Edwin Epps



'"Sin? There is no sin! A man does how he pleases with his property. At that moment, Platt, I am of great pleasure. You be goddamn careful I don't come wantin' to lightenin' my mood no further."

- Edwin Epps to Solomon after he whips Patsey. '

Edwin Epps is the main antagonist of 12 Years a Slave.

Biography
Edwin is first seen using biblical "wisdoms" to force the slaves to comply to his demands. He forces Solomon Northup to work for him and treats Patsey, a female slave, like his love. Epps rapes Patsey one night. The next day, he gets furious with Northup for Patsey's disappearance and attacks him. He catches Patsey with soap, believing she has stolen it, and forces Northup to whip her. Northup begins to do so, but Epps grabs the whip and lashes Patsey ferociously. However, Epps is defeated when Northup is set free and taken home to his family.

Personality
Unlike the benevolent slave owner William Ford, Epps was a vicious, pitiless and despicable monstrosity who gave not just Caucasians, but all humans a bad name. No matter how normal he thought slavery was, he took xenophobia to new heights and was a downright depraved man. A prejudiced, lazy, alcoholic coward, Epps showed nothing but disdain for every African around him, despite his infatuation with Patsy whom he treated like a sex slave. He was sexually sadistic as he throttled and smacked Patsey while having sex with her.

Epps had no problem with White people and thought Black people were a breed of animal, baboons to be specific. However, racism and slave ownership were not his only sins as he constantly cheated on his wife with Patsy and let the latter take all the abuse for it. Even though he knew black people were able to think and feel, he thought they deserved only the worst possible existence, figuring them an abomination before God, put on earth for the soul purpose of being abused, worked and tortured. He took pride in his sadism and found the idea of racial equality humorous.

Right before Patsy was whipped, Epps showed reluctance due to his fascination with her. However, his fear of being made a fool of, which his vile wife used to manipulate him, and his love for cruelty to his slaves was stronger than his mercy and he allowed himself to be established as irredeemably evil by torturing the innocent Patsy almost to death. He then went and made it worse by verbally admitting that he enjoyed it. Simply put, it was his disregard for other people's freedom and his ability to make them suffer without second thought that makes him the horrific monster he truly is.

Trivia

 * Epps was guilty of other crimes in real life that the film does not show. In Solomon Northup's autobiography, Epps would get drunk and make the slaves pull his carriage while whipping them for fun.
 * Michael Fassbender was nominated for 22 acting awards for his portrayal of Epps including a BAFTA, a Golden Globe and an Oscar and won 13 other acting awards.
 * There is a scene where, after Epps' slaves return from Shaw's, Epps is shown being very friendly to an African American child. Givin that this is completley out of character for him, it can be assumed he was simply raising her to blindly believe she was another of his slaves. The girl is not seen again so her fate and Epps' kindness towards her is left ambiguous.

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