The Gold Bug

The attitudes to race depicted in “The Gold-Bug” differ vastly from the accepted standard of racial equality in the 21st century. Sometimes, the narrator and Legrand call Jupiter by his name, or affectionately “Jup.” However, Jupiter is also repeatedly referred to him as “the negro” (13). Although at the time Poe was writing “negro” was considered a polite way to refer to a Black person, Jupiter’s characterization as “the negro” presents his Blackness as superseding any other aspect of his identity.

At times, racial discrimination against Jupiter appears in obvious ways. For example, Legrand often threatens Jupiter with physical violence. When Jupiter is reluctant to carry the gold bug up the tree, Legrand warns him, “if you do not take it up with you in some way, I shall be under the necessity of breaking your head with this shovel” (16). Although Jupiter is emancipated, Legrand continues to view his servant as his property that he can treat as he pleases. Legrand further dehumanizes Jupiter by making him perform seemingly bizarre tasks without explanation, such as carrying the bug up the tree.

The tree climbing scene is particularly significant in the context of the racist theories on polygenism, which posited that different races have separate origins, and were popular during the nineteenth century. Texts written in support of polygenism often compared Black people to monkeys, with the authors of Indigenous Races of the Earth (1857) describing Black people as existing as a midpoint between Greeks and chimpanzees. Therefore, the image of a Black man climbing a tree evokes a racial prejudice that Black people were more suitable to such tasks because of their close alignment with monkeys.

Legrand directs racist verbal abuse at Jupiter, at one point calling him an “infernal black villain” (21). By juxtaposing “black” and “villain,” Poe implies that there is a causal connection between the two characteristics i.e. that Jupiter’s Blackness means he is predisposed to villainous qualities. Jupiter has internalized the racist abuse that Legrand subjects him to, referring to himself as an “old n*****” (17), and a “poor n*****” (18). These phrases imply a lack of self-worth, and that Jupiter now sees himself in the way Legrand has characterized him, rather than as an individual.

At other times, the presentation of racial prejudice is more subtle. There are instances when the narrator imitates Jupiter’s speech to ridicule his beliefs or convey his opinion that Jupiter is unintelligent. For example, when Jupiter is convinced that the bug has some supernatural power that has driven Legrand mad, the narrator claims that Jupiter’s “whole intellect seemed to be absorbed by ‘de bug’” (13). The narrator’s citation of Jupiter’s speech creates a comparison between the narrator’s formal, standard English and Jupiter’s non-standard English that is intended to represent an African American dialect. The narrator disapproves of Jupiter’s superstitious beliefs and his mimicking of the servant is condescending. The narrator aims a further indirect insult at Jupiter when he fears that Legrand is also beginning to believe that the gold bug has extraordinary qualities, saying he could “hardly blame Jupiter for his opinion respecting it; but what to make of Legrand’s agreement with that opinion, I could not, for the life of me, tell” (14). The implication is that nothing better can be expected of Jupiter because he is stupid and superstitious, but the narrator is shocked that his white, well-educated friend appears to agree with his former slave.

On one hand, Poe’s presentation of a Black character with a speaking role was unusual in the mid-19th century, and Jupiter’s inclusion could be seen as progressive. However, further insults are aimed at Jupiter’s intelligence, including his inability to tell his left from his right eye, and the character is mainly contrived as a comic device. The presentation of Jupiter’s race is often offensive and stereotypical and draws many parallels with how Black people were portrayed in minstrel shows, a type of racist entertainment that emerged in early 19th-century America. The acts were created for the enjoyment of white society and consisted of music, dancing, and comic skits usually performed by white people in blackface. Minstrel shows demeaned Black people and made fun of African American culture but, sadly, they greatly influenced how Black people were conceived in popular culture and society at large.