Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl

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.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1861.

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This is a far-ranging study which contextualises both the historical figure of Harriet Jacobs and her autobiography as a created work of art.

The unflinching nineteenth-century autobiography that broke the silence on the psychosexual exploitation of Black women—with an introduction by Tiya Miles, author of All That She Carried and National Book Award finalist “[A] crowning achievement . . . [Jacobs] remodeled the forms of the black slave narrative and the white female sentimental novel to create a new literary form—a narrative at once black and female.” —Henry Louis Gates, Jr., The New York Times In clear and unshrinking prose, Harriet Jacobs—writing under the pseudonym Linda Brent—relates the story of her girlhood and adolescence as a slave in North Carolina and her eventual escape: a bildungsroman set in the complex terrain of a chauvinist, white supremacist society. Resolutely addressing women readers, rather than men, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl seeks to make white women understand how the threat of sexual violence shapes the lives of enslaved Black women and children. Equal parts brave and searing, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is a triumph of American literature. The Modern Library Torchbearers series features women who wrote on their own terms, with boldness, creativity, and a spirit of resistance. AMERICAN INDIAN STORIES • THE AWAKENING • THE CUSTOM OF THE COUNTRY • THE HEADS OF CERBERUS • LADY AUDLEY’S SECRET • LOVE, ANGER, MADNESS • PASSING • THE RETURN OF THE SOLDIER • THERE IS CONFUSION • THE TRANSFORMATION OF PHILIP JETTAN • VILLETTE

This Prestwick House Literary Touchstone Classic includes a glossary and reader's notes to help the modern reader appreciate Jacobs' perspectives and language.DRIVEN BY THE HORRORS of slavery and fear of a predatory master, Harriet Jacobs, a young black woman, makes the fateful, life-altering decision to escape. Long thought to be the work of a white writer, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is the captivating and terrifying story of Jacobs' daily life on a plantation in North Carolina, her seven years of hiding, and her ultimate triumph.Jacobs wrote her autobiography in 1861, under a pseudonym to protect the lives of the friends and family she left behind, and the work had been essentially lost until the mid-twentieth century. Now recognized as a classic, unflinching portrait of slave life, Incidents exposes slavery on a level comparable only to that of Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.

“One of the major autobiographies of the African-American tradition.”—Henry Louis Gates, Jr. “It has been painful to me, in many ways, to recall the dreary years I passed in bondage. I would gladly forget them if I could. Yet the retrospection is not altogether without solace; for with these gloomy recollections come tender memories of my good old grandmother, like light fleecy clouds floating over a dark and troubled sea.” One of the most memorable slave narratives, Harriet Jacobs’s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl illustrates the overarching evil and pervasive depravity of the institution of slavery. In great and painful detail, Jacobs describes her life as a Southern slave, the exploitation that haunted her daily life, her abuse by her master, the involvement she sought with another white man in order to escape her master, and her determination to win freedom for herself and her children. From her seven years of hiding in a garret that was three feet high, to her harrowing escape north to a reunion with her children and freedom, Jacobs’s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl remains an outstanding example of one woman’s extraordinary courage in the face of almost unbeatable odds, as well as one of the most significant testimonials in American history.

To commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the end of the Civil War, Diversion Books is publishing seminal works of the era: stories told by the men and women who led, who fought, and who lived in an America that had come apart at the seams. Among the first of slave narratives to be published, Harriet A. Jacobs led an extraordinary life, punctuated by the limitless hardship of slavery, made indelible by the sheer power of her words. In this narrative she writes candidly of the treatment she witness and endured as a slave, as well as her dramatic escape to freedom.

