Most Popular Books by Harriet A. Jacobs

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.

How is this book unique? Font adjustments & biography included Unabridged (100% Original content) Illustrated About Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl by Harriet A. Jacobs Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is an autobiography by a young mother and fugitive slave published in 1861 by L. Maria Child, who edited the book for its author, Harriet Ann Jacobs. Jacobs used the pseudonym Linda Brent. The book documents Jacobs'' life as a slave and how she gained freedom for herself and for her children. Jacobs contributed to the genre of slave narrative by using the techniques of sentimental novels \"to address race and gender issues.\" She explores the struggles and sexual abuse that female slaves faced on plantations as well as their efforts to practice motherhood and protect their children when their children might be sold away.

In what has become a landmark of American history and literature, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl recounts the incredible but true story of Harriet Jacobs, born a slave in North Carolina in 1813. Her tale gains its importance from her descriptions, in great and painful detail, of the sexual exploitation that daily haunted her life-and the life of every other black female slave.As a child, Harriet Jacobs remained blissfully unaware that she was a slave until the deaths of both her mother and a benevolent mistress exposed her to a sexually predatory master, Dr. Flint.

Harriet Jacobs was born in 1813, in Edenton, North Carolina. She was born into slavery to her father, Elijah Jacobs and her mother, Delilah Horniblow. Harriet''s mother died when she six years old and she lived with her mother''s mistress, Margaret Horniblow. Margaret taught Harriet to read, write and sew. When Harriet was 11, Margaret died, and Dr. James Norcom became her new master. Although Jacobs was still a child, Norcom sexually harassed her. When she asked permission to marry a free black slave, Norcom refused to allow it. To get away from Norcom''s sexual advances, she began a consensual sexual relationship with an unmarried, white lawyer named Samuel Sawyer. He was kind and caring to Jacobs. Harriet gave birth to two children with Sawyer, Joseph and Louisa. Norcom continued to pursue her and when Jacobs learned that he was going to force her children to work as plantation slaves, she ran away in 1835. For 7 years, she hid in her grandmother''s attic, and during that time, wrote letters to Norcom to confuse him on her whereabouts. Also, during that time, Sawyer was elected as a member of the United States House of Representatives and had also purchased their children. While Jacobs hid in her grandmother''s attic, her children also lived with her grandmother, and she was able to watch and listen to her children from the attic. In 1842, Jacobs made her escape north. With the help of anti-slavery friends, she was able to make it to New York and find work as a housemaid in 1845 for Mary Stace Willis. She was able to be reunited with her daughter, Louisa, who had also been sent north by Sawyer to work as a house servant. Soon after, she was reunited with her brother, John, who was a fugitive slave. She continued to work for the Willis family after her mistress died. She accompanied Mr. Willis and his daughter to England, where she wrote that there was no prejudice against people of color. A short while later, after their return to the United States, Jacobs left her employment with the family and moved to Boston to be closer to her son, daughter and brother. Her brother was very active in the anti-slavery movement. After her brother opened an anti-slavery reading room, Jacobs became involved with it and soon joined the American Anti-Slavery Society. She helped to support the anti-slavery reading room by giving speeches and collecting donations to help support the movement. In 1850, The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 was passed, and the Jacobs family feared for the freedom and safety. Harriet Jacob;s brother, John, fled to California, where he found work in the gold mines of the Gold Rush, and her son, Joseph Jacobs joined his uncle there a few years later. Meanwhile, in an act of immeasurable kindness, and without the knowledge of Harriet Jacobs, the second wife of Mr, Willis, Cornelia Grinnell Willis paid $300 to purchase Harriet Jacobs and then gave Jacobs her freedom. Jacobs wrote Incidents in the Life of A Slave Girl after a friend of hers, Amy Post, convinced her to do so. It was published in 1861 under the pseudonym Linda Brent. She also changed names in her book, so people wouldn''t be recognized. Mr Norcom is known as Mr Flint. Jacobs was the first woman in the United States to write a fugitive slave autobiography. After Jacobs published her book, she devoted her time to helping former slaves who were refugees of the Civil War. She supported her daughter as she worked to educate African Americans. In 1970, Harriet Jacobs ran a boarding house with Louisa in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In her later years, she lived with her daughter Louisa in Washington D.C., where she died March 7, 1887.

