Harriet Ann Jacobs Paper
The assignment is for you to write a three to five page, double-spaced essay (1 inch margins, 12 point font style) on one of the issues below.
Demonstrate that you have read the book and have thought about the
question or issue you have chosen in some detail.
1. “He that is willing to be a slave, let him be a slave.” (32) How is Harriet’s life the antithesis of this (the opposite of this)?
2. In your opinion which is the stronger theme in Jacobs’s work, the oppression of slavery or the oppression of patriarchy (i.e., male dominance of a female)? Be sure to use relevant examples to support your conclusions.
(Note: there is no “correct” position with this question–you can write a strong essay taking either side. You may even be able to argue that both were equally strong and oppressive).
3. Much of the story hinges upon control and power over another human being. But this is not always the white master in control of his helpless black slave woman. At one point in the story Harriet manages to reverse the control to her advantage. Discuss how the most powerless figure in Edenton, North Carolina, could become one
of the most powerful.
4. Racism predominates in nearly all of Harriet’s relationships, both during her years as a slave and during her time living as a free person in the North. Use examples from the text to discuss how racism was at the core of most social relationships between blacks and whites in Harriet’s 19th century world.
