In Wild Sargasso Sea, Antoinette’s maid Christophine Dubois is presented as a bright, wise woman. She is from Martinique and was very young when she came to work for Antoinette. From the very beginning, the way Christophine’s actions are described make her come across as a compassionate character who is intelligent and strong. Her and Antoinette have a clear trust between them, and she is one of the closest people to Antoinette for most of the novel.

Christophine simultaneously exhibits sound judgement and superstitious tendencies. She practices obeah, black magic, which frightens Antoinette when she is young but eventually intrigues her. Christophine’s practice of obeah makes her the subject of a great deal of gossip, as does her Caribbean identity. But she is unaffected by such judgments and consistently maintains a solid level of self-respect and independence. For instance, consider how she calls men “worthless” and asserts her financial independence with pride. Here Christophine comes across as a sort of independent, feminist role model for Antoinette, as she urges Antoinette to leave Rochester’s controlling home.

Despite Antoinette’s love for Christophine and Christophine’s consistent care for Antoinette, there is a bit of mystery to some of Christophine’s actions. For instance, Rochester notes that she disappears after being imprisoned, but the details of this scenario are never completely explained. Rochester also seems to have a much different view of Christophine than Antoinette does and thinks she is using Antoinette. These portrayals of Christophine, in addition to her sometimes mysterious actions and the constant gossip surrounding her, may plant seeds of doubt in the reader’s mind about whether or not she can truly be trusted.