Eliza, a character in “12 Years a Slave,” is separated from her children when she is sold into slavery and never reunites with them throughout the course of the film.
In the film, which is based on the true story of Solomon Northup, Eliza is portrayed as a slave who is initially owned alongside her children by a relatively kind slave owner. However, due to financial difficulties, her owner decides to sell her and her children. During the auction, Eliza pleads with the buyers to purchase her and her children together, but her pleas are ignored. Her son is sold to one owner, while Eliza and her daughter are purchased by another. Shortly thereafter, Eliza’s daughter is also taken away from her when she is sold to a different owner.
Throughout the film, Eliza is depicted as being in a state of constant grief over the loss of her children. Her pain is a poignant part of the narrative, highlighting the brutal reality of families being torn apart under slavery. Despite her desperate hopes and the efforts of Solomon Northup, who promises to send word to her friends in the North, Eliza’s story does not have a happy ending in the film. She remains enslaved, and there is no indication that she is ever reunited with her children. Her fate, as depicted in the film, is a tragic representation of the countless real-life stories of families separated by the slave trade.