African Queen: The Real Life of the Hottentot Venus pages 82-118

Summary:
On December 29, 1815, Saartjie died at the 7 Cour des Fontaines. It is believed that Saartjie died because she was over worked, an alcoholic and she had loss hope in everything she used to believe in. Saartjie used to believe that she was important because of how her father and Solkar treated her but when Dunlop and Rèaux began mistreating Saartjie all of her hope disappeared. The thing that probly had to do the most with Saartjie’s death is because towards the end of her life she not only continued to work all though she was terribly ill, Rèaux began pimping her to the upper class men who wanted to have a sexual experience with the “HOTTENTOT VENUS”. Saartjie had become a prostitute and had nothing left in her life to be proud of. Rèaux also realized that Saartjie was losing her worth and her thought that she would be worth the same amount dead or alive and he began making arrangements with the scientist at the Museum of Natural History. Once Saartjie died her body was delivered to the Museum in which a letter was sent to the mayor declaring her death and another was sent to the Comte Angles asking for permission to have Saartjie’s body. At the time it was against the law to keep a person who had died with out permission from the government.

Less than 24 hours later and without the solemnizing of any rights, Saartjie was in the hands of scientists at the Museum of Natural History. Saartjie was bisected and all her organs were removed and molded for further research. Saartjie’s brain was also removed and all her organs were placed in a glass jar until thirty eight years later when Pierre Gratiolet studied what he had found. In order to preserves the organs in the best manner, flagons of distilled alchol and potassium hydroxide were placed inside. The tortoiseshell necklace that Saartjie never removed was taken off of her and placed else where, symbolically taking away any rights to her body that she had left.

Although it took Saartjie three months to get to Europe, it took her two centuries to return to her homeland. In 1194, Nelson Mandela declared Saartjie a heroic ancestor and declared that the new state’s commitment to honoring her and made the first international attempt to reclaim her. In 1995, Saartjie finally returned home and was giving a proper burial. Saartjie Baartman was and will always be the “HOTTENTOT VENUS”. Although she died centuries ago, she still is that same hero she was when she was 26 and she will always be a hero for not only women of all ethnic groups but for everyone who may work in a profession in which they are judged constantly on their appearance.


Quotation:
“It is good to know that people are starting to make claims of their heritage. That is something we must be proud of. This is our grandmother. This is the nation’s grandmother.(Holmes 107)

Reflection:
I believe this quote is true because Saartjie Baartman is like my grandmother and I wasn’t born until the year she returned home. Saartjie allowed women and men to accept their “flaws” and make them work for them. Saartjie opened the door for people of different ethnic backgrounds to work in the lime light. Although Saartjie did so much for “freaks” she ended living a horrible life. She lost everyone she loved and she was forced to work basically nude. She wasn’t allowed basically any free time and she even works sick. To help accommodate the pain and loneliness she felt inside, Saartjie look at liquor for comfort. The women that allowed people such as I to feel comfortable in their own body was taken for granted and was forced into an addiction that helped lead to her death.

Many famous people of color also have been put into the same situation as Saartjie. For instance Michael Jackson was forced at a young age to make sure his performance was tight, clean, and always mesmerizing. He also was over worked and would receive beatings if his performance did not meet expectations. Like Saartjie, Michael Jackson also sang and dance and his body type was sometimes perceived as freaky because he was tiny, his skin color had changed dramatically over a short period of time and he had plastic surgery done to his face. To accommodate his loneliness, fatigue, and emotional and physical pain, Michael Jackson looks for drugs. Drugs were Michael’s best friend and it brought him through the toughest times just like Saartjie look for alcohol to bring her through her toughest times. I feel like Saartjie allows people to see the good aspect of becoming famous and the horrible aspect of becoming famous.

