In the book Beloved, Toni Morrison uses the character Mr. Garner to convey the different forms of slave owners. Although some seem that they are more considerate than others, they are all are still slave owners, and they are all cruel. Mr. Garner is a very insecure man with a lot of power. As a result of his insecurity, he feels that he has to prove his intelligence by the misuse of superiority. He proves his superiority by making the slaves feel that he is the superior to them. Due to Mr. Garner's insecurity, he makes his slaves believe that he is the most powerful man, and that they can not survive with out him. Mr. Garner compensates for his insecurities about his manliness by treating his slaves less than men.

Garner tries to convince everyone in the town, including himself, that he has the most valued slaves because he is the one who raised them. When he is in town, talking to some other slave owners he brags about how, "y'all got boys...Now at sweet home, my niggers is men every one of 'em. Bought 'em that away, raised 'em thataway. Men every one". To make up for his insecurities, he has to go around proving to everyone that he is the best at what he does, and that is why his sla

Garner is so insecure about his power, his tries to make his slaves like him. In abnormal ways, he tries to make his slaves think that his is looking out for them. He attempts to keep them happy so they do not rebel against him because he is lacking confidence about his own authority. Some say, "Mr. Garner acted like the world was a toy he was supposed to have fun with". But, I believe he is afraid of how the world works. He wants to make sure that he has an impact on his slaves' "world". That is why he is so controlling. An example of this is allowing Halle to work extra hours on the weekend to make money for the release of his mother. He is making a statement about his superiority and that he is the good man for allowing him to do this extra work. He is trying to make Halle to feel that he has a debt of gratitude, and then Halle might not question his authority. If Garner wanted to release Baby Suggs, he could of, he did not have to have Halle do the extra work. If he would have just let her go, that would not have been able to re-emphasize his authority and power. In every interaction with his slaves, he has to have some sort of power. Garner wants his slaves to feel that they could not survive with out him. He is being a real man for setting her free of slavery, but he is still proving his superiority and insecurity of power.

The difference between Mr. Garner and the other salve owners is that, they can see that there is a difference between their slave, and them as a slave owner. Mr. Garner has to make sure that he is the superior man in every interaction because he has to fulfill his insecurities about power and his manliness. The others don't feel that they have any thing to prove. He believes that his slaves are not niggers, but that they are men. But in doing his actions he is making them less of a man, and making himself more of a man.

Garner is showing these reactions because he does not feel that he is the superior in his relationships. He has to over emphasize his power so he receives the respect that he wants. Others questioned Mr. Garner leadership abilities. When Halle is comparing the new slave master to Mr

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Approximate Word count = 1445
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)