ipl-logo

Summary Of From Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs

1520 Words7 Pages

The experience of slavery is very different for men and women. In the writing From Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (1861) by Harriet Jacobs we learn about her personal story. She explains that she shared her experience for a special reason, she explains the reasoning as:
“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” (Jacobs, 846-847).
The main focus of her story is the sexual abuse her slave owner put her through. Unfortunately, most female slaves were hopeless …show more content…

You’re probably wondering, why would Harriet think her master would care for the children she created with him? Perhaps that was her hope that she would be treated with more respect. and dignity. The idea of a father not caring for their offspring no matter what circumstances is not shocking to me. During this time period women took care of their children not the fathers. According to The Slave Experience: Men, Women, & Gender by Jennifer Hallam (2004), “They put their responsibilities for their children before their own safety and freedom, provided for children not their own, and gave love even to those babies born from violence” (Hallam, 2).
Jacobs portrays her motherly bravery later in her life story. In order to provide a better lifestyle for her children she decided to run away from slavery. For seven years she went into hiding at her free grandmother's house. Harriet hid inside the attic for years hiding from her master. Similar to Douglass, Harriet was brave enough to risk her lives for the improvement of others lives. The bravery of a mother during slavery is incredible, it takes a lot of courage to know that if you get caught by …show more content…

Most slaves believed in God and to think that they couldn’t even understand the Bible all because they were denied an education is mournful. It’s also very inspiring that throughout all of the degrading events that slaves went through they always had their faith with God. Although the first slaves to come into the United States had their own religious beliefs, while living their lives in America many of them converted to christianity. According to The Slave Experience: Religion (2004) by Kimberly Sambol-Tosco, “For instance, fugitive slaves from South Carolina, headed for Florida, where the Spanish Crown promised them freedom as a reward for conversion” (Sambol-Tosco,

Show More
Related

  • Primary Document Analysis Of Girl By Linda Cruz

    614 Words  | 3 Pages

    However a female slave was treated and used different type of needs. This Narrative is different because it highlights how the females were beating, mental torture, sexual aggravation and also the loss of her children. The agony of slave mothers having their children sold for profit, but were girls kept because they were sexuality victimized by the white

    Read More

  • Fredrick Douglass And Harriet Jacobs Narrative Analysis

    520 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Fredrick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs narrative they show how the institution of slavery dehumanizes an individual both physically and emotionally. In Jacobs narrative she talks about how women had it worse than men did in slavery. While men suffered, women had it worse due to sexual abuse. The emotional, physical, and sexual abuse was dehumanizing for anyone.

    Read More

  • Harriet Jacobs Research Paper

    188 Words  | 1 Pages

    Jacobs later began “to contribute her life story to the abolitionist cause in a way that would capture the attention of Northern white women in particular, to show how slavery debased and demoralized woman” (Baym, 921). Jacobs wrote an autobiography on her life as a slave little girl. In her book she described the kind of treatment African

    Read More

  • Harriet Ann Jacobs Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl

    738 Words  | 3 Pages

    She wanted to gain her freedom and to inform Northern white women of the pain and suffering endured by African American females during slavery. With all the rape and disrespect that took place during that time, its logical that anyone would want to forget all the mental and physical abuse they received from their owners. Just like all successful abolitionist Harriet wanted to fight against slavery and all the torture it came along with. She strived to preserve the right for freedom and the rights that all female slaves were

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Harriet Jacobs And Frederick Douglass

    710 Words  | 3 Pages

    Later in the text, she even describes how she pursued another man and got pregnant in order to escape her master's advances. Unfortunately, this is not a rarity in the experience of slavery for women. Rape was a very real and very common fear for women in the institution, as there was nothing protecting them from it. Being the property of whoever owns them, they were subjected to the most horrific of punishments with no way to escape. While their experiences are not comparable in terms of harshness, there is a certain element in the experience of enslaved women that men did not have to

    Read More

  • What Are The Similarities Between Frederick Douglass And Harriet Jacobs

    666 Words  | 3 Pages

    Frederick Douglass & Harriet Jacobs Slavery has been noted as one of the biggest social issues in America. From the beginning of time, race has been seen as a barrier for some people despite their various attempts at equality none seem to yield any positive results. Frederick Douglas and Harriet Jacobs both have tried to be seen as equal to others but come up short due to the oppression of their skin color. But as a result of their power to not conform to being enslaved and treated like objects due to dehumanization is what leads them on their journey to becoming one of the few free slaves. “My natural elasticity was crushed, my intellect languished, the disposition to read departed, the cheerful spark that lingered about my eye died; the dark night of slavery closed in upon me; and behold a man transformed into a brute.”

