42 pages • 1 hour read
Abina and the Important Men: A Graphic History
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Part 2, Chapters 7-10Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 2: “Transcript”
Part 2, Chapter 7 Summary: “The Testimony of Abina Mansah”
This primary source includes Abina’s recounting of the events leading up to her time with Quamina Eddoo, and how she came to realize she was enslaved, since she was to be married off again. She heard about people going to Cape Coast to be free, so she ran away. Abina describes her duties while she lived with Eddoo’s sister Eccoah Coom, which included cleaning, shopping, gathering firewood, and getting water among other tasks—all of which she did without being paid. She says her enslavers even called her “Amerperlay,” which means “slave” (91). Eddoo’s lawyer, James Hutton Brew, questions Abina, using the same semantics described in Part 1. He asks how she could be an enslaved person if she was free. Abina insists she had to do as she was told because she was under threat of being beaten and was beaten on three occasions. When she was enslaved by a man named Eddoo Buffoe, she was beaten for disobedience. Brew circles back to Abina’s treatment by Eccoah and how she was given to be married. He asks if she ever saw the ceremonies or transactions associated with slave trading. Abina says she didn’t see anything except the cutting of her beads, which could be a part of a ceremony. There’s a note at the end of the transcript that states there’s sufficient reason for the case to be tried before a jury.
Part 2, Chapter 8 Summary: “The Testimony of Eccoah Coom”
Eccoah’s testimony starts with her identifying herself as defendant Quamina Eddoo’s sister. She says Abina was living with her under her brother’s direction, but insists Abina is not an enslaved person. Eccoah avoids answering many questions by claiming ignorance. When asked about Abina’s marriage to Tando, Eccoah says she’s aware of two Tandos, one who is dead and another who works for her brother. She denies seeing Tando give Abina a handkerchief or ever threatening Abina. She also denies her brother giving her Abina and insists Abina was treated as a stranger and guest with free will.
Part 2, Chapter 9 Summary: “The Testimony of Adjuah N’Yamiwhah”
Adjuah explains that she was enslaved in Ashantee when Abina arrived. She heard about Abina’s transaction and insists both of them were treated as enslaved people. Adjuah is now living free in Cape Coast. She answers all the questions presented to her about the nature of Abina’s relationship with her husband Yowahwah (Yaw Awoah), and how Abina was sold as an enslaved person, but when Quamina Eddoo’s lawyer, James Hutton Brew, cross-examines her, he asks if she was present in the room during Abina’s transaction. She acknowledges women aren’t allowed in rooms when transactions occur. Brew tries to shake Adjuah by asking her to clarify the proposed order of events. Abina said she bought goods before she was sold, but Adjuah didn’t see Abina with anything when they met. Adjuah stands by her statement, which has no implication against Abina’s enslavement but does hurt her credibility as a witness.
Part 2, Chapter 10 Summary: “The Testimony of Yowahwah”
Yowahwah (Yaw Awoah) testifies that Abina is his wife, and that he met Quamina Eddoo at Salt Pond while trading on a number of occasions. He says he got word that his brother was deathly ill and left to see him, leaving his wife in Eddoo’s care. He learned his brother died and then left to tell their family. Yowahwah refutes Adjuah’s testimony that he sold Abina and denies purchasing any goods. He claims he asked Eddoo to take care of Abina and denies cutting her beads. Abina challenges him, but he repeats himself and says hers is “a false accusation” (109). She is called to the stand again to see if she changes her position. She stands by her testimony, and court is adjourned. Eddoo’s innocence is revealed at the end of the section.
Part 2, Chapters 7-10 Analysis
The inclusion of a text-based testimony right after the visual format of Part 1 allows for interaction between primary and secondary sources. This calls attention to the accuracy of Part 1 in how it adheres to similar lines of questioning, as well as the places where creative decisions were made. Furthermore, these differences raise questions as to why they were implemented. One clear difference in this section is the length of lawyer James Hutton Brew’s questioning of Abina. Brew’s tricky line of questioning is clearly conveyed with facial expressions in the graphic novel version of the story, but in the actual testimony, Brew’s repetitive process goes on for pages. This content was likely cut from Part 1 because, while repetition reinforces Brew’s ideas, it slows the pacing of the trial, and because the graphic novel has the advantage of showing scenes, the process is instead conveyed through scene changes and facial expressions. However, it’s important that primary sources be preserved to maintain authenticity. The differences between Part 1 and Part 2 highlight their respective purposes. A secondary source like Part 1’s graphic history is interested in telling Abina’s story in a digestible, engaging way. A primary source like Part 2, however, is tasked with telling the truth verbatim and doesn’t need to adhere to narrative conventions.
Another difference between Part 1 and Part 2 is their use of language. For example, in Part 2, Abina says, “I did not like this and I made up my mind to come away” (97). However, in the graphic novel, she instead says, “It was then that I decided I had to leave” (47). These subtle differences point to the need to modernize language to make it more accessible to readers. Trevor R. Getz acknowledges these changes as necessary to render Abina’s story in narrative form, but they also raise the question as to whether or not the novel is truly Abina’s story then—a point which is examined in a later section. These differences are made apparent through Part 1 and Part 2’s proximity, but they also establish the authors’ credibility by highlighting similarities. These differences and similarities create the framework for the rest of the novel, which seeks to analyze the changes made, information retained, and the context for doing so.
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