African American Studies 4
Summer 2018
Book Review
You are required to write one book review for this course on a topic that is relevant to the course
material. Below are the questions that you must answer in your response. In addition to the
primary sources, you may use your textbook for pertinent information.
Papers are due Tuesday, July 3rd, at 11:59PM. Your papers should be 2-3 pages, doublespaced with 12-point font.
1) How does Jacobs’s narrative measure up to Douglass’s in terms of literary quality and
style?
2) How did Douglass use traditional notions of what it means to be an American in order to
build his character and show that slaves could be "real" Americans?
3) Douglass makes two crucial transformations in this narrative: from a man to a brute and
from a brute to a man. How does he achieve these transformations?
4) Evaluate the effectiveness of Jacobs’s narrative for white female readers, her primary
audience. For example, how would they have reacted to her decision to involve herself
with a white unmarried man? Is there any way Jacobs “redeemed herself” after this
incident?
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an
American Slave, written by himself
Douglass's narrative is the most often read slave narrative in the United
States. Some of you have probably read it and many others of you are at
least aware of it. It is considered a classic piece of literature because of its
narrative qualities and also due to the enormous amont of information it
gives us regarding slave experiences. Before we discuss the narrative
specifically, let's discuss the events that lead up to the writing of this
narrative.
Douglass escapes from slavery as a young man and settles in Boston,
Massachusetts. While there, he because acquainted with an abolitionist by
the name of William Lloyd Garrison. Garrison is aware of Douglass's
fugitive slave status and asks Douglass to tell him of his enslaved
life. Douglass recounts his life story to Garrison who then asks him to
speak at various abolitionist meetings to help sway northerners to join his
cause. It was noted that Douglass's narrative moved many people to tears
and he was asked to write down his recollections so that they might reach a
wider audience. For this reason, you have the narrative that is the subject
of this module. Douglass will write two more autobiographies, but this
remains his most often read and quoted work.
Douglass's narrative is introduced by Garrison and this is a formula that
works well with many slave narratives. As John Sekora described it, it is a
"black message in a white envelope". In other words, it needs to be
introduced by a trusted white person before it can be believed. Look at the
passage from Garrison's introduction below. His job is to vouch for the
authenticity of the narrative. This gives credence to the author since many
believed that Blacks were intellectually capable of writing these narratives
and other thought that white abolitionists were writing them for the enslaved
to further their cause.
Before we approach Douglass' narrative, I want to remind you of
Equiano's. I'm doing this so that you can note the striking differences in
tone and import between the two. Look at Equiano's humble beginning to
his narrative below and compare it with Douglass' introduction. What
difference do you note between the two?
Douglass's introduction is very straighforward and is not in any way
humble. He does not excuse himself for writing or ask that anyone read his
narrative. He begins his narrative in a manner that is expected within the
genre - with a recollection of where and when he was born. At least, he
tries to do this. He has already run into a problem. He doesn't know his
exact age and this begins his criticism of slavery. Does he seem angry to
you? Some readers believe so. Of particular note is his insistence on
equating his situation with whites. He tells us that slaves are treated as
horses as it concerns their age, but Douglass insists that he should know
his age just as white children know there ages. In saying so, he argues for
equality. Let's go over a few more passages in the narrative so that you
can get a sense of Douglass's purpose in writing.
In this passage, Douglass illuminates how familial bonds are destroyed in
slavery. He never knew his mother or had any bond with her because
of this cruel separation. The purpose of this separation is to prevent any
emotional attachment on the part of the child toward his parent. This
makes it easier on the slaveholder if s/he chooses to sell these
slaves. They don't have to suffer through the emotional crisis that most
would have to suffer through at the loss of a mother or father. However,
this doesn't speak to the suffering that is experience on his mother's
behalf. Finish reading the first chapter of the narrative to get a sense of the
mother's suffering.
Sexual Exploitation
The next passages depict the brutality of slavery through the suffering of
Douglass's Aunt Hester:
Douglass's description is graphic and very effective. He could have just
said that she was whipped, but it would not have had the same import. He
wanted to give details that many readers would not know regarding the
reason why she was whipped and the severity of the brutality that she
suffered.
He also responds to the stereotype regarding the singing of slaves as an
indication of their happiness. See below:
One of Douglass's aims is to show that slavery is a degrading influence not
just in the lives of slaves, but also in the lives of white southerners. For
example, Sophia Auld, who had never owned slaves until she married into
it, was very kind to Douglass initially. However, a shift occurs as she
becomes more accustomed to being a slaveholder
As you were able to discern from the reading, Douglass is a very curious
young man and naturally tries to manipulate his slave situation to his
benefit. Several times he attempts to outwit his masters. He is even able
to teach himself to read. Because of his behavior, his owner sends him to
a slave breaker whose job is to make Douglass more docile. Douglass
goes to live with a man named Mr. Covey who treats him as a brute and
the result of this treatment is indicated below.
Notice that he is transformed into a brute by cruel treatment. He is not
inherently one as many pro-slavery advocates believed.
Notice that he views slavery as incompatible with manhood. You are either
one or the other, but you cannot be both. Some of you might be confused
by that. Douglass is referring to the social construct of manhood during
that time period. Think for a minute. What qualities should a man
have? Now do you see how slavery is incompatible with
manhood? Slaves must be submissive. Men are not. Douglass signals
that a transformation is about to occur from brute to man. Let's see how
this happens.
He becomes a man by fighting back. Men don't allow themselves to be
whipped. Men fight back. Notice the rising action - he says that when he
decided to fight, he "rose". He rose both literally and metaphorically. He
rose from the floow and he also rose from brute to man.
