There are many characters in the book chains. The main protagonist of the book is Isabel. Isabel is a 13 year old slave who is very strong minded and protective of her young sister Ruth (5 years old and has epilepsy). Isabel’s loyalty towards Ruth is clearly shown as they arrive in New York. Isabel takes responsibility for her sisters’ laughter and was smacked across the face. “I fought back the hot tears,” Isabel says. “Better me than Ruth, better me than Ruth” (5.74).
Jenny is a tavern keeper who tries to save Isabel and Ruth by purchasing them in Newport instead of the Locktons. Miss Mary Finch is Isabel and Ruth’s dead owner at the beginning of the book. Miss Mary has a will that states that Isabel and Ruth should be freed when she dies. …show more content…
It goes in to show us the slave’s side and how they are caught in the middle of the loyalist and patriot conflict. This goes to show how the slave owning and the nation fighting for independence wasn’t a very great spot in time for our American history, but how deep chains goes into perspective of that time period make the novel very interesting. This novel helps us see and understand more about the life of a slave during the time of the American Revolutionary war. Back in that time period, which was around 1777, enslaved people had no say or opinion and was expected to hold the political view of the person or people who owned them no matter how they felt. Even thought this was through you can see by what happens in the book that people still tried to influence the slaves to be on one side or another. In the book during one of Isabel’s’ encounters with the British Lord Dunmore at the Tea Water Pump he promised freedom to any slave who would join the Loyalist cause. Isabel acts as a voice to the slaves of the Revolution by showing the very high stakes of desiring freedom for herself, while attempting to figure out where she stands as the current events