Master-Servant Relationship

Use this forum to discuss the January 2021 Book of the month, "The Vanished" by Pejay Bradley
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SweetSourSalty AndSpicy
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Re: Master-Servant Relationship

Post by SweetSourSalty AndSpicy »

In the kitchen, the maid was preparing abundant food with her ears tuned to the delivery room. If it were a boy, her preparation of a feast would be commended; if not, she would be chided for the waste. She loved to bet and had wagered on a boy. If she won, she would buy herself a dress. Mr. Seoh had forbidden betting or gambling in his household for anyone on any occasion, but she must have some fun. Besides, the dress she’d seen at the market the previous week had really captured her mind and soul. She had started saving money by shaving off a little bit each month from her wage, the rest of which she had sent to her mother in her farm village.
Location 894. Pages 75-76

I think the Seoh household has an interesting master-servant relationship. The maid from this scene is preparing food not only because it is her duty. The feast is a wager. It shows how attached and involved she is to the affairs of the family. It also gives the perspective of a servant to an important family event.

On a side note, it makes me wonder if the master-servant relationship differs depending on the social status. Lady Sougyon is royalty while the Seoh’s are not.
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Post by Fazzier »

I liked the author's approach of giving only the masters' perspectives in the master-servant relationship. While giving the servants' perspective would have been great, it would have also added unnecessary details to the story. I was content with how the servants were depicted and whatever interpretations I could draw about their inner emotions. For instance, indicating that April resumed her sweepig chore after a stare from the lead maid, Kwon-ci, was enough to make several conclusions from and understand they they relate with one another in terms of authority.
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Post by angelanikkicea »

I actually think Lady Sougyon treated her servants well in many occasions. However, I do remember Embon kicking an old servant and that is really infuriating. It's interesting to see what would happen if the author did include the point of view of the servants in this novel.
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Post by Annette M »

It has always been there. I loved how Lady Sougyon treated her servants especially April. Duman was also a great servant, however there are some servants who had the slave mentality and believed their situation could not change and therefore refused to change their names.
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Post by theprakriti »

This relationship is very well portrayed in the book. It shows the positions both of them stand at in the the society. Clearly, both of these positions are so far away that the people could not eradicate the differences. Servants are supposed to do all of the work for their masters. They can be treated badly but are expected to show up next time with the same dedication towards their masters. Even if some people want to show some affection towards them, they cant due their positions in the society. The book highlights all these aspects very well.
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Post by Arite Seki »

I think the portrayal of the master-servant relationship in the novel gave more insight into the characters as individuals than anything else. When Embon went to University he was informed about how other families normally treat their servants, which was very poorly. This contrasted with how Lady Sougyon treated her servants.
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Post by Albaou Amira »

The silence of the servants played a huge part in showcasing the caste system which prevailed at that time which gave more authenticity to the book. However, I wouldn't have minded a peek into the perspectives of the servants.
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Post by MsH2k »

I was appalled by that scene of Embon kicking the palanquin carrier. However, I think the book was effective by not including the perspective of the servants. The reader understands they are human beings with feelings, but they were not telling this story. Their silence spoke volumes to me; it showed their muted oppression. The fact that a grown man stood there without moving while a spoiled brat kicked him was the most powerful scene in the book to me. No more words were needed.
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Post by serenasiew »

Let me go out on a limb here and say that servants by far ALWAYS have better stories than masters. "Masters" here treat their slaves abominably. As in depriving them of food or giving them food not fit for my dog. And they're vegetarian, so they give it to me--I see. Masters complain about servants in front of them, like they can't understand language. They insult their homeland where they were "raised on a mud road" and "don't have plates or tables." It's beyond nauseating. Always listen to servants. They give you the dirt on the masters. They know all.
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Post by Aniza Butt »

I think the author should have added the servants' perspective to add more depth to the story and it could also attract a wider audience.
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Post by Book Lover Jack »

Eutoc wrote: 11 Jan 2021, 19:40
Book Lover Jack wrote: 11 Jan 2021, 05:08 I believe there were different dynamics depending on the kind of master-servant relationship depicted in the book. Several times, the servants do not only reply to their masters but they also initiate conversation. However, I think literary wise, it was elegant to leave the servant's perspective open to the readers interpretation. I think that is what the author was aiming for
Don't you think there's more harm caused by leaving the reader to fill up the servant's perspective? It could yield a whole lot of contrasting opinions and interpretations from the readers.
To a certain extent you have a point, however, those feelings and attitudes towards their masters differ from servant to servant. One cannot really speak for all servants regarding their relationship with their master. In addition depending on the culture one was raised in, we will have different interpretations of the servant-master dynamic. I don't think it's too harmful for one to come out with their own take on this.
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Post by crisanja »

I feel like a story told from the servant point of view would entail an entirely different novel. We can fill in the blanks of what we think the servant felt or thought during different scenes using our own experiences.
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Post by Tarilan »

Yes. It would have been nice if the writer went deep into the perspectives of the servants. We would have know why they were afraid or how they felt about the way they were treated.
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Post by lavkathleen »

sssns wrote: 14 Jan 2021, 09:11
In the kitchen, the maid was preparing abundant food with her ears tuned to the delivery room. If it were a boy, her preparation of a feast would be commended; if not, she would be chided for the waste. She loved to bet and had wagered on a boy. If she won, she would buy herself a dress. Mr. Seoh had forbidden betting or gambling in his household for anyone on any occasion, but she must have some fun. Besides, the dress she’d seen at the market the previous week had really captured her mind and soul. She had started saving money by shaving off a little bit each month from her wage, the rest of which she had sent to her mother in her farm village.
Location 894. Pages 75-76

I think the Seoh household has an interesting master-servant relationship. The maid from this scene is preparing food not only because it is her duty. The feast is a wager. It shows how attached and involved she is to the affairs of the family. It also gives the perspective of a servant to an important family event.

On a side note, it makes me wonder if the master-servant relationship differs depending on the social status. Lady Sougyon is royalty while the Seoh’s are not.
Hmm. That's interesting. I just thought Lady Sougyon's family had a better relationship with their servants because they're more progressive and compassionate than other families, not because of status. But now that you mentioned it, I would actually expect the Seoh's to be more kind to their servants as they're closer to knowing hardship compared to aristocrats. But perhaps I'm wrong, because as people say, it's easier to be kind when you're rich.
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Post by lavkathleen »

Annette M wrote: 16 Jan 2021, 14:15 It has always been there. I loved how Lady Sougyon treated her servants especially April. Duman was also a great servant, however there are some servants who had the slave mentality and believed their situation could not change and therefore refused to change their names.
It wasn't. However, we did see how they interacted with their masters and other servants. We might not have their perspective, but this portrayal was enough. In regards with some of them "accepting their fate", it is quite tragic and that is part of why people like Embon became activists.
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