Essay Questions

What is the biggest dream of lola Leroy according to Frances Ellen Watkins Harper?

lola Leroy is a young female working as a nurse in the army. Her biggest reverie is to live in a country free of servitude in which people treat each other as equals regardless of color, race, religion or political affiliation. She is living a tough and abusive life because her master is vicious and puts own interest first. Despite living under the abusive master, she has other people around her such as Anderson who are humane and ready to help her. Leroy wants to maintain her dignity as she looks forwards to an equitable society. Despite the efforts of Dr. Gresham to lure her into marriage, she is not ready to marry a white man.

Why did lola and her siblings end up as slaves despite being raised as white kids with the best education?

lola's mother, Marie, is a mulatto lady working like a slave for her master, Eugene Leroy. She later falls in love with Eugene and they get married. They are sanctified with three children lola Leroy, Henry Leroy, and Grace Leroy. These children are brought up as whites and are given the best education just like any other white child. They are privileged to access anything they want, unlike the slaves who are confined to particular places. However, the reader realizes that the relatives of Eugene are against the marriage between Marie and him. The reason why the relatives are against this marriage is that Marie is a mulatto. During his lifetime, Eugene does everything possible to protect his family. However, after Eugene dies, things take a drastic turn because Marie and all her children are forced to be slaves. lola becomes a slave nurse working for the army. She feels bad that slaves are treated unfairly and she looks forward to the day when people will be treated fairly.

What motivates the Leroy family to become a strong defender of human civil rights and anti-slavery movements?

The reader realizes that the Leroy family has had an opportunity to live two phases of life, as slaves and as whites. When they are living with white privileges while Eugene is alive, they access everything they want and are treated with respect. Leroy family's children receives the best education and healthcare. However, the death of Eugene subjects his family into slavery. As slaves, they are treated as colored citizens who do not deserve any white man's privileges. Afterward, Marie and her children are subjected to slavery. Grace dies but lola and Henry separate to work in different professions. As a nurse, lola is mistreated and abused because she is a colored woman. Her brother Henry is working as a soldier and he is also treated as an outsider within the military. lola is determined to fight for equal treatment of all people regardless of color. When the Leroy family unites towards the end of the novel, the form a strong formidable force to fight for human rights aimed at ending slavery.