When I checked out Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass from the library, I was pleasantly surprised to find that an additional autobiography was bound in the same book. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is written by Harriet Jacobs, originally published under the pseudonym Linda Brent. For a long time, this book was thought to have been ghostwritten or fictional, but in 1981 scholar Jean Fagan Yellin determined the authenticity of the text by matching up historical accounts with the details outlined in the story. My copy of the book (published by the Modern Library) contained footnotes and references which matched up the actual historical account and names with the pseudonyms that Jacob used.I really recommend that Douglass and Jacobs' stories be read in succession. Douglass work is a good account of the sufferings and life of an African male slave, while Jacobs' text deals more with the hardships and psychosexual exploitation of African female slaves. In truth, I think I enjoyed Jacobs' history more than Douglass. Her suffering and incredible escape to freedom afforded for a very compelling read. I am still in disbelief over the account of her escape from her master. She stayed hidden for nearly seven years in a small den underneath her grandmother's house; the space was so small and musty that she could not stand erect or breathe fresh air. I can't even imagine what it would be like to live for seven years without having many opportunities to stand upright. What incredible sacrifice and hardship.
After reading these two histories of African-American slaves, I am curious to read some type of narrative or story written from the perspective of a Southern slave owner. Does anyone have a good recommendation? What other books about slavery have you enjoyed reading?
I have often thought about compiling a book full of abolitionist art, partly because my thesis dealt with that subject. However, the thought of compiling all of the political abolitionist cartoons that were produced in the 19th century seems a rather daunting task. One day I hope to muster up the courage to start that project. For now, though, I enjoy learning as much about the abolitionist movement as possible.
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3 comments:
I remember reading both of those narratives in high school English. I recall finding Jacobs' narrative more compelling as well. I think that's mostly because of the nature of the narrative, but I also find the differences in their writing styles contributes to this feeling as well. From what I remember, Frederick Douglass tries to establish his credentials as an educated individual in order to make his writing more credible. He appeals to the reader on moral, ethical, and even logical grounds, while Jacobs' narrative primarily convinces of the wrongness of slavery by appealing to the reader's sense of pathos and pulling at your heartstrings. At least that's what I remember it being like, but it's been a long time, so I could have it all wrong.
My favorite book on slavery is Uncle Tom's Cabin, even if it is fiction.
Yeah, Kiersten, I agree with you: Douglass' aim was to appear educated, whereas Jacobs' objective was more sentimental.
The introduction in my copy suggested that this difference in writing style was largely because Jacobs was a woman, and therefore was more sentimental in her approach (although men can be sentimental too, right?). The introduction pointed out that Jacobs further emphasizes that she is a woman by including at the end of her narrative, "Reader, my story ends with freedom; not in the usual way, with marriage." The writer of the introduction (Kwame Anthony Appiah) argued that this statement further solidified Jacobs' aim to have her writing be a sentimental novel since those usually do end "with marriage." Appiah thinks that if this narrative had been written by a man, he would have mentioned that it did end in an unusual way, but would have explained the unusual ending to be the escape from bondage which made the writing of the narrative possible. I thought that was an interesting observation.
I'm definitely putting Jacob's on my list of books. Great review.
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