The Fires of Jubilee by Stephen B. Oates

The Fires of Jubilee By Stephen B. Oates

The Fires of Jubilee by Stephen B. Oates is about the Nat Turner slave rebellion that happened in 1831. This book is about events that led to the bloodiest rebellion in Southern History. To me, Stephen Oates was very vague on his position in this rebellion. It is hard to tell if he was an innocent bystander or sympathetic. The book is a good read based on an actual historical event. Oates attempts to make the book entertaining for the reader.

Stephen B. Oates' stance throughout the book is very vague. Some parts he is analyzing the rebellion and other parts he seems to be sympathetic towards Nat Turner and his group of slaves. He gives a very gory description of the murders of numerous whites. That really gives the reader a sense of fright. He writes this book like many novelists with great descriptions and mass murdering tales. I believe this makes him more of a narrative writer than a historical writer. Reading a historical story in more of a narrative perspective makes it a whole lot easier to understand.

Stephen Oates does a good job at describing the characters in this book. Especially Nat Turner, the self embattled slave who believes he was chosen by God to free slaves. The character that stood out the most was Will, the axe murdering psycho. He decapitated many white people. Oates spends a lot of time giving detail about the characters. That being said, this narrative was very interesting to read.

Nat Turner's perspective in this book is the only perspective used. Oates doesn't really take any other position in the book. The good thing about this story is that it focuses on race, and that is something that many people are passionate about. That makes this book easy to read. This book being descriptive makes it able for the reader to understand. The horror from all the murders holds the readers' attention. "With a slight wind murmuring in the darkness, the slaves set out by light of torch, moving through the woods towards the Travis-their first target in their holy war against the white man" That quote demonstrates how well of a narrative this book is. How did he know there was a "slight wind"? He couldn't have found that out from a first hand source.To me, it is impossible for him to have known that many facts in detail. He most likely added many details to make this book a more entertaining narrative. All facts aside, he truly tells a good story.

The Fires of Jubilee is said to be a book with many historical flaws. Stephen B. Oates was not afraid to describe certain things in this story. Which makes me believe he wants to tell a story rather than writing down nothing but facts. As I had mentioned earlier, exactly what Oates thinks of the rebellion in 1831 is unclear. It is hard to tell if he is just telling the story and calling it as he sees or if he is trying have