Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl

Harriet Jacobs — 2014

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is a slave narrative that was published in 1861 by Harriet Ann Jacobs, using the pen name "Linda Brent." The book is an in-depth chronological account of Jacobs's life as a slave, and the decisions and choices she made to gain freedom for herself and her children. It addresses the struggles and sexual abuse that young women slaves faced on the plantations, and how these struggles were harsher than what men suffered as slaves. The book is considered sentimental and written to provoke an emotional response and sympathy from the reader toward slavery in general and slave women in particular[citation needed] for their struggles with rape, the pressure to have sex at an early age, the selling of their children, and the treatment of female slaves by their mistresses. Jacobs began composing Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl while living and working at Idlewild, the Hudson River home of writer and publisher Nathaniel Parker Willis, who was fictionalized in the book as Mr. Bruce. Portions of the book were published in serial form in the New-York Tribune, owned and edited by Horace Greeley. Jacobs's reports of sexual abuse were considered too shocking to the average newspaper reader of the day, and publication ceased before the completion of the narrative. Boston publishing house Phillips and Samson agreed to print the work in book form if Jacobs could convince Willis or Harriet Beecher Stowe to provide a preface. She refused to ask Willis for help and Stowe turned her down, though the Phillips and Samson company closed anyway. She eventually managed to sign an agreement with the Thayer & Eldridge publishing house and they requested a preface by Lydia Maria Child. Child also edited the book and the company introduced her to Jacobs. The two women remained in contact for much of their remaining lives. Thayer & Eldridge, however, declared bankruptcy before the narrative could be published.

Reviews

Karin@karin7

Feb 6, 2025

This is quite the book for 1861. If you are looking for a book where there is the worst physical abuse you can imagine, skip this, but if you are looking for one very realistic non-fiction telling by a former a slave by a former slave who recounted things to be published, then this is for you. Don't let my comment fool you--there was nothing okay about her slavery and she was not kindly treated or coddled even if she wasn't beaten to within an inch of her life. There are many ways to humiliate and belittle a slave. Also, she spent 7 years in hiding in a small space after escaping.

One of the many things captured here, is the complicated problems involving a lecherous slave master and his jealous, hateful wife, even if the wife manages to prevent rape. There is a good discussion of this here, and in other places. No, this isn't an exhaustive discussion, but one of the points I thought rather interesting was when she compared what happened when a Northern woman after slavery was made illegal there married a Southerner vs when a Southern one did.

The blurb here tells you a lot, but not enough to spoil the book for you. In the book she uses one of her pen names, Linda Brent.

Giovanna@monotriogio

Jan 12, 2024

Reading this book and knowing that things have happened is just heart breaking. Such a good read about slavery that they don't tell you in history books.

Jeni Enjaian@jenienjaian

Oct 30, 2021

A review from my old blog... I found myself strangely fascinated by this book. I have read a Dear America book, a diary of a slave girl, very similar to this book but this account is purported to be true. Disclaimer: I am not claiming that the facts of this book are false, only that we as humans are prone to exaggerate and Ms. Jacobs may have exaggerated or otherwise alter the facts. Since I did not live at that time or live her life I do not know. Jacobs' writing style threw me a little. She did not always give information as an author of a novel would but she was writing her memoirs or autobiography... whichever word you choose. She never out right mentioned who the father of her children was and I found myself flipping the pages back to try and figure out but perhaps I either skimmed over that information without realizing it or she did in fact never out right mention the name or identity. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and wish to own it. I believe that it would make an excellent addition to my library of historical books.

Raya @raya

Aug 27, 2021

"I dreaded the approach of summer, when snakes and slaveholders make their appearance" Even though the writing style of this short autobiographical account significantly slackened my reading pace, I still loved this book. I don't need to mention that it is sad, but there is a nerve of hope running through it. I can see myself reading it again in future.