Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs is a narrative which is much more than a typical antebellum slave narrative since it can be characterized as a public document which provides an insight into the spirit, psyche and history of an African American slave woman who fights for an antislavery reform (Sánchez-Eppler 83). Incidents covers many topics such as the brutal and ruthless behavior of the white middle-class towards African American slaves, the peculiar institution and the strong familiar coherence based on female slaves. Another very significant topic, which is covered with high importance throughout the autobiography, is the image of the woman during the nineteenth century in the United States. The ideal of an American true woman during the antebellum period was coined by four cardinal virtues of the Victorian Age: piety, purity, domesticity and submissiveness. Further research of Jacobs’ autobiography proves that neither white female middle and upper class women nor African American female slaves are able to meet all the standards of a true woman due to the institution of slavery. To prove the statement above, I will initially explain what was meant by the ideology of true womanhood during the mid-nineteenth century in America. Then the paper will transfer the principles of true womanhood to the protagonist’s living conditions and to other important female characters such as Mrs. Flint, Aunt Marthy and Mrs. Bruce. Concerning this matter, it is important to mention that the narrator Linda Brent and the author Harriet Jacobs are the same in the autobiography because Jacobs has given persons fictitious names in order to protect their identities. Harriet Jacobs’ name will be used when talking about the author, but her pseudonym Linda Brent will be used with regard to the protagonist.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. The Cult of True Womanhood
3. Analysis
3.1 Linda Brent
3.2 Mrs. Flint
3.3 Aunt Marthy
3.4 Mrs. Bruce
4. Conclusion
Research Objectives and Themes
This work examines the representation of the Victorian "cult of true womanhood" within Harriet Jacobs' narrative Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, arguing that the institution of slavery rendered the attainment of these idealized feminine virtues impossible for both African American slave women and white Southern women.
- The four cardinal virtues of Victorian womanhood: piety, purity, domesticity, and submissiveness.
- The systemic impact of slavery on the personal identity and autonomy of female characters.
- Comparison of the social and moral struggles faced by Linda Brent, Mrs. Flint, Aunt Marthy, and Mrs. Bruce.
- The role of the autobiography as a political instrument to mobilize Northern women against the institution of slavery.
Excerpt from the Book
3.2 Mrs. Flint
I was twenty-one years in that cage of obscene birds. I can testify, from my own experience and observation, that slavery is a curse to the whites as well as to the blacks. It makes the white fathers cruel and sensual; the sons violent and licentious; it contaminates the daughters, and makes the wives wretched (Jacobs 189).
When looking carefully at the protagonist’s citation, it becomes clear that neither the white middle-class nor African American slaves benefit from the peculiar institution. As the description above states, the institution of slavery has negative influence on white male as well as on female slave holders. The following analysis of Mrs. Flint’s character will prove this statement.
The relation between a black female and her mistress was often very difficult since white men’s interracial sexual activities caused “tensions between mistresses and slave women” (Weiner 141). At this point it is important to mention that not all southern women were dishonorable for “ignoring their husbands’ transgressions” (Johnson 39) since Brent mentions two women who exhorted their husbands to free their slave children (Jacobs 168).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: The introduction establishes the framework of the study, defining the Victorian ideal of womanhood and the thesis that slavery prevented all women within the Southern context from achieving these standards.
2. The Cult of True Womanhood: This chapter details the four cardinal virtues—piety, purity, domesticity, and submissiveness—that defined the Victorian lady, highlighting how they were fundamentally incompatible with the reality of bondage.
3. Analysis: This section explores how the protagonist and secondary figures like Mrs. Flint, Aunt Marthy, and Mrs. Bruce interact with or deviate from the Victorian ideal due to the pressures of slavery.
3.1 Linda Brent: This chapter analyzes how Brent reconciles her struggle for virtue and motherhood with the systemic sexual coercion and oppression she faces as a slave.
3.2 Mrs. Flint: This chapter examines how the institution of slavery corrupts the mistress, leading to a loss of domestic tranquility and moral standing.
3.3 Aunt Marthy: This chapter focuses on the grandmother's character as a spiritual, intelligent figure who struggles to maintain domestic stability while resisting the masters of her kin.
3.4 Mrs. Bruce: This chapter explores the role of the white benefactress and how her efforts to aid the protagonist exemplify the limitations placed on even free women by the surrounding institution of slavery.
4. Conclusion: The conclusion synthesizes the findings, confirming that the cult of true womanhood was a myth used by the author to encourage white female readers to take political action against slavery.
Keywords
Harriet Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Cult of True Womanhood, Victorian virtues, Slavery, African American literature, Female identity, Domesticity, Purity, Submissiveness, Linda Brent, Antebellum South, Female empowerment, Abolitionism, Gender roles.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this work?
This work explores how the Victorian "cult of true womanhood"—defined by piety, purity, domesticity, and submissiveness—was applied to and simultaneously denied to women living within the American antebellum South, particularly in Harriet Jacobs' autobiography.
What are the central thematic fields?
The core themes include the intersection of gender and race, the dehumanizing effects of slavery on both the enslaved and the slaveholder, the significance of motherhood, and the moral complexities of survival in an immoral system.
What is the research goal of this text?
The objective is to prove that the ideology of "true womanhood" was a cultural construct used to judge women, which ultimately failed to accommodate the realities of Southern life, thereby marking it as a myth.
Which scientific methodology is employed?
The author uses a qualitative literary analysis, applying the historical and sociological concepts of Victorian gender ideals to the characters and narrative structure of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl.
What is covered in the main section of the paper?
The main section provides a character-driven analysis, examining how Linda Brent, Mrs. Flint, Aunt Marthy, and Mrs. Bruce individually navigate the conflicting requirements of their social environment and the Victorian ideal.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
Key terms include Harriet Jacobs, the cult of true womanhood, antebellum slavery, Victorian virtues, and female agency.
How does the author interpret Linda Brent's sexual relationship with Mr. Sands?
The author argues that Brent’s decision was a strategic act of agency driven by a desire for a measure of independence and a way to escape her master, rather than a departure from her moral character.
Why is Mrs. Flint portrayed as a "victim" of the institution of slavery?
Mrs. Flint is depicted as a victim because her jealousy, bitterness, and loss of domestic dignity were direct results of living within a system that enabled her husband's infidelity and cruelty.
What role does Aunt Marthy play in the narrative's exploration of virtue?
Aunt Marthy is presented as a strong, religious woman whose defiance of slaveholders to protect her family shows that she often had to violate the virtue of "submissiveness" to fulfill the maternal role.
How does the conclusion connect the literature to political activism?
The author concludes that Harriet Jacobs wrote her autobiography to force white Northern women to recognize their complicity and to motivate them to advocate for the abolition of slavery.
- Citar trabajo
- Kim Frintrop (Autor), 2014, The cult of true womanhood in Harriet Jacobs' "Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl", Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/280147