African Queen: The Real Life Story of the Hottentot Venus Pages 47-82

Summary:
Saartjie did not testify in court but she did an interview in which she recounted on her childhood and early life in the cape. She explained that she went to England because she was promised half of the money for each visiting person (1 shilling) and she would work for six years. But the money that she made went directly to Dunlop and the government. At the end of the trial the judge declared that Saartjie was neither kept under improper restraints nor was she a slave brought to England unwillingly. Although the abolitionists lost the case, Saartjie was able to sign a new contract in which warmer clothes; a passage home and written security of profit sharing were included. Dunlop did not want advice to get in the way of his business so he gave Saartjie what she wanted. Dunlop realized that Saartjie was in great demand and the citizens of London loved her exhibit. If he lost Saartjie he was losing his only means of money. Saartjie was most excited about returning home.

Due to the court case, Saartjie’s popularity increased dramatically. Saartjie was popular enough to have her own playing cards in which drawings of her singing and dancing were on the cover. Saartjie traveled all around Europe. She toured in Britain, London, Brighton, and Bath. But all of a sudden Saartjie found herself in a cathedral getting baptized. She was entered into the Christian church and was renamed “Sarah”. After the baptism Saartjie was not the same. Although she danced and sang the same way she used to before the baptism it seemed as if she was no longer the same Saartjie, that the baptism changed her personality. On July 18, 1812 Dunlop died. Saartjie had not returned home and because of the sudden death she was no longer guaranteed the passage home. Saartjie disappeared for two years without a trace. Two years later, Saartjie returned to Paris and when she arrived she was loved by everyone. Due to the fact she showed off her buttocks, smoked out of a pipe and showed a little nudity many thought she was a prostitute as well. What they did not know was that Saartjie was forced to wear those clothes and only smoked out of the pipe as an act to involve the men into her routine. She performed daily from eleven in the morning to nine in the night. By the end of 1814, Saartjie suffered from Exhaustion, recurrent flu and the deleterious affects of libations and brandy. Saartjie could not handle the bacchanalian lifestyle that was forced upon her. She drank only to help her get through her performances, private- viewings and late evening displays. Although Saartjie was home sick she realized that even if she was able to raise enough money to go back home she would have to return home and become a house servant. She would much rather live the life of a “HOTTENTOT VENUS”. January 22, 1815 reports stated that Saartjie was under new management and that her new manager happened to be her new husband. His name was Rèaux. Rèaux changed Saartjie’s schedule from eleven in the morning to eleven at night. Due to his connections with the Museum of Natural History he hatched a ghastly scheme which not only produced a small fortune but also led to Saartjie death.

Quotation:

" Saartjie's health, and by the end of the year she was suffering from exhaustion, recurrent flu, and the deleterious effects of the brandy she drank to keep going through her performances, private viewings, and late- evening displays at cafés and restaurants"(Holmes 48)

Reflection:
The quote above explains the effects that some may experience while working as a "showgirl/ Hottentot Venus". Saartjie experienced fatigue, illness and was basically forced into an addiction all for the price of fame.

The fact that people actually risk their health voluntarily so they may be famous is uncomprehendable for me. I think that Saartjie was quite strong. She not only had to endure copious judgments and people, and work long hours but she also had to work while she was terribly sick. Unfortonaly to accommodate those harsh conditions she ended up with an addiction to alcohol. I can relate Saartjie’s case to the cases of women who worked in Cotton mills during the early 1800’s. Like Saartjie these women lived in Europe and worked long hours for low wages. The also had to deal with dangerous conditions and handle complicated machinery. These women can be seen as heroines because of the fact that they persevered threw these complicated and horrible conditions.

Afrcan Queen: The real life story of the Hottentot Venus pages 33-48

Summary:

One night Saartjie caught a cold and was crying from the pain she felt in her throat and knees. Instead of allowing Saartjie to get a day off to get better, Dunlop pulled out his bamboo stick and beat her. The audience began to question the relationship between Dunlop and Saartjie. When a member of the audience asked the reason for the beating his answer was very disrespectful. Saartjie continued playing the guitar while tears ran down her eyes. This was the day that the relationship between Saartjie and Dunlop began to bring up the question whether or not the relationship between the two or business or slavery oriented.

