The book OR GIVE ME DEATH by ann rinaldi?

Question

what are some historical facts?

Answer 1

Summary by Michael Jung
"Patrick Henry traveled through the American colonies, advocating independence from the British. But at Henry's plantation in Virginia, his family faces a challenge of their own when Sarah, Henry's wife, becomes mentally ill and tries killing her infant son. Knowing her mother is a danger to herself and the family, Sarah's oldest daughter Patsy confines Sarah to the cellar.

As Sarah's mind deteriorates, however, she claims she gains the ability to see into the future and tells her daughter Anne which of the five Henry children will inherit her madness. Rather than expose this sibling to Patsy's cruelty, however, Anne lies and tells everyone she has Sarah's "bad blood." Her lie costs Anne over the years, as Patsy browbeats her sister, claiming the harsh treatment will break her "madness."

One night, four years after Patsy confined Sarah to the cellar, Anne hears Sarah beg her husband to "give me my freedom or let me go to my death!" These words haunt Anne when she hears them repeated in her father's famous speech. She wonders if keeping her secret is still the best thing to do. But as Anne wrestles with her decision to tell the truth, her mother's madness threatens to infect her sibling, just as America finds itself in the middle of the Revolutionary War.
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While Patrick Henry may have gone down in history for his famous saying, "Give me liberty or give me death," little is known about the man's personal life - including the fact that his first wife, Sarah, was locked in their cellar for several years while she struggled with a mental or pyschological illness. Ann Rinaldi explores the idea that Henry's famous line may have been spoken by his wife during her captivity.

In "Or Give Me Death," two of Patrick Henry's daughters recount their views of the events leading up to their mother's confinement and the effects it had on the family. The story begins in 1771, several years before the start of the American Revolution, from the viewpoint of the eldest child, Patsy. With the increasing strain of a mother gone mad, Patsy feels the burden and responsibility of keeping the family together and training her younger siblings correctly so they won't be infected by their mother's madness. While she may act suspicious and domineering, her actions are well-intentioned, and she strives to protect her family within the acceptable roles of women in her day.

The second half of the book, starting in 1773, is narrated by Anne, one of the middle children and the second eldest female sibling. Anne is more of a free spirit than her older sister Patsy, and is on better terms with her siblings and the slaves in the household. Burdened with the secrets of her family - chief among them which child will inherit their mother's condition - Anne constantly asks herself when is keeping a secret doing more harm than good.

With the backdrop of the American Revolution and a blossoming country's cry for freedom, Patsy and Anne face the questions of freedom and fairness in their own home. They are not free to ask for help with their mother, nor are they free to discuss her condition with people in the community. Anne also faces those issues in regards to the household slaves. The growing tension between the two sisters also highlights the issues of true freedom, as each sister has her own viewpoint on what it really means regarding the slaves, their mother, and themselves, and those viewpoints constantly clash.

Rinaldi delivers another moving historical fiction novel with this piece on Patrick Henry's family. Rinaldi is excellent at bringing lesser-known parts of history to life with great settings, plots, pacing and characterization. I found "Or Give Me Death" somewhat reminiscient of "The Secret of Sarah Revere," with the many secrets weighing on the family. Perhaps it was just a condition of the time period that families weren't very open with each other. Overall, a great read and one that should inspire people to delve deeper into American history for themselves.



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Answer 2

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