Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is one of the first personal narratives written by a slave and one of the few written by a woman. Harriet Jacobs, Linda Brent, was a slave in North Carolina who suffered terribly at the hands of a ruthless owner. She made several failed attempts to escape before successfully making her way north, a process that took years of hiding and slow travel. Jacobs is now perhaps the most read and studied Black American woman of the nineteenth century. "Reader be assured this narrative is no fiction. I am aware that some of my adventures may seem incredible; but they are, nevertheless, strictly true. I have not exaggerated the wrongs inflicted by Slavery; on the contrary, my descriptions fall far short of the facts. I have concealed the names of places, and given persons fictitious names. I had no motive for secrecy on my own account, but I deemed it kind and considerate towards others to pursue this course.
Harriet Jacobs was born a slave in North Carolina, but, in her words, didn’t realize it until her father died when she was six years old. Six years later, when her mistress died, she was bequeathed to the mistress’ granddaughter, thereby coming into the household of the mistress’ lecherous son. Several years later she escaped, only to have to hide for seven years in a cramped garret that did not allow her to stand or sit up. She was finally able to make her way north, where she was reunited with her children. Many years later, after narrowly avoiding capture multiple times due to the Fugitive Slave Law, her employer purchased her freedom. Jacobs, writing as Linda Brent, tells the riveting story of her life in the South as a slave. She brings an unflinching eye to “good” masters and mistresses who nevertheless lie to, steal from, and continually break promises to their slaves, and to bad masters who beat and kill their slaves for no particular reason. Even in the North, after her escape, she is disappointed to find prejudice and degrading treatment for blacks. After having been convinced to write down her story, it took years to find a publisher who would print it. It was finally made available to the public just a few months before the shots at Fort Sumter that began the Civil War.
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is the immensely powerful autobiography of Harriet Jacobs, who wrote under a pen name. A feminist work, she uses her experiences to state and restate her belief that though all unhappiness sprung from being a slave, she had to endure worse, being also a woman. Her experiences show that the only refuge and relief to be found were in other women, and also that women were less able to attempt freedom when that would mean leaving their children behind. Her autobiography is the account of her struggle to achieve that freedom and respect and redefine herself. Her life is a testament to her grandmother's credo: "He that is willing to be a slave, let him be a slave.
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Written by Herself Linda Brent A True Story of American Slavery Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is a slave narrative that was published in 1861 by Harriet Ann Jacobs, using the pen name "Linda Brent." The book is an in-depth chronological account of Jacobs's life as a slave, and the decisions and choices she made to gain freedom for herself and her children. It addresses the struggles and sexual abuse that young women slaves faced on the plantations, and how these struggles were harsher than what men suffered as slaves. The book is considered sentimental and written to provoke an emotional response and sympathy from the reader toward slavery in general and slave women in particular for their struggles, with rape, the pressure to have sex at an early age, the selling of their children, and the treatment of female slaves by their mistresses.
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, written by herself is an autobiography by a young mother and fugitive slave published in 1861 by L. Maria Child, who edited the book for its author, Harriet Ann Jacobs. Jacobs used the pseudonym Linda Brent. The book documents Jacobs's life as a slave and how she gained freedom for herself and for her children. Jacobs contributed to the genre of slave narrative by using the techniques of sentimental novels "to address race and gender issues." She explores the struggles and sexual abuse that female slaves faced on plantations as well as their efforts to practice motherhood and protect their children when their children might be sold away.In the book, Jacobs addresses white Northern women who fail to comprehend the evils of slavery. She makes direct appeals to their humanity to expand their knowledge and influence their thoughts about slavery as an institution.
Reader be assured this narrative is no fiction. I am aware that some of my adventures may seem incredible; but they are, nevertheless, strictly true. I have not exaggerated the wrongs inflicted by Slavery; on the contrary, my descriptions fall far short of the facts. I have concealed the names of places, and given persons fictitious names. I had no motive for secrecy on my own account, but I deemed it kind and considerate towards others to pursue this course. ""I wish I were more competent to the task I have undertaken. But I trust my readers will excuse deficiencies in consideration of circumstances. I was born and reared in Slavery; and I remained in a Slave State twenty-seven years.
Reader be assured this narrative is no fiction. I am aware that some of my adventures may seem incredible; but they are, nevertheless, strictly true. I have not exaggerated the wrongs inflicted by Slavery; on the contrary, my descriptions fall far short of the facts. I have concealed the names of places, and given persons fictitious names. I had no motive for secrecy on my own account, but I deemed it kind and considerate towards others to pursue this course. I wish I were more competent to the task I have undertaken. But I trust my readers will excuse deficiencies in consideration of circumstances. I was born and reared in Slavery; and I remained in a Slave State twenty-seven years. Since I have been at the North, it has been necessary for me to work diligently for my own support, and the education of my children. This has not left me much leisure to make up for the loss of early opportunities to improve myself; and it has compelled me to write these pages at irregular intervals, whenever I could snatch an hour from household duties. When I first arrived in Philadelphia, Bishop Paine advised me to publish a sketch of my life, but I told him I was altogether incompetent to such an undertaking. Though I have improved my mind somewhat since that time, I still remain of the same opinion; but I trust my motives will excuse what might otherwise seem presumptuous. I have not written my experiences in order to attract attention to myself; on the contrary, it would have been more pleasant to me to have been silent about my own history. Neither do I care to excite sympathy for my own sufferings. But I do earnestly desire to arouse the women of the North to a realizing sense of the condition of two millions of women at the South, still in bondage, suffering what I suffered, and most of them far worse. I want to add my testimony to that of abler pens to convince the people of the Free States what Slavery really is.