    Read More

  • The Harsh Lives Of Frederick Douglass And Harriet Jacobs

    1630 Words  | 7 Pages

    In today’s world, we learn about the harsh lives that slaves had to endure and how mistreated they were their entire lives. It’s often hard to imagine what it would have been like and how they coped with their terrible lives. Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs discuss how they were able to find hope and comfort through the toughest of times. Through the harsh reality of slavery, slaves had the comfort of family, friends, and God to give them hope to one day have freedom.     Family was a large comfort and a little bit of an incentive for slaves who were fortunate enough to have their family near them.

    Read More

  • Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs

    1196 Words  | 5 Pages

    Many slaves ran away because of enduring physical and mental abuse. Since there were very few laws to protect slaves, they were often mistreated. In the book Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs tells her true story of what she encountered during slavery. She tells of how after her Mistress died she was inherited by her late mistress’s niece. Since the niece was only five years old, Jacobs Master was the father of the little girl.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs

    848 Words  | 4 Pages

    Harriet Jacobs writes about mainly mistreatment, but there

    Read More

  • Harriet Jacobs Sparknotes

    1136 Words  | 5 Pages

    Equivocating the “Slave” In order to properly understand the capacity of being able to live a life of constant stress and then articulate the life’s story in a fashion that grasps more than the intended audience, when it comes stories being told regarding chattel slavery, one needs to closely read to thoroughly examine the literature of the overall experience. Harriet Jacobs, also published as Linda Brandt, was a daughter, former chattel property/slave, permanent mother/granddaughter, and abolitionist turned profound author. In her autobiography, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (1861), Jacobs pleaded with her targeted Northern colonized female audience in a chance to aide in the severe inhumane predicaments that occupied the Southern

    Read More

  • Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs

    1108 Words  | 5 Pages

    Ever since the whole situation with Her losing her Grandma, Harriet begins showing maturity and a more decided opinion on whites. “The influences of slavery had had the same effect on me that they had on other young girls; they had made me prematurely knowing, concerning the evil ways of the world.” (Jacob, pg. 51). The influence and effects that her childhood had left on her has definitely shaped up her side on the battle of oppression between the Whites and African Americans.

    Read More

  • Harriet Jacobs

    1841 Words  | 8 Pages

    At this point to the average American, it is rightfully believed that slavery or human trafficking is an abomination. However, most of us could never truly empathize with a slave or former slave, let alone a female slave. The short piece on page 27 of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is a vastly important look into the mind of Harriet Jacobs, because not only did it give us insight on how it felt to be a young, female slave, but she also provided a voice to the voiceless. The focus of this excerpt from Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is an African-American woman that was born into slavery, named Harriet Jacobs.

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Mary Rowlandson And Harriet Jacobs

    420 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mary Rowlandson and Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl share is that both were written not as a journal but as a means to paint a picture of their enslavement. Rowlandson “wrote for her surviving children” (Gilbert and Gubar 175) and in turn illustrated the power and mercy of God. And Jacobs wrote for her “sisters who [were] still [suffering] in bondage” (Jacobs 620). In the beginning of Rowlandson’s and Jacobs’ books the oppressors are painted as “merciless enemies” (Rowlandson 175) and as a “hoary-headed miscreant” (Jacobs 624).

    Read More

  • Summary Of Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs

    654 Words  | 3 Pages

    1315334 Harriet Jacobs was born a slave. Until the age of six she had a "normal" childhood. In her book From Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (1861), she shares her experiences of what it was like to be a slave. Jacobs says herself she created this piece of writing because, " I want to add my testimony to that of abler pens to convince the people of the Free States what Slavery really is. Only by experience can any one realize how deep, and dark, and foul is that pit of abominations.

    Read More

  • Harriet Jacobs Accomplishments

    1119 Words  | 5 Pages

    Alizae lounnarath Prof. Troy HIST 1301 12/1/14 Harriet Jacobs Final Paper Assignment Harriet Jacobs was a very important African American women during the hard times of slavery. Harriet was an example of how African American women were treated. Although she was tough and went through a long journey she survived and accomplished her goal of gaining freedom for herself and her family. Harriet was also an author who wrote a popular book Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl which told her personal story including all the barriers in her life so that people could be aware of the cruel treatments and the lifestyle some of the helpless enslaved women had to go through during the 1800-1900’s.

    Read More

More about Summary Of From Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs

Open Document