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Wolf by the Ears by Ann Rinaldi
New York: Scholastic, 1991

     Was Thomas Jefferson the father of several mulatto children by his slave Sally Hemings?  Ann Rinaldi is convinced that he was, and her novel Wolf by the Ears explores the life of one of those children, Harriet Hemings.  Unfortunately, while the story is based upon considerable research and contains much truth, it fails to give the reader a realistic look at slavery.  Few slaves could claim Thomas Jefferson as their father, nor were they granted their freedom when they reached twenty-one as is the case with our heroine.  Most slaves toiled under working conditions much worse than what is described in this novel.
     Harriet is very light-skinned, and can pass as a white.  In order to gain her freedom, she is faced with the dilemma of rejecting her identity and even her family in order to enjoy the full fruits of freedom as a well-bred, white woman.  Interesting enough, when I first read that Harriet's brother Tom had "passed," I assumed Rinaldi meant that he had died.  Instead, she meant that he had successfully passed as a white person.  In a sense, my initial understanding was correct in that the decision to pass as a white meant the death of one's identity as a black person.   
     While the portrayal of slavery is atypical, the book does address a number of important issues related to slavery.  Rinaldi includes examples of the unequal justice afforded black slaves.  She describes the lack of access to a good education.  Thomas Jefferson cannot (or will not) permit his mulatto son to attend the University of Virginia, even though he is the school's founder.  She discusses the national crisis precipitated by the admission of Missouri to the United States as a free state.  Rinaldi describes the bank panic of 1819 and the general economic downturn that occurred at about the same time.  She also cites Virginia law requiring freed slaves to leave Virginia.

Comment
     The book is set in 1819 and 1820, long after Jefferson had completed his presidency.  It contains very little information regarding his presidency, the Declaration of Independence or his other contributions to the founding of our nation.  The controversy regarding whether or not Jefferson fathered several children by Sally Hemings continues to this day.  There is a web site featuring information about Jefferson's plantation at Monticello that provides a detailed description of the evidence supporting the Jefferson-Hemings liaison.  The site can be accessed at:  http://www.monticello.org/plantation/hemings-jefferson_contro.html (accessed July 3, 2002)

Reading Level:  4.3
Interest Level:  7-12
252 pages

Supports the Following Instructional Objectives:

Analyze the Way in which the Issue of Slavery Influenced the Population and Economy of the United States

Excerpt

     "I hold Mister Jefferson in the highest esteem.  But do you think he is living the truth?"
     I was struck speechless.
     "He hates slavery and keeps slaves."
     "He says slavery is a wolf America holds by the ears," I told him then, "and America can no longer hold onto it.  And cannot let it go."
     He sighed.  "Ah, yes, I sense how torn he is by it.  His slaves are the best cared for I have seen.  But he has made compromises.  As must we all.  And oftimes that means lying. (page 168)

Picture of John Adams used with permission from the White House web site at http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/tj3.html
Accessed July 3, 2002.

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