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Collected here in this omnibus edition are three influential autobiographies of prominent women whose rose up from slavery to greatness. Essential reading for anyone interested in African American Heritage. Included are Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs, Narrative of Sojourner Truth by Sojourner Truth, and The History of Mary Prince, a West Indian Slave by Mary Prince. Slavery is a terrible thing, but it is far more terrible and harrowing for women than for men. Harriet Jacobs was owned by a brutal master who beat his slaves regularly and subjected them to indignations that were far worse. Jacobs eventually escaped her master and moved to a northern state. Though she was unable to take her children with her at the time they were later reunited. Read her powerful and compelling story. Sojourner Truth transformed herself from a runaway slave into a well-known campaigner for abolition and women's rights. Her dedication to her principles and her fiery speaking style electrified the abolition movement and brought her fame. This is an extraordinary story about the triumph of an extraordinary women. Mary Prince was the first woman slave to write of her experience. Her recollections are vivid, powerful, and lyrical. Upon its publication the book had a galvanizing effect on the abolitionist movement in England.
Collected here in this omnibus edition are three influential autobiographies of prominent women whose rose up from slavery to greatness. Essential reading for anyone interested in African American Heritage. Included are Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs, Narrative of Sojourner Truth by Sojourner Truth, and The History of Mary Prince, a West Indian Slave by Mary Prince. Slavery is a terrible thing, but it is far more terrible and harrowing for women than for men. Harriet Jacobs was owned by a brutal master who beat his slaves regularly and subjected them to indignations that were far worse. Jacobs eventually escaped her master and moved to a northern state. Though she was unable to take her children with her at the time they were later reunited. Read her powerful and compelling story. Sojourner Truth transformed herself from a runaway slave into a well-known campaigner for abolition and women's rights. Her dedication to her principles and her fiery speaking style electrified the abolition movement and brought her fame. This is an extraordinary story about the triumph of an extraordinary women Mary Prince was the first woman slave to write of her experience. Her recollections are vivid, powerful, and lyrical. Upon its publication the book had a galvanizing effect on the abolitionist movement in England.
As a successful former slave, Clara Brown used her money to help other freed slaves get a new start in life. In 1859 Clara bought her own freedom and headed west to Colorado to find her daughter, who was sold when she was just a little girl. Clara didn't find her daughter there, but she did get rich. The people she helped became her family, and she became known as "Aunt" Clara Brown.
Reader be assured this narrative is no fiction. I am aware that some of my adventures may seem incredible; but they are, nevertheless, strictly true. I have not exaggerated the wrongs inflicted by Slavery; on the contrary, my descriptions fall far short of the facts. I have concealed the names of places, and given persons fictitious names. I had no motive for secrecy on my own account, but I deemed it kind and considerate towards others to pursue this course. ""I wish I were more competent to the task I have undertaken. But I trust my readers will excuse deficiencies in consideration of circumstances. I was born and reared in Slavery; and I remained in a Slave State twenty-seven years.
We need a new way of seeing!" --Jennifer Ferguson, South African musician & Former MP, African National Congress Is abortion on "demand" a woman's right, or a wrong inflicted on women? Is it a mark of liberation, or a sign that women are not yet free? From Anglo-Irish writer Mary Wollstonecraft to Kenyan environmentalist and 2004 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Wangari Maathai, many eighteenth- through twenty-first-century feminists have opposed it as violence against fetal lives arising from violence against female lives. This more inclusive, surprisingly old-but-new vision of reproductive choice is called prolife feminism. This book's original edition in 1995 offered brilliant essays on abortion and related social justice issues by the likes of suffragists Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton and civil rights leader Fannie Lou Hamer. A decade of activism and research since has made this second, greatly expanded second edition necessary. It not only documents the continuing evolution of prolife feminism worldwide, but more accurately represents the rich diversity of past and present women--and men--who have stood up for both mother and child. It thus is a vital, unique resource for peacemaking in the increasingly globalized abortion war.
This reference book chronicles what American women did from the emergence of the republic through the end of World War I and the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment. A broad spectrum of activities are depicted, showing their many accomplishments and how their activities affected the world around them. It was an era of great transition for all women. A who's who of American women and some men (those who showed great support or, ironically, great opposition to women's reform) are described one year at a time, beginning with 1789 and ending with 1920. Each year's activities are organized into seven possible categories: domesticity, work, education, religion, the arts, the law and politics, and joining forces. The book is thoroughly indexed.
From the first African explorers to the first black president, this illustrated history is an excellent resource and “an epic work” (School Library Journal). Discovering Black America is an unprecedented account of more than 400 years of African American history set against a background of American and global events. It begins with a black sailor aboard the Niña with Christopher Columbus and continues through the colonial period, slavery, the Civil War, Jim Crow, and civil rights to the first African American president in the White House. With first-person narratives from diaries and journals, interviews, and archival images, Discovering Black America provides an intimate understanding of this extensive history. “Engaging . . . brings to light many intriguing and tragically underreported stories.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “Reproductions of historical documents, photographs, and artwork provide a sense of immediacy to this immersive tapestry, which reaches well beyond the milestones typically outlined in history books.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review) “Absolutely gorgeous in design, with a harmonious marriage of text and colorful archival images, this is the kind of book that invites browsing, and its extensive reach will make this a go-to title for report writers.” —School Library Journal “Begins with the first African explorers and seamen arriving in the New World in the fifteenth century, and . . . ends with the presidential election of Barack Obama . . . meticulous footnotes and a bibliography of recommended books...An excellent title for classroom support.” —Booklist “Thoroughly researched and documented...an outstanding resource for students. The primary source documents, photographs, and archival maps that complement this compelling account will engage readers.” —Library Media Connection (highly recommended) An NCSS/CBC Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People
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