Black Beauty Essay Example
Black Beauty Essay Example

Black Beauty Essay Example

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  • Pages: 3 (812 words)
  • Published: November 29, 2017
  • Type: Article
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Type of Book: Fiction

Setting: The events in this tale occur at different English stables and are set in the mid to late 1800s.

Characters include Black Beauty, Duchess (Black Beauty's mother), Ginger (chestnut mare), Squire Gordon (the owner of Birtwick Park), John and James (the stable grooms), Joe Green (the young groom), Jerry Baker (the kind owner of the cab fleet), Nicholas Skinner (the cruel owner of the cab fleet), and Mr. Thorouhgood (the good farmer). Black Beauty tells the story, starting from his carefree days as a foal, to his difficult life pulling cabs, and ultimately his happy retirement in the country. This book provides insight into the cruel treatment of horses, and I would highly recommend it.

Black Beauty's eyes allow us to experience his emotions of pride, pain, suffering, and joy.

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The book is unique as it features an animal as the narrator, making the story more realistic for the reader. The plot follows Black Beauty's life from start to finish, including his pride for living on a wealthy estate with his mother, the pain of leaving her, his suffering while pulling carriages for wealthy women, and the happiness of being reunited with an old friend. The author is Anna Sewell, and the adaptation and illustrations are by Deidre Laiken and an unlisted artist, respectively. Overall, the story begins with Black Beauty living on a country estate meadow with his mother.

Black Beauty received both behavioral and practical education from his mother Dutchess, who taught him how to wear various equipment such as bridle, bit, saddle, and harness. Later on, at the age of four, he was sold to Squire Gordon who owne

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Birtwick Park. There he encountered another horse named Ginger, who taught him about the harshness of human treatment towards animals.

At Birtwick Park, the horses are treated kindly by stable grooms James and John. However, James leaves his job and is replaced by young boy Joe Green. One night, after running a long way to get a doctor for the mistress, Joe forgets to cover Black Beauty.

Black Beauty contracted a lung infection which nearly ended his life. In order to relocate due to her illness, the mistress of Birtwick Park sold Black Beauty. As a result, Mr. York, who owned Earlshall Park, became the new owner of Black Beauty. The mistress of Earlshall Park demanded that Black Beauty wear a tightly pulled check-rein, which was in vogue at the time.

Black Beauty struggled to pull the carriage due to the difficulty of the task. During a business trip taken by Mr. York, Reuben Smith was entrusted with the care of Black Beauty. Despite knowing that he was missing a shoe, Reuben rode Black Beauty while intoxicated, and this caused Black Beauty to fall resulting in Reuben's death.

Due to having damaged knees, Black Beauty is considered unfashionable for Mr. York's stables, resulting in his sale to a horse and carriage rental business. Unfortunately, drivers with limited experience mistreat Black Beauty during their carriage rides. Consequently, Black Beauty is sold once more.

This occasion involves the acquisition of Black Beauty by Mr. Barry, who takes on the services of stable groom Filcher.

Black Beauty suffers at the hands of Filcher, who not only steals oats but neglects to clean the stable resulting in Black Beauty developing a hoof infection. After

being sold at a fair by Mr. Barry, Black Beauty finds himself in the care of Jerry Baker, a cab owner who treats him with kindness. However, Black Beauty’s duties are hard as he works pulling a cab together with another horse called Captain.

Jerry becomes unwell, forcing him to retire from being a cab driver. Subsequently, he sells Black Beauty to individuals who work as corn dealers and bakers. Unfortunately, the new owners make Black Beauty carry heavy loads, and they use a check-rein on the horse. This type of work exhausts Black Beauty, leading to him being sold once more.

This time around, Black Beauty is sold to Nicholas Skinner, who is also a cab owner. Unfortunately, Skinner is not gentle on his drivers nor the horses. Due to the harsh treatment, Black Beauty collapses while carrying a family and their belongings uphill. The incident almost takes his life. As a result, Black Beauty is once again auctioned off at a fair.

Farmer Thoroughgood and his grandson purchase Black Beauty and care for him until he is healthy again. Their goal is to locate a suitable residence for Black Beauty, which they eventually find with Miss Ellen. She assures them that the horse will never be sold. However, once Black Beauty settles in, he recognizes Joe Green as his previous stable groom from years before.

Black Beauty concludes the narrative by realizing that he will enjoy a lifetime of being cared for and loved by affectionate individuals.

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