wait but what is obeah??
I’m sure I wasn’t the only one while reading The Wide Sargasso Sea to think ‘What the heck is obeah?’ In the novel, obeah seems to be portrayed as a dark, malicious magic. The first time that Rochester hears about Obeah from Daniel, Daniel describes it as “devil business”. Also, Christophine seems to be reluctant to give Antoinette an obeah potion because what is implied to be an incomprehensible power. I’m not sure if Rochester sleeping with Amelie was a direct result of him drinking the obeah potion of lust, but it seems probable given the way obeah is portrayed. Naturally, to learn more about obeah, I went to Google and searched obeah. Sure enough, it was a sorcery that was developed in Africa and practiced in various regions including the Caribbean. But, what does obeah mean in the context of this novel? I think that obeah embodies the desires and cultural identity of Antoinette. When Antoinette gets Rochester to drink the obeah, he changes. Perhaps this is a response t...