Harriet Jacobs''s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is one of the most compelling accounts of slavery and one of the most unique of the one hundred or so slave narratives -- mostly written by men -- published before the Civil War.The child and grandchild of slaves -- and therefore forbidden by law to read and write -- Harriet Jacobs was defiant in her efforts to gain freedom and to document her experience in bondage. She suffered physical and sexual abuse at the hands of her master at the age of eleven. In 1842, she fled North and joined a circle of abolitionists that worked for Frederick Douglass''s newspaper. In 1863, she and her daughter moved to Alexandria, Virginia, where they organized medical care for Civil War victims and established the Jacobs Free School.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is the story of Harriet Jacobs, who, for her safety, called herself Linda Brent in the narrative. Harriet begins by discussing her childhood. She does not know she is a slave until after her mother dies when she is six. Her earliest years were not unpleasant, but she is soon given to the daughter of Dr. Flint and his wife Mrs. Flint. Dr. Flint was wealthy and cruel, and Harriet and her brother William found solace only in the kindness of their elderly grandmother Aunt Marthy. This grandmother was a favorite in the southern town where the events of the story take place, and another elderly woman purchased her freedom for her when Harriet was still a child.Harriet writes of the horrors of slavery, dwelling on the theme of mothers being divided from their children and any sense of individuality or humanity in a slave being routed out by avaricious slaveholders. Her uncle Benjamin refuses to stand for the cruel treatment he receives, and eventually runs away to the north. Harriet''s grandmother helps free her son Phillip as well, purchasing his freedom.As Harriet grows older, she begins to experience the lascivious persecutions of Dr. Flint. He was intoxicated by her and haunted her every step. She could not escape him and used all of her faculties to dissuade him from raping her. She could not count on Mrs. Flint for any help, however, for the mistresses of slaveholders were often jealous of the young female slaves their husbands lusted for and found their presence intolerable.Harriet finally decides that she will give herself to a white man named Mr. Sands. She had developed feelings for him and he always treated her kindly. She also knows that bearing another man''s child would stave off the attentions of Dr. Flint. Harriet''s plan works to some degree, but the Dr. is viciously cruel to her and tries to force her to tell him the identity of the child''s father. Harriet refuses.

Harriet Ann Jacobs (February 11, 1813 - March 7, 1897) was an American writer, who escaped from the horrors of slavery and became an abolitionist speaker and reformer. Jacobs'' single work, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, published in 1861 under the pseudonym Linda Brent, was one of the first autobiographical narratives about the struggle for freedom by female slaves and an account of the sexual harassment and abuse they endured.

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.

Harriet Ann Jacobs (February 11, 1813 - March 7, 1897) was an African-American writer who escaped from slavery and was later freed. She became an abolitionist speaker and reformer. Jacobs wrote an autobiography, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, first serialized in a newspaper and published as a book in 1861 under the pseudonym Linda Brent. It was a reworking of the genres of slave narrative and sentimental novel, and was one of the first books to address the struggle for freedom by female slaves, explore their struggles with sexual harassment and abuse, and their effort to protect their roles as women and mothers.After being overshadowed by the American Civil War, the book was rediscovered in the late 20th century, when there was new interest in minority and women writers. One scholar (Jean Fagan Yellin) researched the book, identifying Harriet Jacobs as the author and documenting many events and people in her life that corresponded to this autobiographical account....Lydia Maria Francis Child (born Lydia Maria Francis) (February 11, 1802 - October 20, 1880), was an American abolitionist, women''s rights activist, Native American rights activist, novelist, journalist, and opponent of American expansionism.Her journals, both fiction and domestic manuals, reached wide audiences from the 1820s through the 1850s. At times she shocked her audience as she tried to take on issues of both male dominance and white supremacy in some of her stories.Despite these challenges, Child may be most remembered for her poem \"Over the River and Through the Wood.\" Her grandparents'' house, which she wrote about visiting, was restored by Tufts University in 1976 and stands near the Mystic River on South Street, in Medford, Massachusetts.................Plot summaryBorn into slavery in Edenton, NC in 1813, Linda has happy years as a young child with her brother, parents, and maternal grandmother, who are relatively well-off slaves in good positions. It is not until her mother dies that Linda even begins to understand that she is a slave. At the age of six, she is sent to live in the big house under the extended care of her mother''s mistress, who treats her well and teaches her to read. After a few years, this mistress dies and bequeaths Linda to a relative. Her new masters are cruel and neglectful, and Dr. Flint, the father, takes an interest in Linda. He tries to force her into a sexual relationship with him when she comes of age. The girl resists his entreaties and maintains her distance.Knowing that Flint will do anything to get his way, as a young woman Linda consents to a relationship with a white neighbor, Mr. Sands, hoping he can protect her from Flint. As a result of their relations, Sands and Linda have two mixed-race children: Benjamin, often called Benny, and Ellen. Because they were born to a slave mother, they are considered slaves, under the principle of partus sequitur ventrem, which had been part of southern slave law since the 17th century. Linda is ashamed, but hopes this illegitimate relationship will protect her from assault at the hands of Dr. Flint. Linda also hopes that Flint would become angry enough to sell her to Sands, but he refuses to do so. Instead, he sends Linda to his son''s plantation to be broken in as a field hand.When Linda discovers that Benny and Ellen are also to be sent to the fields, she makes a desperate plan. Escaping to the North with two small children would be nearly impossible. Unwilling either to submit to Dr. Flint''s abuse or abandon her family, she hides in the attic of her grandmother Aunt Martha''s cabin. She hopes that Dr. Flint, believing that she has fled to the North, will sell her children rather than risk having them escape as well. Linda is overjoyed when Dr. Flint sells Benny and Ellen to a slave trader who unbeknown to him, secretly represents Sands...

