What transformations does Libby undergo during the final showdown in chapter 23? What does the scene reveal about her essence, and the essence of the community she married into?
In my opinion, Libby goes through a transformation prior to chapter 23. That chapter illustrates the fruit of that transformation. Earlier, she decides she has had enough and is not going to run, at which point they devise a strategy (that doesn’t actually work). But she is determined to stand her ground and not leave her home. She is tired and intent on defending her home, reputation, and life. She knows she did the right thing by rescuing Jonathan and nursing him back to health, and will not be dissuaded otherwise. She observes --by chance – what she believes to be great courage displayed by Sally and Joseph, as well as Covington’s slave who comes to warn them, and is compelled to match it. She doesn’t feel she has done enough up to that point, although readers will surely disagree, and is not going to back down ever again.