This prompted .
Celia to approach Newsom and demand that he leave her alone. He .
refused, and paid her a visit that very night. When he tried to rape .
her, Celia struck him twice over the head, killing him, and burned his .
body in the fireplace. At first she denied the murder, but then .
confessed to the act. George aided in the investigation by pointing to .
Celia as well. Celia was brought to trial for the murder, and was .
provided with court-appointed defense attorneys. Celia was given a .
thorough defense, which was based on two laws in the state of Missouri. .
One law protected women from unwanted sexual advances, and the other .
allowed slaves to fight for their own lives. Despite the honest effort .
by the defense, the judge threw out almost all of the defenses argument .
for consideration by the jury. As a result, Celia is found guilty. Her .
case is appealed to the Supreme Court unsuccessfully. She is hanged for .
the murder of Robert Newsom at age nineteen.
In this book, McLaurin uses one specific microcosm, the Newsom farm, to .
illustrate what life was like as a slave, and what little control one .
had over his or her life. He writes, The sexual vulnerability of .
female slaves was not simply a metaphor that forcefully conveyed the .
power of slaveholding men. It was a reality of life under slavery .
(117). Celia is a victim not only of constant sexual abuse by her .
master, but also of the law. The law in Missouri stated that slaves .
could not testify against whites, thus preventing Celia from stating her .
case to the court. She had no defense other than that which is given to .
her by whites, and even when defended, her defenders fell under scrutiny .
by other whites. McLaurin uses Celias case to expose the paradoxical .
nature of the people versus property debate. There are clearly many was .
that Celia is unquestionably a human being, regardless or skin color or .
status. Even though considered property, the fact that slaves could .