Wednesday October 17, Zachary Macaulay, Thomas Gisborne Babington, and Peter Van Wageninge visited barrister Sir Simon Le Blanc at his chambers in Sergeant’s Inn. They went to file an affidavit in support of their application for a writ of habeas corpus to be issued against Alexander Dunlop. They demanded that Dunlop show proof of passport from Lord Caledon and the name of the ship in which he traveled with Saartjie. It was unknown to Saartjie at the time but her life was about to change once again for the better. The case of the “Hottentot Venus” opened at the court of the King’s Bench in Westminster Hall, Parliament Square, on Saturday November 24, 1810. Sir Simon Le Blanc represented the African Institution and Edward law presided as a judge but he was known as the Lord chief justice of England, he was also part of the African Institution. Sir William Garrow was the person who represented Saartjie case. His defense was that she was held against her will and forced to expose her body to the public in a matter in which she disliked. He wanted to liberate her of her confinement and places her under proper protection in England and eventually returns her to her native homeland. The chapter ended with the discussion of whether or not Saartjie would be recommended to join the courtroom and describe her life to the jury.

Quotation:

" She saw it, knew its power, and, though ill, delayed no longer"( Holmes 48).

Reflection:
The quote above describes the automatic understanding that slaves have with their masters. When a weapon is drawn and used the slave immediately understand the power that they lack and the power that their masters gain. Although Saartjie was sick with the flu and needed rest, she continued to work and sing. Although her throat was throbing and her knees were aching she continued to sing and dance. This just further describe the pain that many slaves went through. Although she was a "showgirl" she was treated no different than a slave living in the outskirts of South Africa.

If put in Saartjie situation I have no idea how I could have been as strong as she was. She went through days of people violating her personal space. She had to sing, dance and play guitar everyday although she was sick or tired. Threw the beatings, verbal abuse and public humiliation Saatjie prospered. She even overcame the physical abuse that her master put her through. Saartjie is a role model for women living in situation just like hers. Whether they are forced to continue working in a bad enviornment through contract or in an abusive relationship, they can look at Saartjie's history and they can prosper.

African Queen: The real life story of the Hottentot Venus, Pages 17-33

Summary:
After the death of her child, Saartjie and her young soldier did not last. Fortunately for her, things would begin to work out for the better. A couple of weeks after the death of her child, her master ended up losing his job. Due to the lost of his job, Saartjie was sold to a man name Alexander Dunlop. Dunlop was the man who led Saartjie into stardom and he was the one who made up her whole persona for the stage. It was illegal at the time for an African slave to be transported out of the country. Dunlop had to resort to smuggling Saartjie out of Africa on a boat. He bribed the captain with money. Once in London, Dunlop began his search for London’s most successful museum master. He ended finding this man and presented a commercial proposition to him emphasizing the art found in Saartjie’s body shape and how people would spend 2 shillings just to see what a Hottentot Venus looks like. Unfortonaly he did not take the offer so Dunlop ended up pursuing the set up of Saartjie act on his own.

He found a location right across the street from the Liverpool Museum. This museum was one of the most popular museums because its exhibits included the “freaks” of London. By placing Saartjie’s act right across the street, Dunlop was sure that many people would want to experience the show before or after they visit the exhibit across the street. The next most important thing that Dunlop had to focus on was how he was going to present Saartjie. He decided to have a form- fitting bodysuit made for Saartjie out of stocking material so that it seems as if Saartjie is naked. He wanted to emphasize Saartjie’s body shape which in return would lure people to see her shown to discover if she is real or fake. The third and probly most important thing that Dunlop had to worry about was the act that Saartjie did. He ended up coming up with an act that lasted 2 hours. With in the two hours Saartjie would dance the way she did at rituals, sing, and play the guitar or flute to African folksongs.