"Accompanied by historical photographs, public statements, and correspondence, and by a well-selected sampling of modern criticism, this Norton Critical Edition will stimulate many classroom discussions in years to come." --Werner Sollors, Harvard University "This new edition includes an array of reviews and correspondence along with a fresh and diverse set of scholarly critiques that will help students and instructors understand this remarkable autobiography." --Bryan Sinche, University of Hartford

"Harriet Jacobs's 1861 autobiography was the first written narrative by a female slave in America. Using the pseudonym Linda, Jacobs recounts the horrors of her life as a slave and a mother. She documents the physical and sexual abuse she went through prior to her escape from slavery and gaining freedom for herself and two children. The "Contexts" section provides a selection of public statements written by prominent abolitionists, including Harriet Jacobs, on the cruelty of slavery. A selection of correspondence between Harriet Jacobs and her fellow abolitionists is also included. The "Criticism" selection examines a variety of topics, ranging from the form of the text to discussions on oral tradition, activism, the intersection of race and gender, and print culture. A Chronology and Selected Bibliography are also included."--Provided by publisher.

This enlarged edition of the most significant and celebrated slave narrative completes the Jacobs family saga, surely one of the most memorable in all of American history. John S. Jacobs’s short slave narrative, A True Tale of Slavery, published in London in 1861, adds a brother’s perspective to Harriet A. Jacobs’s autobiography. It is an exciting addition to this now classic work, as John Jacobs presents further historical information about family life so well described already by his sister. Once more, Jean Fagan Yellin, who discovered this long-lost document, supplies annotation and authentication. This is the standard edition of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, reissued here in the John Harvard Library and updated with a new bibliography.

Part of the Hero Classics series Reader, did you ever hate? I hope not. I never did but once; and I trust I never shall again. Somebody has called it "the atmosphere of hell"; and I believe it is so. First published in 1861 under a pseudonym, this is the autobiography of Harriet Jacobs, a mother, fugitive and slave. The book outlines her life, the struggles she faced as a female slave as well as the hardship she endured to protect her children and the fear of them being sold. As well as a precious historical document, it is also a timeless exploration of issues of race, gender and the struggle for freedom. The Hero Classics series: Meditations The Prophet A Room of One’s Own Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl The Art of War The Life of Charlotte Bronte The Republic The Prince Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave

After hiding in her grandmother’s attic for seven years, Harriet Ann Jacobs was finally able to escape servitude—and her master’s sexual abuse—when she fled to the North. Once there, she became a very active abolitionist, and her correspondence with Harriet Beecher Stowe inspired her to write Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl about her years as a slave. She published the narrative in 1861 under the pseudonym Linda Brent, and the book was written as a novel with fictionalized characters to protect Jacobs from retribution by her former owners. (Dr. Flint, i.e., the real Dr. James Norcom, is Linda Brent’s master in the novel.) The story emphasized certain negative aspects of slavery—especially the struggles of female slaves under sexually abusive masters, cruel mistresses, and the sale of their children—in order to play on the sympathies of white middle-class women in the North. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl was published at the beginning of the American Civil War. It contributed to the Union’s and abolitionists’ war effort, but is today seen as an important first-hand account from an escaped slave woman and an important abolitionist. After the Civil War, Jacobs continued to support the African-American cause, particularly education, until her death in 1897. Skyhorse Publishing, along with our Arcade, Good Books, Sports Publishing, and Yucca imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs. Our list includes biographies on well-known historical figures like Benjamin Franklin, Nelson Mandela, and Alexander Graham Bell, as well as villains from history, such as Heinrich Himmler, John Wayne Gacy, and O. J. Simpson. We have also published survivor stories of World War II, memoirs about overcoming adversity, first-hand tales of adventure, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

The original CliffsNotes study guides offer expert commentary on major themes, plots, characters, literary devices, and historical background. The latest generation of titles in this series also feature glossaries and visual elements that complement the classic, familiar format. With help from CliffsNotes on Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, you explore the first book-length narrative by an ex-slave that reveals the unique brutalities inflicted on enslaved African women in the South. The chapter summaries and commentaries in this study guide expose you to a harrowing story of degradation and sexual exploitation; the struggle for freedom and self-definition; community and family; and writing as a means of freedom. Other features that help you study include An in-depth look at the life of the author, Harriet A. Jacobs Character analyses of major players A character map that graphically illustrates the relationships among the characters Critical essays Glossaries of key words and terms A review section that tests your knowledge Classic literature or modern-day treasure—you'll understand it all with expert information and insight from CliffsNotes study guides.