HWA CHONG INSTITUTION (HIGH SCHOOL SECTION)

HUMANITIES RESEARCH PAPER 2015

________________________________________________________________

Topic: The Reel Narrative of Slavery in Solomon Northups Odyssey and 12 Years a Slave
Slant: Literature
Name: Ong Yinn Ray
Class: 4H1
Name of Teacher-Mentor: Mrs Jenny Wong
Total Word Count (excluding appendixes, footnotes & references): 5493

Declaration
I declare that this assignment is my own work and does not involve plagiarism or collusion. The sources
of other peoples work have been appropriately referenced, failing which I am willing to accept the
necessary disciplinary action(s) to be taken against me.
Students Signature :
Date of Submission:

Table of Contents
Contents

Page

No.
Chapter 1: Introduction

1.1: Background

1.2: Rationale

1.3: Research Questions

1.4: Thesis Statement

1.5: Methodology

1.6: Delimitations

1.6: Significance of Research

1.7: Limitations

Chapter 2: Literature Review

2.1: Theoretical Frameworks Used

2.2: Historical Background of Solomon Northups Odyssey

2.3: Historical Background of 12 Years a Slave

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Chapter 3: Discussion, Interpretation and Analysis

12

3.1: Whipping of Patsey/Jenny

12

3.2: Portrayal of Slave Masters

14

3.2.1: William Ford

14

3.2.2: Master & Mistress Epps

15

3.2.3: Further Discussion

17

3.3: Individual vs. Community

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3.3.1: White Saviour Narrative

18

3.3.2: Ending Scene

20

Chapter 4: Conclusion

21

Appendices

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Appendix A

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Appendix B

23

Appendix C

23

References

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Chapter 1: Introduction

1.1 General Background (Framework):

Ask any random person on the streets if he had watched the film 12 Years a Slave and more
often than not, he will express his appreciation for the moving, heart-wrenching movie. Ask
the same man if he has ever heard of Solomon Northups Odyssey, and he will express his
confusion about the mysterious, uncelebrated film.

Peoples reactions towards these two films are entirely predictable due to their nature. The
average man would have heard of Hollywoods internationally acclaimed 12 Years a Slave,
the film having won Best Picture at the Oscars, Best Motion Picture Drama at the Golden
Globe Awards to name a few, as well as earning raving reviews from critics all over the
world, even being labelled by some as the definitive slavery film. But while 12 Years a
Slave was the first time a slave narrative has been made into a feature film (Gates, 2014),
it certainly was not the first time a slave narrative been made into a film. American
Playhouses TV film Solomon Northups Odyssey was released 28 years previously, but still

languishes in relative anonymity, since with limited funding, and predating social media, the
film came and went with little fanfare (Gabriel, 2013, para. 7).

Despite their vastly different popularity and accolades, however, both films are in fact based
on the same enthralling, poignant memoir by Solomon Northup in 1853, titled Twelve Years
a Slave the exact same life story, told 28 years apart by directors Gordon Parks in 1984
and Steve McQueen in 2012. It is these differing portrayals of the life story of Solomon
Northup and slavery as a whole, which requires our fullest attention.

1.2 Rationale:
In the plethora of glowing reviews of 12 Years a Slave as an accurate, powerful portrayal of
slavery, there was very little allusion to Solomon Northups Odyssey. Hence this research
aims to show that 12 Years a Slave should be watched in tandem with Solomon Northups
Odyssey in order to gain greater insight into the nature of slavery, rather than being
presented with an incomplete picture of slavery by simply watching 12 Years a Slave in
isolation.

1.3 Research Questions:

How does the portrayal of the slaves sufferings differ in the two films?
o

What do they tell us about slavery?

How has the social and historical context in which each film was directed affected the
directors portrayal of the slaves sufferings?
How has a more complete/accurate picture of slavery been painted as a result of
these differing portrayals?

1.4 Thesis Statement:

The differing portrayals of the slaves sufferings in Solomon Northups Odyssey and 12
Years a Slave, which have been empowered by the change in the social and historical
context, have allowed for the overall picture of slavery painted by the two films to be more
complete.

1.5 Methodology:
The differing portrayals of the slaves sufferings are largely due to the inclusion, exclusion, or
alteration of certain events from Solomon Northups original memoir. Within the differing
portrayals of these events, the structuralist film theory will be used to analyse exactly how
they differ, be it through the use of different technical codes such as different camera angles
or shot sizes, and the effect of this difference.