Quotation:
Dunlop emphasized, " an object of great curiosity" and arguing that she " would make the fortune of any person by exhibiting her (for the said two years) to the public " ( Holmes 33).

Reflection:
The way in which Dunlop refers to Saartjie makes her seem as if she is Dunlop property. He describes her as if she is not human, as if she is a type of object that he wants to show off and sell. When reading this quote I felt like Saatjie is not human, like she was just some type of exbit located across the street from a famous museum.

I feel simpatic towards Saartjie because she did not have much time to grieve over her child. She also was perceived as a freak of nature or a piece of property. Dunlop had never tried to be apathetic towards Saartjie or try to treat her as a human being. His only concern was how he was going to use the uncommon beauty of Saartjie to make money. It is difficult for me to imagine what life might have been like emotionally for Saartjie. Her mother died at a young age; her father and love died, her child died and her “man” left her and she was no longer considered human, she was either considered a freak or a cash cow.

Words you may not understand?

1. Enigmatic-(adjective)~ Mysterious, Perplexed.

2. Hottentot-( adjective)~ signified all that was strange, disturbing, alien and posibly sexually deviant.

3. Venus-(noun)~ synonym for sex.

4. Affidavit- (noun)~ written declaration made under oath; a written statement sworn to be true before someone legally authorized to administer an oath.

African Queen: The real life of HOTTTENTOT VENUS, pages 1-17

Summary:
The story begins in media revs, Saartjie Baartman also known as” Hottentot Venus” steps onto the stage in her pointed green ribboned slippers and her tight/ skin color stocking that barley covered anything. At only twenty- one years old, her high cheekbones and dramatic greasepaint makeup make her seem enigmatic. She has a heart-shaped face with deep dimpled cheeks and a cupid bows mouth that adds the finishing touches to her beauty. She stands no taller than four feet seven inches but what makes her so original is the shape of her buttock. Saartjie’s show consisted of not only her beauty and physical makeup but she also sang, danced and played the guitar.

Saartjie lived in South Africa before she was shipped off to London; she had been working as a nursemaid to two little girls. Saartjie was born in 1789 in the Gamtoos River Valley. Her mother died when she was two leaving behind two daughter and four sons not including Saartjie. Saartjie had a strong relationship with her dad in which she viewed him as a hero, but that relationship did not last long. At the age of seventeen or eighteen Saartjie not only lost her father but she also lost the love of her life. Saartjie’s father was the head of the hunters and her mother was the women who organized feast, so Saartjie was wanted by every young male in the village but Solkar was the one whom she would fall in love with. At the day of their feast to celebrate their upcoming marriage, Solkar gave her a tortoiseshell pendant, which she never took off .Her party, was cashed by some European explores and both Solkar and her father died. She was captured and sold to a family in which she worked as a nursemaid. A couple of months later, she met a young soldier who played the drums. She fell into quick love and was soon pregnant by him. She had the baby but to years later the baby fell ill and died. The relationship between Saartjie and the soldier ended. Once again Saartjie was ripped away from her family.

Quotation:

” she wished to ascertain that all was…’nattral“(Holmes 4- 5).

Reflection:

In this quote, a woman expresses her disbelief after she witnesses the Saartjie. She then went on to poke Saartjie as if she is some type of animal or creature. Due to the statue in which Saartjie was built the women believed that she was not real and that her buttock was imaginary. Her arrogance lead her to violate Saartjie space by poking her.

This type of behavior is insulting to Saartjie and unfortunately she had to endure it everyday. I have a sense of sympathy towards Saartjie because she not only lost everyone whom she loved but she also was taken from her homeland to work in a foreign place in which she was perceived as unreal and alien like. The reason why this quote was so important is because it clarifies the fact she was considered imaginary and “fake” because she had a dark completion and her physical features were different.