Slavery in America

The Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is a story about a girl named Linda Brent, who spent her early childhood in a happy home with her father and mother. Her life completely changed after the death of her mother. The six year old Linda was sent to live with her mother’s mistress, who treated her very well, taught her to read and write. Unfortunately, the happy days did not that last that long, her master died and Linda was sent to a relative of her master. Her new master, Dr. Flint was cruel and neglectful. He soon began to pressure Linda to have a sexual relationship with him. Over the course of the book, the author Harriet Jacobs discuss about her life as a woman slave living a cruel family, she also talks about the lives of other women slaves and the inhumane treatment that they have been through. Therefore, The Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl was more about the plight of enslaved women than the plight of enslaved African- American.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs is a personal story that highlights the injustice of slavery. This book was based on the author’s

Harriet Jacobs wrote, “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl” using the pseudonym Linda Brent, and is among the most well-read female slave narratives in American history. Jacobs faces challenges as both a slave and as a mother. She was exposed to discrimination in numerous fronts including race, gender, and intelligence. Jacobs also appeals to the audience about the sexual harassment and abuse she encountered as well as her escape. Her story also presents the effectiveness of her spirit through fighting racism and showing the importance of women in the community.

Life as a female slave was particularly difficult and full of many hardships. Black female slaves would face discrimination through both racism and sexism. Female slaves were used mainly to perform basic housekeeping chores as well as a reproductive role in the plantation, having children that would grow to be laborers in the plantation. Many enslaved mothers would have to watch as their children were abused in the fields by cruel masters or sold away to slave traders to work in some field never to be seen again. Another hardship faced by female slaves was the sexual abuse many would face by their masters. Many female slaves were either sexually harassed or sexually assaulted. Some female slaves would be forced into having affairs with their masters to have opportunity for their children to not endure abuse in the fields. Harriet Jacobs was no exception, she was sexually harassed by her master, Dr. James Norcom (Dr. Flint in Incidents). Jacobs even went so far as to commit to an affair with a

Harriet A. Jacobs Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl: Jacobs’s construction of black female empowerment despite the limitations of slavery

The feminist movement sought to gain rights for women. Many feminist during the early nineteenth century fought for the abolition of slavery around the world. The slave narrative became a powerful feminist tool in the nineteenth century. Black and white women are fictionalized and objectified in the slave narrative. White women are idealized as pure, angelic, and chaste while black woman are idealized as exotic and contained an uncontrollable, savage sexuality. Harriet Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of A Slave Girl, brought the sexual oppression of captive black women into the public and political arena.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs strongly speaks to its readers by describing the brutalities of slavery and the way slave owners can destroy peaceful lives. After reading and rereading the story have noticed certain things regarding how Jacobs tries to educate her readers and her intended audience which is the women of the North. As if we do not know enough about how terrible slavery is, this story gives detailed examples of the lives of slaves and provokes an incredible amount of emotions. She uses several tactics in her writing to reach her desired audience and does so very well.

Harriet Jacobs’ gender helped to flesh out the oppressive dimensions of slavery. Rather than slavery being a system of racial dominance, there was an element of gender exploitation utilized in dehumanizing “Linda Brent” and other enslaved women. This is indicative in how Jacob’s family as exemplified through her mother and grandmother would face unique prejudice as indicated by their race and sex. In addition, Dr. Flint’s abusive treatment of Jacobs would further reinforce the patriarchal hierarchy of slavery that would denigrate the likes of Jacobs. Overall, gender only exacerbates the inhumane actions as implicated with rape and sexual abuse.

Harriet Jacobs' words in Incidents in the Life of A Slave Girl clearly suggests that the life as a slave girl is harsh and unsatisfactory. In this Composition, Jacobs is born a slave, never to be freed. She struggles through life in many instances making life seem impossible. The author's purpose is to state to the people what happened during slavery times in the point of view of a slave. Her life is so harsh that she even hides from her master for 7 years in a cramped space in the top of a shed without any room to walk. The theme of the story is a statement on how slavery was a much harder way of life than many people may have thought. Many people during these times thought that slaves were happy where they were and that their lives

Slavery was a horrible institution that dehumanized a race of people. Female slave bondage was different from that of men. It wasn't less severe, but it was different. The sexual abuse, child bearing, and child care responsibilities affected the females's pattern of resistance and how they conducted their lives. Harriet Jacobs' Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, demonstrates the different role that women slaves had and the struggles that were caused from having to cope with sexual abuse.

Slavery's mark has long since been made on America, from the start of indentured servants whom came over to escape their previous life to work in turn for a fresh start in a world that had more frontierland the people to fill it. Moving through history slavery then brought Africans over to America in hopes of a better labor source then their help. A revolution in society happened. Slavery grip on the new land transformed the Europeans sister society into something entirely new. Something entirely American.

In "Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl", Harriet Jacobs writes, "Slavery is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women" (64). Jacobs' work presents the evils of slavery as being worse in a woman's case due to the tenets of gender identity. Jacobs elucidates the disparity between societal dictates of what the proper roles were for Nineteenth century women and the manner that slavery prevented a woman from fulfilling these roles. The book illustrates the double standard of for white women versus black women. Harriet Jacobs serves as an example of the female slave's desire to maintain the prescribed virtues but how her circumstances often prevented her from practicing.

Harriet Jacobs’s Incidents in the life of a Slave Girl allows Harriet Jacobs, speaking through the narrator, Linda Brent, to reveal her reasons for making public her personal story of enslavement, degradation, and sexual exploitation. Although originally ignored by critics, who often dismissed Jacobs ' story as a fictional account of slavery, today it is reported as the first novel narrative by an ex-slave that reveals the unique brutalities inflicted on enslaved women. Gabby Reyes

While slavery was a horrific thing that led to the mistreatment of millions of black people, it had the power to last for centuries. When looking closely at historical accounts it becomes easier to see why this horrible practice was able to sustain for so long. One of the reasons was because the economy of Colonial America relied heavily on the labor of slaves. Farming, the slave trade itself, and the harsh treatment of slaves were all driven by the greed of slave owners. Another reason that slavery lasted so long was racism. During this time, the black population was considered inferior to the white population. This helped to promote the cruel behaviors that occurred in slavery. Lastly, many whites actually felt that the slaves were treated

Harriet Jacobs, in her narrative, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, was born into slavery in the south. While her youth contained “six years of happy childhood,” a few tragedies and mistresses later, Jacobs spent many years in pain under the possession of her cruel five-year-old mistress, Emily Flint, and Emily’s father, Dr. Flint. Once able to obtain freedom, Jacobs spent most of her life working for the Anti-Slavery office in New York, in hope that one day she could make a difference in the world. “She sought to win the respect and admiration of her readers for the courage with which she forestalled abuse and for the independence with which she chose a lover rather than having one forced on her” (Jacobs 921). Linda Brett, the pseudonym that Jacobs uses to narrate her life story, endures the harsh behavior women slaves were treated with in the south during the nineteenth century. The dominant theme of the corruptive power and psychological abuse of slavery, along with symbolism of good and evil, is demonstrated throughout her narrative to create a story that exposes the terrible captivity woman slaves suffered. The reality of slavery in the past, versus slavery today is used to reveal how the world has changed and grown in the idea of racism and neglect.