New Historicism will be used to scaffold the historical and social context of the two films. The
different historical and social background of the two films will have forced the directors to
portray the slaves differently, and hence send a different message not only about Solomon
Northups story, but also slavery as a whole. Hence it is important to analyse how the
directors different social circumstances had affected their crafting of Solomon Northups
story.

1.6 Scope of Research / Delimitation(s):

The analysis of the slaves sufferings will be limited to two characters in the movie, namely
Solomon Northup himself, as well as the female protagonist, Jenny (in Solomon Northups
Odyssey) or Patsey (in 12 Years a Slave). They are the characters with the most screen
time, and they bear the brunt of their masters ill-treatment and violence. Hence their
suffering is the greatest amongst the characters.

1.7 Significance of Research / Usefulness:

Considering that slavery was, and still is, an inextricable part of humanity that remains as a
source of conflict in society today, a more complete and rounded picture of slavery will allow
us to better understand the nature of the practice that has plagued humanity for centuries,
and why it remains such a controversial issue today.

Furthermore, given the power of films in shaping societal mindsets in the 21 st century, it is
imperative that people are presented with a more holistic picture of slavery from both films,
rather than a one-sided, incomplete one from watching a single film. Hence this research will
aim to do just that.

1.8 Limitation(s):
Slavery as a whole is far too broad and complex an issue to completely encapsulate in two
movies, much less one. It has existed since the beginning of civilisation and has withstood
the vicissitudes of time to remain as an inexorable part of humanity. Hence, while it
impossible for the two aforementioned films to portray the entire picture of slavery, they are
still able to offer us greater insight into slavery through the telling of Solomon Northups
gripping life story, for us to form our own opinion and impression of slavery.

Chapter 2: Literature Review

2.1 Theoretical Frameworks Used

In this paper, New Historicism will be used as a theoretical scaffold. New Historicism tells us
that all our representations of the world and of the past are informed by our own historical
position (Newton, 1988, p.88), and hence films, as a literary work, should be studied against
its social and historical circumstances (Veeser, 1989; Murfin & Ray, 1998) in order to judge
the film properly and gauge its value (Santas, 2001, p.112). Since the two films Solomon
Northups Odyssey and 12 Years a Slave were released in different timeframes, it is

important to analyse how their different historical and social circumstances have impacted
the directors portrayal of Solomon Northups life story.

As mentioned previously, the differing portrayals of Northups story are largely due to the
inclusion, exclusion or alteration of certain events from his original memoir Twelve Years a
Slave. In order to aid the analysis of the differing narratives and plot in each film, the
structuralist film theory will be used in order to understand the means of producing meaning
in film by certain filmic operations (Gidal, 1976) since films convey meaning and messages
to the audience through codes and conventions (Benyahia & Mortimer, 2013).

The significance of cinematic operations is not lost on McQueen. His first two films, Hunger
(2008) and Shame (2011) marked his rise in world cinema due to his style of focusing on
individual characters in long takes, and alternating close-ups of their faces with interactions
with their environment (Kellner, 2014, p. 21). With such a reputation, it is even more
essential that the structuralist film theory is employed to analyse McQueens use of such
codes and conventions in 12 Years. This theory will be especially significant in the analysis
of certain events from Twelve Years a Slave that are depicted in both films, since the
different filmic operations and technical codes employed by different directors will help to
convey different meaning.

2.2 Historical background of Solomon Northups Odyssey

Apart from the obvious similarity in the source of content between the original memoir
Twelve Years a Slave published in 1854 by Solomon Northup himself and its first film
adaptation Solomon Northups Odyssey, the circumstances of the time period in which they
were released also appear to be parallels.

Twelve Years a Slave was published eight years before the start of the American Civil War
at the height of the abolitionist movement (Williams, 2014, para. 22). At the time of its
publication, it was marketed as Another Key to Uncle Toms Cabin, as it inadvertently lent
factual support to the events in Harriet Beecher Stowes bestseller of the nineteenth century
Uncle Toms Cabin that helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War (Kaufman, 2006, p.18).
Similarly, Solomon Northups Odyssey was also released in precarious circumstances, just a
few years after the turbulent Civil Rights era of the 1970s, during which occurred a radical
departure from the deeply entrenched myths concerning the American nineteenth century
(Chadwick, 2001, p.6), and right after the fractious debate over making Martin Luther King
Jr.s birthday a holiday (Ebiri, 2013, para. 3).

