Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl Written By Herself

[vodkafan]

Review:

 

Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl Written By Herself

by Harriet Ann Jacobs

 

This book was a free download from Amazon.

First thing, which I feel I must correct, is that although it is credited to the above person,

the slave in question was in fact Linda Brent and the story is completely hers; HAJ basically proof read the manuscript and tidied up the punctuation. A few white people at the end attest to the truth of her recollections and to her good character.

This was a very interesting book. Nobody would of course defend slavery now, but when Linda wrote her story it was still an ongoing institution. I think it is a book everybody should read, especially teenagers who are at risk from racist propoganda from media and TV.

Although it cannot be said that Linda was "lucky" during her time as a slave, she managed to avoid some of the more brutal aspects and cruelties of that existence, which she acknowledges. She notes in passing what befell other slaves. But she was still forced to endure much hardship. It made a very apt prequel to The Help which was set 110 years later .

One thing I was surprised at was the amount of close interaction between slaves and owners. But the fact that blacks felt degraded and dehumanised is made clear.

Edited March 6, 2011 by vodkafan

[frankie]

I stumbled upon this book in a secondhand bookstore in OZ and almost bought it, however left without it in the end but wrote the name down. Thanks for the review, seems like an interesting read and one we would all benefit from reading.

 

You mentioned you were surprised at how close the slaves and the owners were. Do you mean in any particular way or just in general? I immediately thought of Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café. Without giving away anything of the plot, there was this man who was known to be condoning some racist attacks. People were talking about him and an old black woman said that the person will do racist things eventhough when he was this and that age, he cried his heart out when his black nanny died. Oh I wish I remembered the exact quote, it was juicy!

 

Anyways, I'll be definitely looking out for this books.

Edited March 6, 2011 by frankie

[vodkafan]

I stumbled upon this book in a secondhand bookstore in OZ and almost bought it, however left without it in the end but wrote the name down. Thanks for the review, seems like an interesting read and one we would all benefit from reading.

 

You mentioned you were surprised at how close the slaves and the owners were. Do you mean in any particular way or just in general?

 

 

Well, I didn't want to go into too much detail. Slavery in the south was not a uniform experience all over. Plantation slaves were very hard worked and could not get away with much, they were basically worked to death. Domestic slaves were treated better and were sometimes allowed to marry. There were also small communities of free blacks who stayed around because others in their family were still in bondage. But ALL slaves of both sexes , and "coloured" people in general were completely open to sexual abuse and other kinds of abuse from white people. All forms of coercion, violence and emotional blackmail were used. Slaves were given promises to ensure good behaviour which were often broken. Children could be taken away at any time and sold. To be female and attractive was a special curse and burden. But some slave women took white lovers willingly and had children which were sometimes given legal status and set free by their white fathers. That is the part that surprised me. But slavery shamed everybody, white and black alike. There was no escape. White wives of slave owners were often jealous of female slaves and treated them more cruelly than the men.

If you are interested in the human condition frankie you really should read this book. Maybe Kylie can still get it for you?

Edited March 6, 2011 by vodkafan

[frankie]

Thanks for elaborating, vodkafan. It is true that the slaves were put to endure all sorts of things, there wasn't anything that was too cruel to do to them. When I was younger, I used to wonder at the white males who would have sex with their black slaves, I thought if they hate them so much, why would they want to sleep with them? Since then I've grown to understand that 'having sex' sometimes equals rape, and that rape is very much a form of actualising hate, sometimes, and it's also to do with assuming power over the other person.

 

I don't remember where I saw the book, or rather I remember the secondhand bookshop but not the town/city which it was in and besides, I just checked play.com and the book is available there, so I don't have to bother Kylie if/when I want to buy it.

 

A lot of food for thought!

[vodkafan]

>

Thanks for elaborating, vodkafan. It is true that the slaves were put to endure all sorts of things, there wasn't anything that was too cruel to do to them. When I was younger, I used to wonder at the white males who would have sex with their black slaves, I thought if they hate them so much, why would they want to sleep with them? Since then I've grown to understand that 'having sex' sometimes equals rape, and that rape is very much a form of actualising hate, sometimes, and it's also to do with assuming power over the other person

.<

 

 

It's not just rape. OK don't read this if you don't want to know! In the end knowing that she cannot escape her masters desires for ever, Linda WILLINGLY loses her virginity to (and becomes pregnant by) another white man just so that she has some freedom of choice, and to enrage her master.

 

 

>

I don't remember where I saw the book, or rather I remember the secondhand bookshop but not the town/city which it was in and besides, I just checked play.com and the book is available there, so I don't have to bother Kylie if/when I want to buy it

.<

 

 

Wow! How many town/cities did you two hit? You must have had carfuls of books. You two are crazy I can imagine you now in the car laughing like loons with your loot like a literary Thelma and Louise.

[Weave]

I stumbled upon this book in a secondhand bookstore in OZ and almost bought it, however left without it in the end but wrote the name down. Thanks for the review, seems like an interesting read and one we would all benefit from reading.

 

You mentioned you were surprised at how close the slaves and the owners were. Do you mean in any particular way or just in general? I immediately thought of Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café. Without giving away anything of the plot, there was this man who was known to be condoning some racist attacks. People were talking about him and an old black woman said that the person will do racist things eventhough when he was this and that age, he cried his heart out when his black nanny died. Oh I wish I remembered the exact quote, it was juicy!

 

Anyways, I'll be definitely looking out for this books.

 

I know what part you mean too Frankie but I am sorry to say, I can't remember the exact lines either and it was juicy

Edited March 6, 2011 by Weave

[frankie]

It's not just rape. OK don't read this if you don't want to know! In the end knowing that she cannot escape her masters desires for ever, Linda WILLINGLY loses her virginity to (and becomes pregnant by) another white man just so that she has some freedom of choice, and to enrage her master.

 

I confess, I couldn't resist the temptation of the spoiler.

I like it that Linda finds a way to take the control of herself back to herself, when one would think that there is no way to do so. Even if it means doing something pretty much equally awful, she does it to claim her life as her own.

 

 

 

Wow! How many town/cities did you two hit? You must have had carfuls of books. You two are crazy I can imagine you now in the car laughing like loons with your loot like a literary Thelma and Louise.

 

We visited a few places... I think you've summed up Kylie and my bookish excursions pretty perfectly

 

 

I know what part you mean too Frankie but I am sorry to say, I can't remember the exact lines either and it was juicy

 

I couldn't find the right quote but I found another one that is about the same subject, and funnier:

 

Sipsey: "Oh it don't make no kind of sense. Big ol' ox like Grady won't sit next to a colored child. But he eats eggs- shoot right outta chicken's ass! "

 

There are so many memorable lines in that movie, it's such a gem!