Youma by Lafcadio Hearn
**Overview of "Youma" by Lafcadio Hearn**
"Youma" is a poignant narrative set in the 1840s on the Caribbean island of Martinique, exploring the complexities of slave life during a time of social and political upheaval. The story centers around Youma, a young, privileged household slave who serves as a companion to her owner's daughter, Aimee. Despite her close relationship with the family and her remarkable qualities—beauty, intelligence, and integrity—Youma remains ensnared in the harsh realities of slavery. When Aimee marries and later dies, Youma vows to care for Aimee's infant daughter, Mayotte, which positions her in a nurturing role that garners respect from the household staff.
The narrative captures the cultural vibrancy of the time, depicting the lush landscapes of Martinique and the rich traditions, such as voodoo practices and music, that characterize the lives of the enslaved. However, Youma's life takes a tragic turn when societal and racial tensions culminate in a local slave uprising. Faced with the danger of the uprising, Youma ultimately makes the heartbreaking choice to protect Mayotte over her own safety, sacrificing her life just as news arrives of emancipation for Martinique's slaves. "Youma" serves as a powerful reflection on the intersection of race, freedom, and sacrifice, highlighting the profound struggles endured by individuals caught between conflicting worlds.
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Subject Terms
Youma by Lafcadio Hearn
First published: 1890
The Work
Youma: The Story of a West-Indian Slave portrays slave life on the Caribbean island of Martinique in the 1840’s. In 1848, when the Republican government took power in France, rumors of emancipation and liberty for French colonial slaves swept across the island, creating fear and uncertainty among slave owners and desperate hope among the French slaves. Youma, a beautiful privileged young household slave, is caught in the fierce conflict when slaves and slave owners confront the issue.
Youma has grown up in the luxurious townhome of a wealthy merchant’s family. She has been the trusted childhood companion to Aimee, her owner’s daughter. In this position Youma is almost a daughter of the house, but also is clearly a slave. Her serious, intelligent mind, integrity of character, and beauty set her apart from other slaves but do not earn for her her freedom. She is compared in beauty, grace, and wisdom to the Queen of Sheba. When Aimee marries a wealthy plantation owner, Youma is sent to her young mistress as a nursemaid.
Upon Aimee’s sudden death, Youma promises to care for her young mistress’ infant daughter, Mayotte. As the substitute mother of Mayotte, Youma is admired by the household staff and earns the respectful title Manzell, or Miss. Life at the sugarcane plantation where Youma and Mayotte live is described as ideal, surrounded by the natural, lush beauty of the island coast. The air is full of the music of slaves’ drums and bamboula chants. The slaves cultivate their private gardens of tropical plants and share stories of voodoo gods and zombies.
Later, when she is denied permission to marry Gabriel, the man she loves, who is an intelligent, capable slave supervising plantation workers, Youma accepts the decision. The marriage is forbidden because her owners despise Gabriel’s dark skin color and field slave status. Based on their racist values, she, as a lighter-skinned creole of mixed race, may only marry an educated creole freedman. Youma gives up her relationship with Gabriel because she believes her first allegiance is to her owners.
When Youma and Mayotte return to town, they are trapped in a local slave uprising. The whites barricade themselves in their homes, refusing to talk with the protesters. As the confrontation intensifies, Gabriel, learning Youma is trapped in the riot, tries to persuade her to save herself before the house is burned. Youma chooses instead to protect Mayotte from danger and perishes in the flames. While Youma sacrifices her life to save the child, a French ship enters Caribbean waters carrying the emancipation order granting the slaves of Martinique freedom. Her character and beauty could not change her destiny as a woman trapped between two worlds in conflict.
Bibliography
Bisland, Elizabeth. The Life and Letters of Lafcadio Hearn. 2 vols. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1906. Contains a significant letter from Hearn to a friend vouching for the historical truth of elements in Youma, including the house, the incident of the serpent, the girl who died, and the circumstances of her self-sacrificial act.
Colt, Jonathan. Wandering Ghost: The Odyssey of Lafcadio Hearn. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1991. Defines Youma as a prosaic and sentimental story and then, curiously, links the heroine’s memory of her deceased mother to Hearn’s yearning for his lost mother.
Kunst, Arthur E. Lafcadio Hearn. New York: Twayne, 1969. Praises Youma as admirable in conception, balanced in development, and restrained in effect. Commends such distractions as sex symbolism, dreams, historical notes, and folktale elements.
Stevenson, Elizabeth. Lafcadio Hearn. New York: Macmillan, 1961. Criticizes Youma, despite its early respectful reviews, for its slow start and digressions, insufficient passion, and lack of plot development.
Yu, Beongcheon. An Ape of Gods: The Art and Thought of Lafcadio Hearn. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1964. Summarizes the plot of Youma and analyzes the two main characters as idealistically treated and yet, fortunately, not made into noble savages.