A key difference between the two, however, lies in the nature of their content. Despite their
congruous tumultuous circumstances at the time of their release, Solomon Northup was able
to offer an honest, unadulterated, and according to Pulitzer Prize winner James M.
McPherson, the best firsthand account of slavery in his memoir, whereas Odyssey could
only present a watered-down, undercooked, muted account of Solomon Northups
extraordinary tale of survival (Ebiri, 2013; Williams, 2014; Kangalee, 2014).

The main reason for this disparity lies in the fact that the portrayal of slavery in film at that
time was not as transparent and awakened as it is today. American society was still reeling
from decades of films grossly romanticising and glorifying slavery. Most notably amongst
them was D. W. Griffiths The Birth of a Nation in 1915 (the first film to be screened in the
White House), a celebration of white supremacy as a necessary bulwark against societal
disintegration (Van Deburg, 1993, p.21) featuring happy black slaves who turn savage
without the supervision of their white masters. The zenith of slavery epics Gone with the
Wind in 1939 an impressive label, especially since the 1930s was a decade full of slavery
films such as Dixiana, Mississippi, So Red the Rose and Jezebel (Campbell, 1993, p.1)
refrained from the malicious racism present in The Birth of a Nation, yet it still undeniably

over-romanticised the lives of those in slavery. Other films which painted a distorted image of
slavery, though to a lesser extent than the aforementioned two films, include Song of the
South in 1946, one of Hollywoods most resiliently offensive racist texts (Sperb, 2012),
Band of Angels in 1957, which encouraged the belief that blacks would accept enslavement
if whites were more benign (Killens, 1965; Van Deburg, 1993).

Yet, coinciding with the end of the Civil Rights movement, American society was gradually
ushered into a new age of slavery narratives in film. Desegregation in the US meant that
there was greater equality between blacks and whites, such that black actors [had] more
and better roles in films (Chadwick, 2001, p.263), as exemplified by the emergence of
blaxploitation films (a portmanteau of the words black and exploitation) such as The
Legend of Nigger Charlie in 1972 and Mandingo in 1975.

Widely regarded to be at the forefront, leading the charge in changing the coverage in
popular culture of the issue of slavery in America, was the television miniseries Roots in
1977 which was an adaptation of Alex Haleys novel Roots: The Saga of an American
Family. Not only did it receive thirty-seven Emmy Award nominations, but the fact that it was
reportedly watched in eighty-five percent of all American homes meant that Roots was the
groundbreaking catalyst of the American publics first uninhibited look at its peculiar
institution, exposing all the myths about slavery fed to the public since the era of Civil War
films (Bogle, 1988; Van Deburg, 1993; Gabriel, 2013; Thibodeaux, 2013; Zubek, 2013).

However, as then-executive of American Broadcasting Company (ABC) Brandon Stoddard

said, The question is, will we reach a white audience because there has never, never been
a successful black drama series. (as cited in Chadwick, 2001, p. 268). This essentially
implies that the biggest consideration of filmmakers at that time was to meet the pressing
need to make slavery narratives palatable for white audiences. For Roots, this was done by
adding as many small roles as possible to be filled by whites, or by mainly featuring white

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actors while promoting Roots, for the fear of the programme being a turnoff (Tucker &
Shah, 1992, p. 328). For all of its accolades, Roots was still one of the first fish in the new
pond, and had to adopt a cautious approach towards its slavery narrative.

What do all of these mean for Gordon Parks depiction of Solomon Northups heartwrenching story? The uncertain aftershocks of the Civil Rights movement (in which Parks
himself actively participated; Malcolm X, a prominent figure in the movement, was even
named the godfather of one of Parks children) where people had to make adjustments in
their value system, in conjunction with American society taking its first few nascent steps
towards a new era of contemporary, candid portrayal of slavery narratives, forced Parks to
dilute Northups story in Odyssey. Much unlike Roots, whose violence was tempered with
well-crafted and nuanced character development to evoke pathos and profound emotion
(Zubek, 2013), Northups narrative was brutal, repulsive and shocking. Such a narrative
would have been greatly unsuitable for its time, and would not have appealed to the white
community, a major concern for filmmakers then (as explored previously). As Parks himself
aptly puts it in an interview in 19851:

So little is [sic] said about slavery 'Roots' was the first major attempt to let the world
become aware of what happened to these people, but I think slavery's been very much
underexposed I wanted to make it bearable for people to look at...To minimize the violence
in it, if I could, and still tell the truth.

