Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl By Harriet Jacobs

Slaves are defined by Webster’s dictionary as “one that is completely subservient to a dominating influence (www.merriam-webster.com). Slavery has been a major issue of conflict since it began in the United States in the sixteenth century. At the time leading up to the Civil War, many Southerners thought slavery to be necessary and fully supported it. Many Northerners felt they did not need slaves and were willing to fight for their freedom. Slavery was the primary cause of the American Civil War.

Slavery began in 1619 when African American slaves were transported to the Colony of Jamestown, Virginia. The slaves were brought there to work in plantation fields and help produce crops, such as tobacco. Slavery quickly spread throughout the Americas

Many slaves ran away because of enduring physical and mental abuse. Since there were very few laws to protect slaves, they were often mistreated. In the book Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs tells her true story of what she encountered during slavery. She tells of how after her Mistress died she was inherited by her late mistress’s niece. Since the niece was only five years old, Jacobs Master was the father of the little girl. He was a cruel man and tried to sexually abuse Jacobs for many years. “My master met me at every turn, reminding me that I belonged to him, and swearing by heaven and earth that he would compel me to submit to him. If I went out for a breath of fresh air, after a day of unwearied toil, his footsteps dogged me.” Many slave girls suffered sexual abuse at the hands of their Masters, often even becoming pregnant. “What does he know of the half-starved wretches toiling from dawn till dark on the plantations? of mothers shrieking for their children, torn from their arms by slave traders? of young girls dragged down into moral filth? of pools of blood around the whipping post? of hounds trained to tear human flesh?” (Jacobs). This quote shows a little of the horrid treatment endured by

This raid was “in an attempt to start an armed slave revolt and destroy the institution of slavery” (history.com). Brown grew up in an antislavery family and was determined to destroy the institution of slavery. He moved to Kansas in the 1850’s to fight in Bleeding Kansas. Brown personally sought revenge for the raid on Lawrence, Kansas. Brown ended up moving back to the East with dreams of a mass uprising of slaves. On October 16th, 1859, Brown took the arsenal, but was soon-after surrounded by Marines led by Colonel Robert E. Lee. Brown was executed for his actions shortly before the Civil War started. In a letter that he handed off to one of his guards, he said, “I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood.” This statement would be a precursor to the Civil War that was soon to