April 27, 1856
Dear Tyree,
How are you and everyone else? I hope you are alright especially with what happened around the time I left you and your family. I have never fully expressed the happiness I have experienced after being freed and spending time with your family, especially you. All my life, I have been mentally and physically tortured because of my status of being a slave. Tyree…you and the others have made me go through many upbeat feelings that I thought I would never get to feel while being Pryor’s. I appreciate everyone’s help.
Because of you and your family, I have been able to start my new life in New York with Mattie and Etta. Etta is getting better at playing the piano everyday and Mattie is getting better at writing. Now, I feel like an actual family with my children. They have learned so much, thanks to your help. All we’re missing is Bennie and a father figure. I want that father figure to be you. The time we spent together has been very memorable and I will cherish them. I hope the problems in your family get solved and you will come and live with us. I know I sound selfish and greedy, but throughout my life, I have never found someone like you. You can make me open up and express myself in different ways, the person I have kept locked up in my heart to protect myself.
As of right now, I am trying to come up with a plan to get Bennie back. He’s probably sleeping or playing near that cruel woman! Ugh, just the thought of Pryor’s wife disgusts me. I’m just scared that she has sold my baby to some other demented person who would use him as a slave. He’s only five and I don’t want him to suffer the horrific things that I went through as a slave.
I know it’s a lot to ask of you since you’re still probably upset with the death of your father, but can you help me this last time? I need you to help me get to Virginia. My plan is to bring Etta and Mattie to live with your family for a while until I can get Bennie back. It really hurts me knowing that he is somewhere else with someone I despise.
I can’t thank you enough for helping me since the moment my children and I were freed. You took care of us like one of your own, giving me gifts and money to start a new life. With the money you gave me, I hope I can get Bennie back. Once I start working, I hope I can earn enough to come and visit everyone once in a while and repay you.
I hope you get this letter soon because I want to see you again. Plus, these few months are the best time to travel to Virginia. I miss you as a friend and lover. Hopefully, you can reply back and tell me how everything is going with everyone.
Sincerely,
Mercer Gray
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4 comments:
This is really good Louise. It brings out your creative side becasue you used your imagination to touch uopon everything Mercer would most likely need to talk to Tyree about. The idea about bringing the kids back to live with his family and how you had Mercer say it straight up was a little too staright foward to me though beacaue you already know the hardships his family is going through. Other then the way you worded that one part , it was a great letter ! :)
This letter to Tyree from Mercer was very well written. You used past relationships between the two characters and really expanded and elaborated to almost make a potential entirely new story in itself. You were very creative in your approach. Your letter also came across to be somewhat life-like, even without the addition of vernacular. You added little details like," Plus, these few months are the best time to travel to Virginia. I miss you as a friend and lover." These little things help make the assignment less mechanical and more realistic. Good job!
Louise, I think you did a nice job imagining a new life for Mercer after the end of Cary's novel. I agree with Gabrielle that the voice you give Mercer here might be "a little to straight forward." She seems more demanding here in her relationship with Tyree than she was in the novel. I think you were right to stress how important it would be for Mercer to get Bennie back at all costs, but I wonder if she would really have been as 'to the point' with Tyree as she is here. Adding in the part about it being a good time of the year to travel to Virginia makes it sound to me like she's using him in a way.
excellent job creating mercers view point and opinions of the events in the story. i agree with lawson that you used the past relationships to almost make a new story. it is clear that u really thought about this piece and didnt just rush through it. over all a great job and interesting piece
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