2.3 Historical background of 12 Years a Slave

Twenty-eight years on, the landscape of slavery narratives in film has been greatly altered.
With slavery films proving that they are increasingly capable of attracting large audiences
especially with Lincoln and Django Unchained, both released in 2012, winning multiple
1 TV Film by Parks Looks at Slavery. (Feb 11, 1985) TheNew York Times, p. 16-7.

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awards and grossing more than $275 million USD and $425 million USD worldwide
respectively director Steve McQueen was given an opportunity to tell Northups story as it
is, without the additional pressure of toning it down in order to attract and appease a white
audience that Parks was previously under.

As Stevenson (2014) puts it, 12 Years a Slaves [portrayal of the black slave life and
slavery] is successful today in part because of the pioneering filmmakers of previous
generations, who have taken on the black historical experience in both innovative and
enlightening fashion. (para. 8). She believes 12 Years is merely a combination of the
individual elements of slavery the tormented sex slave, the sadistic slave master, and the
jealous, cruel slave mistress that were previously portrayed in films such as Amistad in
1997, Beloved in 1998, The Courage to Love in 2000 and of course, Roots in 1977. Such
elements of slavery films that appeared in 12 Years would hence not be foreign to the
audience and would be less likely to elicit antipathy.

However, even though these pioneering filmmakers appeared to have enabled McQueen to
translate Northups story on screen candidly, 12 Years actually minimizes the depiction of
violence... there is a lot more violence in Solomon Northups slave narrative than there is in
McQueens film (Gates, 2013). Chiwetel Ejiofor, who portrays Solomon Northup in 12 Years,
explains that there were things in the book that we really couldn't translate on to screen,
because we couldn't do it in all conscience you couldn't put people through some of those
things.2 As such, despite that the landscape of slavery movies has changed drastically since
the days of Odyssey, it is still deemed insufficient for a completely transparent depiction of
the barbarity of slavery.

Chapter 3: Discussion, Interpretation & Analysis

2 Interview with Chiwetel Ejiofor http://news.sky.com/story/1189684/mcqueen-slamshollywood-for-ignoring-slavery
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This chapter shall analyse and compare certain key scenes and motifs in the two films, 12
Years a Slave and Solomon Northups Odyssey. Screencaps of the scenes can be found in
the appendices.

3.1 Whipping of Patsey / Jenny

The brutal, violent whipping of Patsey in the climactic scene of 12 Years a Slave is arguably
the most repulsive and disconcerting few minutes in the entire movie, especially since it is a
culmination of Northups dehumanisation as well as Patseys endless sufferings at the hands
of Epps. Epps, in a fit of jealous anger, forces Northup at gunpoint to strike Patsey, and
ultimately takes the whip himself. As if Patseys horrific screams were not enough, McQueen
also presents the audience a truly harrowing glimpse of the raw, red gashes scattered all
over her back, such that strips of flesh can literally be seen tearing itself out each time the
whip cracks.
McQueens camerawork here truly makes this scene stand out. The entire scene, lasting
nearly five whole minutes, is filmed in one long take, and offers the audience several closeups of Northups silent anguish, Patseys excruciating agony, as well as Epps demonic
insanity. One angle in particular effectively emphasises the grimness of this scene that of
the close-up of Patsey being whipped by Northup in the background almost forcing the
audience to stare directly into Patseys pain-filled eyes. McQueens unflinching camera
subconsciously draws the audience deeper into the scene, almost as if they were physically
present. There are no edits and no cuts, nothing to remind the audience that they are merely
watching a film, nothing to comfort the audience that this is only a work of Hollywood,
nothing to allow the audience to escape from the atrocity in this scene. This is the result of
McQueens camera, making this climactic scene so realistic that the audience simply cannot
look away from the cold, hard truth of slavery presented.

