— Anonymous
I think it is very powerful and clever for Harriet Jacobs to mention to readers that the book is narrative and not fiction. I think this text holds value to the community knowing that it is based on a true story. The story is more heartfelt especially since the book is written by the person itself. When I read or watch something, usually I don’t take much consideration because it’s not based on real events, the way the book or movie is written is exaggerated to attract the audience. When reading the first 10 chapters of the book, I got a sense of the life of slavery. I have seen movies and read books about slavery but none of them compared to Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. I have never read a book where they would prefer to die than live another day serving their master. The girl’s mother said, “The baby is dead, thank God; and I hope my poor child will soon be in heaven, too” (9). This just goes to show that slaves, especially female slaves were treated inhumanely. One of the most brutal interaction is between the female slaves and the master and mistress drastically change once she turns fifteen. Beauty is a curse for female slaves because it only tempts their master to do as they please with them, as each rape/assault slowly eating away their soul. Since Whites held the most power, they treated their slaves as objects. Their behaviors are deemed normal and abide by the law show how humans can be so cruel to one another and it is acceptable. Slaveholders’ behavior follows the law and are deemed normal by the standards of U.S society. This book helped me gain a better understanding of how much slaves struggle to fight for their freedom.
