The author prefaces her book by stating how she wrote this whenever she could "snatch an hour from household chores". The very fact that this account comes from someone who personally underwent the experience of slavery merits this a status that is equal, if not more, than the status merited by theories on and around the issue of slavery.
Harriet Jacots, a slave, could be seen as a classic subaltern but her speaking to Northerns, depicting her situation and the situation of countless others like her, endows her with a voice that (in my opinion) is much more effective than anything else in moving the readers.
The various levels of subjugation that a slave undergoes are highlighted here. It is not only poverty, destitution, humiliation and barbarity, that is a feature of daily lives for the slaves. Added to this, is the additional dimension for slave girls of the constant fear of maintaining their purity and resisting the attempts by their masters to even rule over their bodies. Unimaginable as it is, beauty for them is a curse. Here then, resistance can take forms that are subtle, yet very powerful. For example, the author chooses someone else over her master to deny him the glory of being with her. The strength with which she resists this urge, despite the promises of comfortable living, and goes on to defy her master's wishes highlights the strength of her resolve and the hatred that she feels for him.
Narratives play an important role in keeping the slaves from running away to the North. Here Harriet highlights how stories of how the slaves suffered worse fate in the North highlight the role of knowledge production in perpetuating the interests of the powerful. How Harriet is made to read the newspaper by an old slave to find out about the situation of slaves in the North was a powerful moment, depicting this knowledge gap.
Harriet reminded Benjamin of the poverty and hardships he must encounter among strangers. Is it interesting to note how this fear of strangers was embedded within the slaves- in most cases, they were made to believe how a miserable life as slave was better than the uncertainty that laid out there.
Standard notions of morality are also effectively challenged by Harriet. When Benjamin tells his mother how he did not jump in the river fearing for her mother, she asks him if he did not fear about God. Here, he retorts: "No I did not think of Him. When a man is hunted like a wild beast he forgets there is a God, a heaven. He forgets everything in his struggle to get beyond the reach of the bloodhounds". This theme is again highlighted when the author highlights the circumstance in which she chose to be with that white man. These words were very powerful in depicting this alternative narrative of morality.
Harriet Jacots, a slave, could be seen as a classic subaltern but her speaking to Northerns, depicting her situation and the situation of countless others like her, endows her with a voice that (in my opinion) is much more effective than anything else in moving the readers.
The various levels of subjugation that a slave undergoes are highlighted here. It is not only poverty, destitution, humiliation and barbarity, that is a feature of daily lives for the slaves. Added to this, is the additional dimension for slave girls of the constant fear of maintaining their purity and resisting the attempts by their masters to even rule over their bodies. Unimaginable as it is, beauty for them is a curse. Here then, resistance can take forms that are subtle, yet very powerful. For example, the author chooses someone else over her master to deny him the glory of being with her. The strength with which she resists this urge, despite the promises of comfortable living, and goes on to defy her master's wishes highlights the strength of her resolve and the hatred that she feels for him.
Narratives play an important role in keeping the slaves from running away to the North. Here Harriet highlights how stories of how the slaves suffered worse fate in the North highlight the role of knowledge production in perpetuating the interests of the powerful. How Harriet is made to read the newspaper by an old slave to find out about the situation of slaves in the North was a powerful moment, depicting this knowledge gap.
Harriet reminded Benjamin of the poverty and hardships he must encounter among strangers. Is it interesting to note how this fear of strangers was embedded within the slaves- in most cases, they were made to believe how a miserable life as slave was better than the uncertainty that laid out there.
Standard notions of morality are also effectively challenged by Harriet. When Benjamin tells his mother how he did not jump in the river fearing for her mother, she asks him if he did not fear about God. Here, he retorts: "No I did not think of Him. When a man is hunted like a wild beast he forgets there is a God, a heaven. He forgets everything in his struggle to get beyond the reach of the bloodhounds". This theme is again highlighted when the author highlights the circumstance in which she chose to be with that white man. These words were very powerful in depicting this alternative narrative of morality.
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