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Parks version of this whipping scene in Solomon Northups Odyssey, however, could not
have been more different. The sequence of events barely lasts a minute, and features
Mistress Epps, instead of Master Epps, ordering Northup to whip Jenny. Unwilling to bear
witness to the cruel whipping, she tells Northup to whip Jenny in the woodshed, allowing
Northup to simply pretend to whip her, while she plays along by faking screams of pain.
There is no stunning camerawork here all of these are simply filmed in a medium long
shot. Furthermore, while Jenny brags about her deceit to Epps in the following scene, the
audience is treated to a disturbing close-up of the patchwork of long, deep gashes on
Patseys back as she is being tended to in 12 Years a Slave. The contrast is stark.
These two vastly differing portrayals of the same whipping scene paint two different pictures
of slavery. The message from McQueen is clear: slavery is brutal, inhumane, horrific, and
there is no hiding from that stark truth. The message from Parks however, is a lot softer. Not
only was he able to tone down the violence in his film as required, but more importantly, he
also demonstrates how slaves sometimes outsmart, outwit and deceive their masters. They
too, are humans, capable of thinking and trickery: they are not merely vessels of their
masters wrath, not merely bodies for whipping. By showing the audience this commonly
overlooked aspect of slaves, Parks was less heavy-handed in creating the suffering of
slavery, and painted a more favourable image of the slaves rather than the oppressive image
obtained from McQueen.
3.2 Portrayal of the Slave Masters

3.2.1 Master William Ford

The portrayal of Master Ford is much longer, more nuanced and a lot softer in Odyssey than
in 12 Years. This is largely because Parks places a larger focus on Master Fords
relationship with Northup as compared to McQueen. In Odyssey, Northup is an
indispensable slave to Master Ford due to his contributions in increasing the efficiency of the

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transport line in the plantation, and it was only due to financial problems that Ford had to
reluctantly sell him away. While Parks dedicates a long scene to illustrate Fords financial
difficulties and his resultant dilemma to sell Northup, Fords portrayal in 12 Years was
minimal, and his decision to sell Northup is largely driven by self-interest. His wish is to get
rid of the trouble and danger Northup brings to his plantation, for Ford does not believe that
[Northup] will remain passive if Tibeats attacks. Even while Northup is on the brink of
death, not only does Ford not offer any words of care and concern, he also manhandles
Northup, grabbing him by the collar. Furthermore, his anxious, brisk tone of speaking also
suggests that he wants Northup away from his plantation as soon as possible.
What Parks portrayal of Ford does is that it humanises the slave master and makes him
more relatable to the audience. We can easily understand and even sympathise with Ford
for selling Northup away because financial difficulties left him with no other option. It is much
more difficult for us to identify with Fords greed in 12 Years by selling Northup away simply
in order to make his own life easier. Hence, Ford in Odyssey appears to be good hearted,
more benign and generally kinder towards his slaves as compared to his portrayal in 12
Years, which appears to be more concerned with self-preservation.

3.2.2 Master Edwin Epps / Mistress Mary Epps

Master Epps character is perhaps portrayed the most differently in the two films. While he is
said to pride himself on being a nigger breaker in 12 Years, his violent tendency is virtually
non-existent in Odyssey, as witnessed in the whipping scene (chapter 3.1). Indeed, in
Odyssey, Epps intentionally shies away from any form of violence, refusing to whip Jenny
when ordered to by his wife due to his love for Jenny.

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Other scenes further exemplify this difference, such as Epps repeated raping of Patsey in
12 Years, which drives her to beg Northup to kill her in order to free her from her misery.
Their relationship, on the other hand, appears consensual in Odyssey, as Jenny decides to
do anything [she] needs to in order to survive. Dancing and parties are also key aspects in
both films. In 12 Years, they are merely another means of abuse for Epps as he forces the
slaves to wake up in the middle of the night to dance for his own amusement. In Odyssey,
Epps remarkably holds a party and celebrates the birth of his new child with all his slaves.
As if to make up for Master Epps lack of violence in Odyssey, Mistress Epps takes up the
role of the evil slave mistress. But even so, her wickedness is considerably muted due to the
need to make the film palatable for white audiences.

This is achieved in two ways. Firstly, Mistress Epps character is a lot more fleshed out, as
there is a progression of her jealousy and hatred towards Jenny. Initially, she seems capable
of silently enduring her husbands constant craving for Jennys company. However, this
reaches a breaking point when he persists even after Mistress Epps bears him a child,
culminating in his refusal of her request to whip Jenny. This draws the audiences sympathy
rather than ire, because her wickedness does not appear innate. It is shown to stem from
her jealousy and righteous indignation, emotions that the audience can easily relate to.

