Customer Reviews

Hottentot Venus: A Novel

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4 star:		(5)
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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Hottentot Venus is a wonderful work of historical fiction by Barbara Chase-Riboud surrounding the exploitation and short life of Saartjie "Sarah" Baartman. Saartjie was a South African herdswoman who was brought to England in 1810 and exhibited in a freak show for seven years as the "Hottentot Venus." She was exhibited in a cage partially covered in "native attire" where thousands came to view her protruding buttocks and elongated labia ("apron") - a symbol of beauty and desire by her tribesmen. A distortion on the image of Venus as the goddess of love and beauty, Saartijie was heralded as the missing link between man and apes - thus propelling her as an atrocity to be gawked upon, repulsed and pitied by Victorian England and France.

Saartjie's experience in England lands her in a famous legal case in which abolitionists took her "partners" to court insisting that Saartjie was enslaved and working against her will. She, being an illiterate person, testified that she had signed a written contract with her "partners" and was being fairly compensated; however considering she died in poverty, the contract (if it truly existed) is highly questionable.

Immediately upon death at age 27 from complications caused by alcoholism, syphilis, and tuberculosis, Saartjie's body was sold and dissected to prove the theory that she was indeed the missing link and not human. Her remains (death caste, full skeleton, and prized "apron") were callously displayed and stored in a Paris museum for nearly 200 years and were only recently returned to her native South Africa for burial in 2002.

Chase-Riboud's in depth research and careful reconstruction of Saartjie's world is superb! The novel is lengthy, detailed and descriptive. It has a Victorian flair to it - especially in the passages where in depth dialogue is used to convey the Englishmen's misguided, racists thoughts of the time. The author's imagination fills in the gaps and gives Saartjie a resonant voice that transcends time. A true work of historical fiction as it references the French Revolution, American Civil War, and historical figures like Jane Austen, Napoleon Bonaparte, and Charles Darwin. The reader empathizes with Saartjie, all the while pulling for justice to be served for her. This is a touching novel - one that will stay with the reader well after the last page is turned.

Reviewed by Phyllis
APOOO BookClub
Nubian Circle Book Club

I am writing this to make some corrections to both information presented in Hottentot Venus, as well as, publisher's weekly review presented on Sarah Baartman. The first being her name, which was not Sarah, but in Saaratji Baatman. Secondly, her genitalia were not mutilated or elongated by tribal ritual, along with her more than rotund posterior. These attributes are quite common of Sanid peoples (indeginous peoples of southern africans, hottentots (deragatory term), bushmen), or more specifically of Khoisan peoples of which the "hottentots" are a part. These attributes are what led to the fascination by europeaners because they were natural among these peoples, not tribal ritual, not mutilations, simple genitics. In fact, there exists a medical term for the more pronounced posteriors ,steatopygia, found in these people. Furthermore, the elongated genitalia was simply the elongation of the labia minora, such that they extend beyond the length of labia majoria, however, among the Khoisans it was very pronounced such that the length could be several inches beyond the majora.

The truth is that all women of all ethnicities from Europeaner's to African's to ... to varying degrees can be genetically disposed to such attributes such as steatopygia to elongated minora, it was just far more common among the Khoisan. But, I just wanted to point out this wasn't due to mutilation or tribal ritual. Also, whether Baartman left of her own accord or not, is open to debate, I doubt to many people would willingly enslave themselves and certainly not to the extent that Saaratji endured, this was after all still the years of atlantic slave trade.

Irony is that although women have been victimized and sexually exploited especially black women, and in fact, and always portrayed as inferior, saraatji's attributes were most desirable to men. From the full lips to the more than ample curves. In fact, dresses of her day with their extended posteriors were directly correlated with the enhancing of those sexual attributes, curves, as possessed by Saaratji to make females more attractives in the eyes of males. An odd nuisance which is most baffling, claimed inferiority, yet exactly what was artificially created and desired? It's sad. In short, Hottento Venus, portrays to an extent the Story of Saaratji with a few fallacies, however, what should be gathered from this novel, a greater sense of saaratji's victimization and exploitation, is well conveyed.

During the early 1800's Sarah, a South African Khoekhoe tribal woman(degradingly refered to as Hottentots), witnesses the salughter and displacement of her people by European settlers. In desperation, she leaves her home to seek a new life in the city of Cape Town. However, the only thing that awaits her there are menial jobs with slave-like conditions, physical and emotional abuse. Alone and easily seduced, Sarah willingly leaves South Africa for the promise of love, fame and fortune in Europe. Sarah was told she would become rich as an African dancing queen. However, her white companions had another agenda in mind for her. For it was her unique bodyshape(manipulated by tribal rituals), of extremly protrudding buttocks and genitals described as an "apron", is what her white caregivers wanted to exploit. Finding herself in Europe touted as a "freak", caged and naked, for all who pays to see, she is billed as the "HOTTENTOT VENUS". What ensues is a tale that spans seven years in a life that is filled with broken promises, rascism, suffering, and hearbreak.