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, written by herself is an autobiography by a young mother and fugitive slave published in 1861 by L. Maria Child, who edited the book for its author, Harriet Ann Jacobs. Jacobs used the pseudonym Linda Brent. The book documents Jacobs''s life as a slave and how she gained freedom for herself and for her children. Jacobs contributed to the genre of slave narrative by using the techniques of sentimental novels \"to address race and gender issues.\" She explores the struggles and sexual abuse that female slaves faced on plantations as well as their efforts to practice motherhood and protect their children when their children might be sold away.In the book, Jacobs addresses white Northern women who fail to comprehend the evils of slavery. She makes direct appeals to their humanity to expand their knowledge and influence their thoughts about slavery as an institution.Jacobs began composing Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl after her escape to New York, while living and working at Idlewild, the Hudson River home of writer and publisher Nathaniel Parker Willis.[2] Portions of her journals were published in serial form in the New-York Tribune, owned and edited by Horace Greeley. Jacobs''s reports of sexual abuse were deemed too shocking for the average newspaper reader of the day, and publication ceased before the completion of the narrative.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, written by herself is an autobiography by Harriet Jacobs, a mother and fugitive slave, published in 1861 by L. Maria Child, who edited the book for its author.

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.

Books for All Kinds of Readers Read HowYouWant offers the widest selection of on-demand, accessible format editions on the market today. Our 7 different sizes of EasyRead are optimized by increasing the font size and spacing between the words and the letters. We partner with leading publishers around the globe. Our goal is to have accessible editions simultaneously released with publishers'' new books so that all readers can have access to the books they want to read. To find more books in your format visit www.readhowyouwant.com

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.

Published in 1861, this was one of the first personal narratives by a slave and one of the few written by a woman.

Published in 1861, this was one of the first personal narratives by a slave and one of the few written by a woman.

Books for All Kinds of Readers Read HowYouWant offers the widest selection of on-demand, accessible format editions on the market today. Our 7 different sizes of EasyRead are optimized by increasing the font size and spacing between the words and the letters. We partner with leading publishers around the globe. Our goal is to have accessible editions simultaneously released with publishers'' new books so that all readers can have access to the books they want to read. To find more books in your format visit www.readhowyouwant.com

Books for All Kinds of Readers Read HowYouWant offers the widest selection of on-demand, accessible format editions on the market today. Our 7 different sizes of EasyRead are optimized by increasing the font size and spacing between the words and the letters. We partner with leading publishers around the globe. Our goal is to have accessible editions simultaneously released with publishers'' new books so that all readers can have access to the books they want to read. To find more books in your format visit www.readhowyouwant.com