On the second level, despite the fact that Mistress Epps is the one that orders Jenny to be
whipped, she is still shown to be soft-hearted when she turns away and runs from the scene,
unable to bear the fake-screams of Jenny. This is stark contrast to the cold demeanour of
Mistress Epps in 12 Years, who stares unflinchingly at the whipping and even encourages
her husband to whip Patsey harder.

Undoubtedly restrained by its social circumstances, Odyssey provides us with a completely

different perspective of Master and Mistress Epps. Master Epps is not the fearsome, sadistic

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and vicious master as described in the original memoir and as portrayed in 12 Years.
Rather, he is shown to be quite moderate, with no hints at violence whatsoever, and almost
pleasant to his slaves. Mistress Epps too, appears much more innocent and piteous in
Odyssey because we are able to easily identify with her emotions and actions as compared
to her unfeeling and hostile depiction in 12 Years.

3.2.4 Further Discussion

These different portrayals of the slave masters tell us that there are not just the sadistic,
violent and selfish slave masters as portrayed in 12 Years, but, seemingly incongruous to the
very nature of slavery, there are also the kind, docile, good-hearted slave masters as
depicted in Odyssey.

But what we are also shown is that no matter how no matter how nice these slave masters
appear, or rather, no matter how non-violent they are, they still unwittingly perpetuate the
unjust practice of slavery. Master Ford, for all his goodwill, ultimately sells Northup and
condemns him to the hateful Master Epps. In Odyssey, Master and Mistress Epps, despite
their evidently moderate behaviour, effectively sustains the slaves suffering by the virtue of
keeping them against their own will. Hence in this sense, even though some slave masters
appear to be good-hearted, there can never really be a good slave master.

3.3 Individual vs. Community

Perhaps the greatest difference between the two films is that while 12 Years focuses on
Northups individual struggle through slavery, Odyssey offers greater insight into the slaves
community.

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Instead of depicting the immense workload the slaves are put through every day, Odyssey
features many scenes of Northups interaction with other slaves in the community, such as
other slaves helping Northup acclimatise to his new life in slavery, telling jokes and laughing
together, and even Northup making out with Jenny. The strong communal bond between the
slaves is especially prominent when Noah, an old slave, chastises Northup for breaking
solidarity amongst the slaves by starting a fight over a broken bed frame. This emphasis on
the community is barely present in 12 Years, whose only scene featuring Northups
interaction with the community is one where he berates a fellow slave for giving up on life too
easily.
The differing focus on the individual and the community is further brought about through the
different portrayals of the white saviour narrative and of the ending scene.

3.3.1 White Saviour Narrative

The presence of a white saviour narrative has always been a common criticism of slavery
films, as it insinuates that people of colour have no ability to rescue themselves (Sirota,
2013). Though there is no escape from the fact the Northup was indeed rescued by a white
man, the bone of contention is in determining how strongly the white saviour narrative
appears in the two films.
Surprisingly, the portrayal of the white saviour Samuel Bass is rather similar in both films.
Bass expresses his disdain for slavery to Epps, rather straightforwardly in McQueens film,
while does so in a taunting manner in Parks film. He readily agrees to help Northup mail his
letter, though after a slight but inconsequential moment of hesitation in McQueens edition.
Both directors film Northups interaction with Bass from a high angle, showing how Northup
is, literally, beneath Bass and at his mercy. The only significant difference in the two
portrayals of Bass is the amount of screen time he has, that being far greater in 12 Years a
Slave.