Barbara Chase-Riboud brings to life the heartwrenching tale of Sarah Baartman by combining factual, historical data with gripping story telling. In HOTTENTOT VENUS, Chase-Riboud steps back in time to the ninteenth-century and recreates a world steeped in sexism, and the ideal of European superiority. Told in the voice of several of the main characters against the backdrop of slums, courtrooms and medical facilities the reader is emmersed in the thoughts and attitudes of the day. There are shockingly vivid scences describing what Sarah endures that will leave readers angry and sadden. However, the ending will give a since of long overdue justice for Sarah. A truly haunting read, one that will stay with you long after the book is read. I recommend the novel to all.

Reviewed by L. Raven James
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

I stayed up late last night finishing a truly tremendously fine book: Hottentot Venus by Barbara Chase-Riboud. It's definitely in the do-not-miss category and is very close to being best book of the year (so far).

Sometimes a novel can be too heavily loaded with detail but, in this one, the superb writing and language balance perfectly the detail. The book evokes its time (1789-1820 or so) richly and satisfyingly with a story that is more than a match for the times and the writing. To my eye, there's only one misstep and, likely, others wouldn't find it so.

..this book should be on the reading list in every high school,how else are we to change the cruelty and racism that is inflicted and promoted by governments down thru history,the story of sexism is most painful as you become aware that society today is still staring at its "venus" in the form of many young and spiritual girls and women today,in all countries of the world...the authors style is brave as she takes us from murder to our lonely Sarah shopping for beloved gloves and thru a death journey that is poetic in its justice.......please read this and urge others to

Hottenton Venus was quite superb! What a depressing part of history to know that this South African woman Sarah Baartman was victimized emotionally, physically and fiancially, by the hands of those "Eurpoeans" that were to uplift her.The author does a wonderful job in writing and speaking in many of her character voices, giving the reader an in-depth chance to know and analyze the characters. I felt an emotional attachment to Alice, she was a true person and very good to Sarah. The only slight problem in the book was some of the vocabulary used especially in reference to the Khoeke tribe. A tribe that today is lesser known.Some readers depending on their origin, or not, may feel very uncomfortable with Cuvier's studies in Anthropology and Evolution. No matter how depressing the subject matter, this a fascinating part of history that we should all know.

Chase-Riboud's narrative about Sarah Bartman a.k.a the Hottentot Venus is compelling reading. Bartman's story was completely unknown to me. Now she is unforgettable. Her story will live with me for a long time. Chase-Riboud's narrative technique is refreshing. Her apparent personal knowledge of history combined with her research makes for a teriffic fictional telling of this story. I found her dialogue technique interesting, perhaps reflective of her European environment. I'll be reading all of her work!

I want to thank the other reviews who sold me on this book because here it is, 6 am, and I can't put it down.

For a fascinating and disturbing look into this woman's story, written with lush descriptions and unforgiving honesty, I highly recommend it as well.

LOL @ the other two haters - your BS was helpful to NO ONE and that alone speaks for itself. GTFOHWTBS. Truth hurts.

Barbara Chase-Riboud delivers a truly extraordinary piece of fiction based on the true story of Sarah Baartman dubbed the Hottentot Venus. Chase-Riboud takes the reader from the Cape of South Africa, St. Helena(the island of Napoleon's exile) to England and France. Venus-Sarah Baartman dreams of escaping Africa, due to the loss of her family by the dutch and English invaders.She agrees to go England with her husband, an English ship's doctor to become a dancer but soon finds fame is not quite what she expected. She is exploited, and forced to parade naked in a London freak show, where she suffers racist and sexists taunts and is continously ridiculed by the British Public. She is able to withstand this humilation by drowning in alcohol and self-denial. She is eventually sold to a French circus owner who abuses sarah, and forces her be further exploited by the French Medical Society where she is examined and probed like an animal, of which she is compared. They use Sarah to further their racist and sexist theories about humans and humanity. The French eventually gets sarah's remains after her death at age 27 where she further exploited and degraded. Chase-Riboud's meticulous research, clear and objective style makes Sarah's self-destructive life not only palatable but extremely believable and is a page turner from beginning to end

The Hottentot Venus was a wonderful book, one that pulled me in and had me sneaking reading time whenever possible. The book is indeed written in a stylitic manner, meaning no quotes available to designate a character is speaking, but I had little trouble following the narrative. Sara is a well drawn character and fully had my sympathy even as I pulled my hair out at her own self destructive actions. I highly doubt that the author had an "agenda" with this book. Quite frankly she didn't need one. It is a powerful commentary on colonization and human beings tendancy to revile those that we see as "different" from ourselves.