SFR - Slave Narratives Lesson
Slave Narratives Lesson
Abolitionism in the United States
During the first half of the 19th century, the abolitionist movement in the United States was at its height. Leaders and speakers argued against the expansion of slavery into new territories and states while also urging the abolishment of slavery where it was already legal. Fiction writers, such as Harriet Beecher Stowe, used their literary skills to create moving, passionate, and persuasive - though fictional and sentimental (writing that tries to elicit the maximum emotional response from the reader) - characters and stories whose lives were destroyed by slavery. Stowe's anti-slavery novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin, was the most popular novel of its time and is often cited as further stirring up the emotions that would lead to the Civil War. To learn more about Harriet Beecher Stowe, watch the video on Stowe linked below.
Harriet Beecher Stowe Video Link Links to an external site.
Slave Narratives
Please view the following presentation, which will give you an overview of Slave Narratives. As you review the information, please take notes, as this presentation will provide you with a foundation for understanding the texts we will study in this lesson. Please be patient while the presentation loads - depending on your internet connection, it may take some time. Ensure that your speakers are turned up, and use the controls at the bottom of the presentation to pause or re-start the presentation if needed.
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass,
An American Slave by Frederick Douglass
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave is the first of Douglass's autobiographies, published in 1845 when Douglass was 27. In this autobiography, Douglass does not mention how he escaped from slavery in order to preserve that method for other slaves wishing to use it. After its publication and widespread fame, Douglass fled to England, where he lectured on the evils of slavery for several years while his supporters there raised money to buy his legal freedom so he could safely return to the United States as a free man in 1847.
Reading Assignment
It is now time to read a portion of The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. This excerpt is titled "The Battle with Mr. Covey" and describes the time Douglass was sold to a new master and had a bad encounter with the slave breaker, Edward Covey. Douglass was about 16 years old at this time.
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Ann Jacobs
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Jacobs's autobiography, was published in 1861 under the pseudonym Linda Brent. The autobiography was groundbreaking because for the first time readers share a female perspective of slavery, specifically women's struggles with sexual harassment and abuse and the eroding role of mothers in the slave system. However, this autobiography was not as widely read as Frederick Douglass's at the time due to the outbreak of the Civil War shortly after its publication.
Reading Assignment
It is now time to read a portion of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl.
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Text Link Links to an external site.
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