Incidents in the life of a slave girl

Harriet Ann Jacobs

1861 • 108 pages

Ratings22

Average rating3.9

The true story of an individual's struggle for self-identity, self-preservation, and freedom, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl remains among the few extant slave narratives written by a woman. This autobiographical account chronicles the remarkable odyssey of Harriet Jacobs (1813–1897) whose dauntless spirit and faith carried her from a life of servitude and degradation in North Carolina to liberty and reunion with her children in the North.
Written and published in 1861 after Jacobs' harrowing escape from a vile and predatory master, the memoir delivers a powerful and unflinching portrayal of the abuses and hypocrisy of the master-slave relationship. Jacobs writes frankly of the horrors she suffered as a slave, her eventual escape after several unsuccessful attempts, and her seven years in self-imposed exile, hiding in a coffin-like "garret" attached to her grandmother's porch.
A rare firsthand account of a courageous woman's determination and endurance, this inspirational story also represents a valuable historical record of the continuing battle for freedom and the preservation of family.

Genres

Want to edit this book?Become a Librarian

Popular Reviews

Reviews with the most likes.

kab

4.5

August 13, 2018

Stephen

This is the second novel I've read recounting the experience of black slaves in America—the first of which being Alex Haley's phenomenal Roots—and the first that was written in a first-person perspective. And, like the aforementioned Roots, this novel deeply moved me. I believe that it's extremely important to capture the experience of the enslaved African-American woman in America specifically, as they've arguably endured the most atrocities as anyone in this country. In spite of this being a recounting of Harriet Jacobs's life, I often found myself wishing dearly for her escape, and later her happiness once free from the chains of slavery.

September 7, 2021

Allie

This was completely different than anything else I've read about slavery. A first-person narrative of a slave who escapes to the north, but still finds herself trapped between a master who refuses to sell her and a new, “free” identity that doesn't hold as much power as she thought it would.

February 9, 2014