Harriet Ann Jacobs wurde 1813 in North Carolina geboren und veröffentlichte ihre Autobiographie im Jahr 1861 unter dem Pseudonym Linda Brent.Zum Inhalt: Linda verbringt sechs glückliche Jahre im Schoß ihrer Familie und weil sie so behütet aufwächst, ahnt sie nicht, dass sie in die Sklaverei geboren wurde. Erst als ihre Mutter stirbt und sie in die Obhut ihrer Herrin kommt, realisiert das junge Mädchen, dass es sich bei ihr um eine menschliche Ware handelt. Zunächst hat sie noch Glück, denn ihre Herrin kümmert sich recht liebevoll um sie. So bringt die Herrin dem jungen Mädchen nähen, lesen und schreiben bei - diese Fähigkeiten sollen ihr in ihrem weiteren Leben noch große Dienste erweisen. Ferner kann sich Linda auf die Hilfe ihrer verbliebenen Familie verlassen. Nur wenige Jahre später verstirbt die gutherzige Herrin, woraufhin Linda an ein dreijähriges Mädchen weitervererbt wird, die in ihrer Nachbarschaft lebt. Da ihre neue Herrin noch nicht mündig ist, untersteht sie jedoch den Eltern des Kindes. Das Glück hat das Sklavenmädchen nun endgültig verlassen, denn sie ist in die Fänge eines hartherzigen Mannes und seiner Ehefrau geraten, welche fortan ihr Leben zur Hölle machen sollen. Der neue Herr, Dr. Flint, belästigt und schikaniert die junge Linda, um sie so zu seiner persönlichen Konkubine heranzuziehen, was wiederum den Zorn und die Eifersucht der Herrin wecken. Aber das junge Mädchen trotzt der Macht der Sklavenhalter und sie fasst den Plan, die Fesseln der Sklaverei zu sprengen. Erleben Sie, wie Linda sich mit Hilfe ihrer Freunde von einem jungen und hilflosen Mädchen zu einer reifen und selbstbestimmten Frau weiterentwickelt. Erlebnisse aus dem Leben eines Sklavenmädchens gewährt Ihnen einzigartige Einblicke in das abscheuliche System der Sklaverei und stellt Ihr Wissen über die sogenannte besondere Institution\" auf die Probe. Wiedergeburt eines Klassikers: In der Autobiographie wird mehrfach darauf hingewiesen, dass die Erzählung der Wahrheit entspricht. Man kann es nicht oft genug betonen, denn die Geschichte von Harriet Ann Jacobs ist so außergewöhnlich, dass man in Gefahr gerät, sie als Produkt der Fantasie oder abolitionistischer Propaganda abzustempeln. Zu den außergewöhnlichen Ereignissen gehört - neben scheinbar wilden Zufällen - der Umstand, dass Harriet Ann Jacobs sich sieben Jahre lang unter furchtbarsten Bedingungen verstecken musste. Nachdem der Wahrheitsgehalt des Buchs in Frage gestellt wurde und die Urheberschaft der Herausgeberin Lydia Maria Child zugeschrieben wurde, geriet dieses beispiellose Zeugnis aus der amerikanischen Sklavenära für lange Zeit in Vergessenheit. Erst in den 80er Jahren des vergangenen Jahrhunderts konnte bewiesen werden, dass die Geschichte tatsächlich der Wahrheit entspricht und darüber hinaus aus Harriet Ann Jacobs Feder stammt. Seitdem die Vorwürfe widerlegt wurden, hat das Buch ein Comeback gefeiert. Heute hat Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl seinen verdienten Platz im Kanon der großen US-amerikanischen Sklavenerzählungen eingenommen, wozu übrigens auch die kürzlich verfilmte Erzählung von Solomon Northup, 12 Years a Slave, gehört. In den Vereinigten Staaten steht Erlebnisse aus dem Leben eines Sklavenmädchens unlängst auf den Leselisten diverser High Schools und wird ausgiebig an den Universitäten behandelt.

The Classic book Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself by Harriet A. Jacobs. A true autobiography of a slave who later won her liberty. Initially portions of her stories where published in the New-York Tribune, but many of her narratives which involved rape were too much for the general public. It is an extremely powerful description of an important part of American history.

In what has become a landmark of American history and literature, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl recounts the incredible but true story of Harriet Jacobs, born a slave in North Carolina in 1813. Her tale gains its importance from her descriptions, in great and painful detail, of the sexual exploitation that daily haunted her life-and the life of every other black female slave. As a child, Harriet Jacobs remained blissfully unaware that she was a slave until the deaths of both her mother and a benevolent mistress exposed her to a sexually predatory master, Dr. Flint. We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself by Harriet A. Jacobs

\"Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself\" by Harriet A. Jacobs is an autobiographical account written in the mid-19th century. The book explores the harrowing experiences of a young enslaved girl named Linda Brent, who navigates the complexities of slavery, gender, and personal autonomy within a brutal system designed to dehumanize her. The opening of the narrative introduces readers to Linda''s childhood, where she enjoys a degree of privilege as a favored slave girl, shielded from the realities of her status until her mother''s death reveals to her the true nature of her existence. With her mother''s passing, the narrative shifts to her new home with Dr. Flint, a figure who embodies the cruelty and sexual predation of slavery. Linda''s innocence is shattered as she faces the relentless advances of her master, the jealousy of his wife, and the threat of being sold or abused at any moment. The early pages set the tone for a story that deeply examines the institutionalized injustices faced by enslaved women, highlighting the struggle for personal dignity and freedom amidst a life fraught with suffering and exploitation.

\"Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is an autobiography by Harriet Jacobs, a young mother and fugitive slave. The book documents Jacobs'' life as a slave and how she gained freedom for herself and her children. She explores the struggles and sexual abuse that slaves faced on plantations as well as their efforts to protect their families\"--Publisher''s description.

Autoibiographies of three pre-Civil War African-American slaves.\"Northerners know nothing at all about Slavery. They think it is perpetual bondage only. They have no conception of the depth of degradation involved in that word, slavery; if they had, they would never cease their efforts until so horrible a system was overthrown.\"