and it’s folklore. The Uncle Remus stories is a collection of stories that was made popular by Joel Chandler Harris, they are based on African-American folklore. The stories are narrated by the fictional Uncle Remus, who is a former slave. The themes and events that are described in the two stories discuss the relationship between the Brer Rabbit and the Brer Fox. The stories were largely based on African-American folklore, and they are commonly known as the Uncle Remus stories that were written by Joel Chandler Harris in the 1880s. Harris had originally been told the stories by the former slaves he knew as a child in the plantation in Eatonton, Georgia. Harris was an American journalist, fiction writer, and folklorist. He was born in Eatonton, Georgia, where he served as an apprentice in the newspaper during his teenage years. The Tar Baby story was not only a short story to be told to kids, it was also a message to the world hidden behind its catalyst context.

Brer Rabbit shows us that if we’re not strong we better be smart. He got himself into this situation but he is clever enough to see that fighting the situation will only make matters worse. He will only get more tar on him and Brer Fox is so much stronger than him. He cleverly uses the argument Brer Fox is having on how to best cook him. After he frees him from the tar he uses reverse psychology to win his freedom. Instead of protesting the various ways in which he could end up as his lunch he agrees with each proposal and ends on “as long as you don’t throw me in the briar patch”, as if that was the worst that could happen to him. By doing so he prevents Brer Fox from killing him in the ways he is discussing with himself, and he tells him to do whatever he wants but to not throw him in the brier patch. Which leads the fox to finally throw Brer Rabbit in the briar patch where he escapes.

Going more in depth with the Tar Baby story we can see from the definition of the Tar Baby that it applies to a sticky situation and a difficult problem. And Harris applies that term in his stories by showing us how the Brer Rabbit falls into the Brer Fox’s trap, and how he gets stuck to “The Tar Baby”. The Brer Rabbit represents how a weaker, smaller, but more clever force can overcome a stronger, larger, but less clever force. Where he continually outmaneuvers the Brer Fox. In the story “How Mr. Rabbit Was Too Sharp For Mr. Fox” Harris states “'Skin me, Brer Fox,' sez Brer Rabbit, sezee, 'snatch out my eyeballs, t'ar out my yeras by de roots, en cut off my legs,' sezee, 'but do please, Brer Fox, don't fling me in dat brier-patch,' sezee.” (par.11).

After the Brer Fox traps the Brer Rabbit with the Tar Baby. The Brer Rabbit manages to trick the Brer Fox into throwing him into a briar patch. At the beginning It sounds like a horrible punishment. But, the Brer Rabbit has lived his whole life in the briar patch, so he can easily work his way out of the briar patch and free himself. If we take a closer look on this situation we can demonstrate that the Brer Rabbit represents the African-Americans due to the fact that the South survived through the civil war even though they lost it. Which can relate to the Brer Rabbit who fell into the Brer Fox’s trap but also used his wit and intelligence to lead the Brer Fox into throwing him in the briar patch because lived his whole life in the brier patch, as Harris states in the story. “'Bred en bawn in a brier-patch, Brer Fox--bred en bawn in a brier-patch!'”(par.13).

On the other hand we have the Brer Fox who hated the Brer Rabbit because he was always bossing everyone around. Which is why he decided to capture and kill Brer Rabbit if it was the last thing he will ever do. But Brer Fox’s hatred to Brer Rabbit blinds him into making the mistake of throwing Brer Rabbit in the briar patch. Which led the Brer Rabbit into freeing himself because he was used to being in the briar patch. The brier patch in this story represents the slaves quarters because the rabbit is the only animal that can survive in the brier patch which can relate to the African-Americans, because they are the only ones who can survive in the slaves quarters due to the conditions they were forced to live in after the union soldiers took over their lands.

Harris wrote these stories during the Antebellum Era. Where African-Americans were used as slaves. When the Union soldiers took over the plantation, Harris went to live with a poor family where he spent most of his time in the slaves quarters. Harris felt like he had something in common with the African-Americans who were used as slaves in the quarters. He was born in utter poverty in Putnam County. Harris began his lifelong friendship with animals and with the plantation and the slaves who were held in it. Later on the African-American folklore would fill his writings. He used the animals and the characters in his stories to show the world the reality of the war between the North and the South, and to reflect the social experience and historical perspective of African-Americans defining themselves through the Brer Rabbit. Each one of these characters play a significant role when it comes to the morals and ethics behind this tale. Harris chose the rabbit and the fox because of their characters and personalities, the rabbit is known as a friendly, lovable animal, on the other hand the fox is known for being trickery and backstabbing.

Harris used Uncle Remus as a way to deliver the stories to the world. Uncle Remus was an old slave who worked for the owner of the plantation. Uncle Remus tells the stories to a little boy who is the son of the owner of the plantation. In the stories, The little kid is shown to be well educated and civilized due to the fact that he speaks proper English, as shown in the story when he asks Uncle Remus "did the fox kill and eat the rabbit when he caught him with the Tar-Baby?"(par.1). On the other hand, Uncle Remus is shown to be uneducated due to the dialect he uses. An example is when he answers the little boys question and says "Law, honey, ain't I tell you 'bout dat?"(par.1).

Harris chose the rabbit and the fox because of their characters and personalities, the rabbit is known as a friendly, lovable animal, on the other hand the fox is known for being trickery 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 at all.