He says, “This is not the slavery of fifty or even ten years ago. Newell suddenly and persistently assures Victor of their standards. When discussing the working conditions of the slaves in the cotton factories, Mr. Newell’s interactions with Victor contain an important nuance. But aside from blatant disrespect and “classic” racism, Mr. He is a prop to Martha, as all other slaves are considered in the “Hard Four”, the states that, in this alternate timeline, still practice institutionalized slavery. Newell, assuming Victor is a servant to Martha, treats Victor as barely visible. Newell is drastically different from his interactions with Martha throughout the novel. For example, Victor’s interaction with the white character Mr. The benefit of whiteness is demonstrated with nuance. What is vital to take away from Winters’ novel is that while not all of his white characters are plainly racist or plainly guilty in a “white” way, all white characters within the novel benefit socially and politically from their white status. Winters expertly addresses this issue through an array of interactions with different types of white characters. The issue of white guilt and privilege is recurring throughout Underground Airlines, and no white character is free from its influence, although many are unaware.
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