As per my preceding posts, Chapters 8-12 of Part II once again proves the significance of the relationships Tituba forms during the course of her life.  Specifically, I would like to look at Chapter 8 when Tituba finds herself consumed into not only a Jewish household, but that of a recent widower, Benjamin Cohen d’Azevedo.  For such a sudden acquaintance, the two experience a plethora of close, and ultimately sensual moments with one another.  Their relationship goes from him explaining his fixation with the abuse of Jewish people to Tituba, to the longing of his dead wife (of whom Tituba accepts gifts of her clothing).  Knowing the pain that he is experiencing and recalling the rituals of bringing the dead to speak with the living, Tituba is actually able to bring Benjamin’s wife back to him.  With this being said, we see the emotional bond between Tituba and Benjamin transform into a sexual one; especially when she begins to explicate accounts of their sensual intimacy.    I found it compelling that she still mentions her longing for John Indian, but still continues to engage and find sexual pleasure in Benjamin.  She even describes Benjmain as her “misshappen lover” due to his bent and deformed body.  This can be essentially scrutinized as one thing — need.  On a basic level, they are satisfying their sexual desires, but more importantly Tituba enables Benjamin to talk to his dead wife.  One would imply that this would enhance their relationship in a positive way, but from Benjamin’s side, that is not the case.

This is enforced even more so, when Benjamin mentions that he “preferred to have a slave,” rather than to remarry.  So in this case, Tituba was still an attendant to his beckon call, but also a mistress at the same time.  Yet despite being in a sexual relationship, Tituba still remained in a subservient position.  Being that Tituba was able to bring back his dead wife, he didn’t want to give that up, even if that meant putting Tituba in an subordinate position.  His initial response to her request for freedom (even though he does grant her freedom subsequently), is vehement at the very least, especially when he states: “Never, never, you hear me.  If you leave I’ll lose her a second time.  Don’t ever mention it again.”  Ultimately, in my opinion Benjamin’s relationship with Tituba only as means of connection with his dead wife — at any and all costs.