The above passage further illustrates his desire to be seen as a man.
Again, his rise is illustrated metaphorically. He's using the Christian story
of resurrection and likens his situation to that of Christ's rising from the
dead. Now for Douglass, you cannot be a man and a slave. However,
there are different ideas of manhood and different qualities associated with
it. Douglass can afford to take this stance because he does not have a
family. Those men who do have families will submit to protect
them. Protecting one's family is another quality associated with manhood.
Harriet Jacobs
This narrative is one of the first to explicitly discuss the sexual exploitation
of women within slavery. Douglass's narrative hinted at it through his story
of Aunt Hester, but Jacobs's will focus on this type of oppression
throughout her narrative.
Her narrative will be introduced by a female abolitionist by the name of
Lydia Marie Child. Structurally, this setup is very similar to that of
Douglass. Their narratives need to be authenticated by a white person in
order to be believed. I haven't included Childs' introduction here. The
passage below is Jacobs's intro of her own narrative which attempts to
persuade her reader of the veracity of her story. Note the very different
ways in which Douglas and Jacobs choose to begin their narratives.
Douglass does not bother to authenticate his narrative. He begins as most
autobiographies would - with where he was born, etc. His tone is
straightforward and to the point. What is Jacobs' tone?
I would say that she takes a very humble approach. This approach would
not have been attractive to Douglass, who wanted to be seen as a
man. The social construct of manhood during that time period does not
include humility. Men are bold and independent.
In this way, you can see how the presentations of both texts are gendered.
I would argue that Jacobs' is as much concerned with presenting herself as
a woman as Douglass was with presenting himself as a man.
A woman's place in the nineteenth century, was supposedly in the
home. There were ostensibly two spheres of influences: the public sphere
and the private sphere. Women were only able to fully participate in the
private one and their duties within it were outlined for them through doctrine
referred to as "The Cult of True Womanhood". This doctrine was espoused
to women in various forms: sermons, women's magazines, etc. Women
were reminded in many ways of their domestic duties. The four main
tenets of this ideology are listed below:
(Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
Nevertheless, many women either outright shunned these ideas, or
negotiated the terms of their "womanhood". See the PBS
article here (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. for more
information.
Jacobs knows her audience. She knows that the white women in northern
states who are reading her narrative are aware of, and possibly subscribe
to the above ideology. Therefore, she is conscious of this in the way in
which she presents her story.
She begins her life story with the following:
Remember what you learned about elite slaves - her father was one of
them; and for that reason, he is able to assert a sense of his own manhood
that most slaves could not. Also, note the difference between her
upbringing and that of Douglass.
In the following passages, Jacobs spends a bit of time describing her
parents and her other relatives. One of the things you might notice in her
descriptions is the way in which she describes them in terms of race and/or
color. Why do you think she does this?
Three different ideas regarding this:
1) She is trying to establish a relationship between herself and her readers
by asserting that she and her family are of Anglo-Saxon heritage.
2) She is showing how prevalent the sexual exploitation of black slave
women is through her family lineage.
or
3) She believes in ideas of hierarchy based on race and is trying to present
herself as better than other black people.
What do you think is most probable?
At a certain point, Harriet (who calls herself Linda in the narrative) is
transferred to new owners. Her descriptions of them foreshadow problems
for her.
Note that Mrs. Flint does not conform to the tenets of the Cult of True
Womanhood in many ways: She is not domestic because she does not
"superintend" her household affairs. She is not pious because she whips
slaves on the sabbath. She is not pure because she can watch a slave
whipped and see blood drip to the floor without batting an eye. She also
spits which would not be seen as "ladylike".
*Purity is a quality that is pervasive in women's lives. They should be pure
in thought and deed. Blood should make them faint. Profanity would make
them blush. I think you get the picture:)
Her description of Dr. Flint is much worse:
And, when she was 15 years old, he begins his assault on her:
She presents herself as helpless under these circumstances. She needs
her readers to understand her inability to protect herself so that they will
take pity on her for her actions that are to follow.
She is friendly with a young white attorney who lives in town and who
begins to take an interest in her. They will begin a written correspondence
that will ultimately turn into a physical affair.
This is pretty scandalous for the time period. Think about it - she willingly
has sex outside of marriage. I think we, as modern readers, understand
why she took the actions that she did, but remember who her readers
are. Would they think that this was a viable alternative to what she was
facing from her master?
This is all strategy for Harriet (Linda). She believes that her master's
interest in her derives, in part, from her virgin status. She assumes that
once Dr. Flint learns that she is no longer chaste, his interest in her will
wane.
She takes control of her own sexuality. She says that making her own
decision regarding who she has sex with, feels like freedom. Nevertheless,
she still must contend with the judgment from her reading audience. She
tries to excuse her behavior several times.
She tries to rationalize her decision and then move away from it by
presenting herself as a consumate mother. She must battle the binary
constuction of womanhood that asserts that you are either a good woman
or a bad one.
She will try to focus her readers' attention on how great of a mother she is:
However even in her presentation of herself as a good mother, she draws
attention to the issues related to motherhood that most women do not have
to face. Slave mothers must always contend with the very real fact that
their children can be taken from them at any time. And for this
reason, infanticide is a thought that is more common to slave
mothers. Your text will relate the story of Margaret Garner in reference to
this.
These are just a few of the issues that this text presents. Read the rest of
the assigned reading to learn the extent to which she goes to become free
and her steadfast resistance of Dr. Flint's efforts to abuse her.
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