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I am a Black Palestinian ✊ We are not terrorists. We are forgotten, starving, and displaced 💔 All we ask for is dignity, freedom, and life.🍉🇵🇸🕊️ chuffed.org/project/019df2…

#황야의노래 #SongoftheWasteland I’ve been reading a lot of opinions about the first chapter, and I think it’s important to separate the historical setting from the characters’ actions. The story takes place around the end of the American Civil War, a period deeply shaped by slavery and its aftermath. It’s a harsh historical reality, so it’s only natural that a story set during that time would acknowledge it. However, based on what we’ve actually seen in the first chapter, I don’t think the author is romanticizing slavery. In fact, the story shows the opposite. When Gerald is given the opportunity to make more money by selling the ranch along with the people living and working there, he refuses. Instead, he gathers everyone together, tells them they are free, that no one can buy or sell them anymore, and that they are free to leave whenever they wish. He even gives them part of the money from selling his Illinois estate so they can start over, keeping only what he needs to pay off his late father’s massive debts. That’s a decision that costs him financially, and it clearly establishes where he stands from the very beginning. Then Ezra appears. And this is an important detail: Gerald never calls Ezra a slave. In fact, he doesn’t even know who he is. His first reaction is simply to ask what’s going on and who this stranger is. It is Ezra who introduces himself by saying, “I’m your humble slave, Master.” That alone doesn’t automatically mean the story is glorifying slavery. It simply means we still don’t know the context behind Ezra’s words or what the author intends to explore through their relationship. I also think it’s important to remember that this is a fictional story set in a specific historical period. A work of fiction can include uncomfortable or painful subjects without necessarily endorsing or celebrating them. What ultimately matters is how those themes are handled throughout the story. Personally, I’d rather wait before jumping to definitive conclusions. We’re only one chapter in, and there’s still a tremendous amount of context we don’t have yet. If the story eventually romanticizes slavery, then that would absolutely deserve criticism. But based on what we’ve actually been shown so far, Gerald’s actions point in the opposite direction: he frees the people on his ranch rather than treating them as property. I think part of analyzing a story is allowing it the opportunity to tell the story it intends to tell before assigning it an intention that hasn’t yet been demonstrated.