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The difference in screen time, however, is due to McQueens brilliant job in telling us
Northups story solely from his perspective. The audience stays with Northup all the way, and
learns about things as he does, with no knowledge whatsoever about the outside world. In
contrast, Parks chooses to film six scenes back in New York featuring Northups family and
Henry, a white lawyer as well as a family friend whom Anne, Northups wife, seeks for help.
These six scenes offset the difference in Bass screen time, and not only convey to the
audience how Northups family copes with his absence, but also Henrys numerous attempts
to help Northup.
As a result of Parks interlacing Northups story with scenes from back home, the white
saviour narrative is, understandably, stronger than that in McQueens film, since more focus
is placed on the success of the white saviours Henry success in finding Northup, rather
than Northups struggle. Furthermore, by taking the audience away from Northup to his
family, the catharsis of the familys reunion at the end of the film is greatly weaker as
compared to 12 Years a Slave, in which the audience experiences Northups hard life all the
way, with no recourse or respite in knowing that there is another strand in his family narrative
that is providing hope.
This, however, does not imply that Solomon Northups Odyssey does not have any value.
On the contrary, Parks film shows the audience the profound impacts of slavery. Slavery
does not only affect the slave, but also greatly affects the family. Annes anxiety in being
unable to locate her husband, her loneliness that stares out of the window every day, her
desperation to suggest searching the entire country for him, and finally, her sense of
resignation when she gives up on any hope of finding Northup ever again and chooses to
find another husband instead: all of these can be acutely felt by the audience, and cannot be
detected in McQueens film whatsoever.
While Solomon Northups Odyssey demonstrates the familys tussle with slavery, 12 Years a
Slave draws our attention to Northups grapple with slavery through his long, persistent

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struggle to send a letter home. The audience witnesses his desperation to live, not just
survive, his ingenuity in using the dark juice of blackberries as ink, senses his bitter
disappointment after being betrayed by a certain Armsby (a scene not included in Solomon
Northups Odyssey), and experiences his overpowering sense of fear in a near-death
situation after Epps finds out about his escape plan. His endurance and struggles are a
testimony to slaves defiance, which we as the audience cannot help but admire.

3.3.2 Ending Scene

The difference in the ending scenes of the two films, where Northups 12 years of slavery
comes to an end, also sends different messages regarding slavery. In 12 Years, McQueens
camera stays on Northup all the way to the end, we see his very brief farewell to the other
slaves from his perspective. As his carriage leaves the plantation, Northup is placed in the
foreground, while the plantation, along with all the other slaves, quickly fades into the
background. This is Northups moment of salvation: this is the result of his 12 years of
struggles and suffering. He staggers towards the carriage as if weak with happiness,
answers Epps questions mechanically and pushes his way through as if fully consumed by
the thought of freedom, and cries as he hugs his saviour. His palpable desire and relief to
escape slavery and be as far away from the plantation as possible emphasise what we
already know: that slavery is abhorrent and harrowing.
In Odyssey, however, not only do we get close-ups of the other slaves as they watch
Northup leave, tears flowing silently down their cheeks, we also see his carriage move
slowly away from perspective of the slaves who are stuck behind at the plantation. Northup
also appears in no hurry to leave, telling everyone I wish I could take everybody. More
blatantly, he is directly told by a slave You tell somebody about us! You tell them to send
help!

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While we get a rather one-sided catharsis of Northup escaping slavery in 12 Years, providing
a fitting end to his incredible story, Odyssey reminds us that while Northups tragedy is over,
he leaves the rest of the slaves behind, shackled by the chains of slavery, unable to escape.
They will survive, but unlike Northup, they will not live. There is no victory in one mans
freedom amongst millions of others enslavement.

Chapter 4: Conclusion
It would be easy to disregard Solomon Northups Odyssey as a diluted portrayal of Solomon
Northups life story, especially when compared with the unadulterated honesty of 12 Years a
Slave. One might question how a slavery film with so little violence can possibly be accurate,
yet that is exactly what Gordon Parks, under the social circumstances of the 1980s, has
done. He has painted a picture of slavery so different from the brutal and repulsive one we
expect and are so often given one where slaves are capable of outsmarting their masters,
one where the slave masters are good-hearted and not sadistically evil, and one where the
strength of the community comes above all else.
Neither one of these films provide a more accurate depiction of slavery than the other, even
though their portrayal of slavery are vastly different. Only by watching them in tandem, can
we ensure that the significance of Odyssey is not lost amidst the hype surrounding 12 Years,
and enable us to get a fuller picture of Northups experience in slavery.
Even then, we might not be close to fully understanding the institution of slavery that has
plagued our world for centuries.

21

Appendices
Appendix A: Whipping scene
12 Years a Slave:

22

Solomon Northups Odyssey:

Appendix B: Individual vs. Community

Solomon Northups Odyssey:

23

Appendix C: Ending Scene

12 Years a Slave:

Solomon Northups Odyssey:

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Films

McQueen, S. (Director). (2013) 12 Years a Slave [Motion Picture] USA: Fox Searchlight
Pictures
Parks, G. (Director). (1984) Solomon Northups Odyssey [Motion Picture] USA: Public
Broadcasting Service

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