Historical and Cultural aspect (entry #6)

When Sojourner Truth's first slave narrative was published in 1850 the United States was in a heated battle on the issue of slavery. 1850 was a very important year in U.S history as key political decisions on slavery threatened to further the gap between North and South. The slave based legislation passed at this period was a attempt to appease the South. Despite efforts to reduce tensions between the two demographics, relations between the north and south would boil over to war. Events such as Nat Turners revolt (1831), canning of Senator Charles Sumner (1856), John Brown (1859), Bleeding Kansas (1853-'61), and the election of President Abraham Lincoln would be strong catalysts in South's push for succession.

Sojourner Truth's narrative was published the same year the Missouri Compromise of 1850 was agreed upon. In earlier years of the United States, the balance of slave and free states were fairly well maintained. Whenever a free state entered the Union a slave state would most likely fallow to the south (vice versa). Balance of power between the two divisions was, for the most part, equal. Multiple events occurred that disrupted this balance. As a result of the Mexican war, the United States obtained vast amounts of land from Mexico. There was debate about how the territory would be divided, and which states would be admitted as a free or slave state. In addition, Texas had a land dispute out where its borders were (at the time Texas said its state extended all the way to Santa Fe). Finally, California requested that it be admitted to the Union as a free state (Africans in America).

Henry Clay, U.S Senator from Kentucky, took charge to find out a workable compromise that plagued States and the Federal Government. Clay's compromise called that Texas would relinquish some of it's land (but be compensated with ten million dollars), the territories of New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, and Arizona would be admitted without slave or free state status (giving residence a referendum to decide), and California would be admitted to the Union as a free state. To pacify the pro-slavery political sect Clay proposed The Fugitive Slave Act (Africans in America).

Ironically, the year Sojourner Truth's narrative and her contemporary's, Frederick Douglass, narrative was in circulation to protest equal rights and advocate abolition, a act was passed that strengthened slavery. The law appointed commissioners in every county of the United States to oversee that the law was observed. The commissioners were able to use Federal Marshalls and the military to enforce the law. The law required that runaway slaves were returned to their masters, because a runaway was technically stealing his master's property. Anyone harboring a runaway or aiding one could be fined or jailed. The alleged fugitive was not able to testify on his/her behalf nor was he/she allowed trial by jury. The commissioner would hear the case of the fugitive and the claimant. The commissioner would receive five dollars if he ruled against the claimant, but he was paid ten dollars if he ruled in favor (Finkleman). In other words, the commissioner had a larger incentive to rule in favor of the claimant.

The act obviously received strong opposition from the north, but it was nothing compared to the violence the compromise instilled in the new states admitted into the Union. It was a terrible move for Congress to let the citizens of the territory to decide their status as a free or slave state. The area that would soon become Kansas became a battleground between slave and free states. Inhabitants of the territory were harassed by free state and slave state advocates. Harassing turned to violence as many free state and slave state advocate flocked to the territory to try to push their agendas. Violence erupted throughout the territory as both sides tortured and killed each other. Many would be killed as the whole event would be labeled as Bleeding Kansas. In 1861 after much bloodshed and violence, Kansas was admitted to the Union as a free state.

Sojourner Truth's narrative was published as tensions between anti-slavery, abolitionists, and pro-slavery positions were severely escalating. Sojourner Truth's argument about the treacheries of slavery only helped to instill the north to push for it's agenda. The publication of Truth's narrative marked the point where the rift between north and south would be miles wide, and the large blood spread between the two sides.

"Bleeding Kansas." PBS. Web. 27 Nov. 2009. .

"Compromise of 1850." PBS. Web. 27 Nov. 2009.
Finkleman, Paul. "Fugitive Slave Law of 1850." Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619-1895: From the Colonial Period to the Age of Frederick Douglass. Ed. PaulFinkleman. Oxford African American Studies Center. Fri Nov 27, 2009. .

Literary Traditions of NST (entry #5)

Sojourner Truth's narrative fits intricately into the slave narratives of the time. Her narrative fallows many of the literary traditions of the period, and we are inclined to see this in the form of textual evidence from her narrative. Also, Sojourner's experiences (such as sexual abuse, spiritual guidance, and personal struggle) are common occurrences of the genre. It is pertinent to remember that many slave narratives, like Sojourner Truth's, were highly mediated by outside influences. One must therefore read this narrative keeping in mind that a white woman took dictations of Truth's experiences, and the narrative was published and funded by white men. What is written in the narrative is what the publisher/editor wanted the audience to know. The narrative is merely the aggregations of what the framers of the narrative thought was most important.

One can pick out many correlations between period old and new narratives. As one may recall, a common atrocity slave women faced was sexual abuse by their masters. Harriet Jacobs was quoted in her narrative as saying: "Slavery is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women" (823). Jacob's narrative was one of the few that openly addressed the issue of sexual abuse during slave times. The reason why sexual abuses of women were not openly expressed in narratives was because the writers did not want to hurt the purity of the slave women. The general cultural belief of the time was that the model "fine" upstanding Christian woman was very reserved. It was a common belief that slave women were licentious by nature, and highlighting the sexual abuse of slave women only stood to hurt the credibility of the narrative.

Unlike Jacob's sexually explicit narrative, Sojourner Truth's narrative fallows a similar pattern to that of the "History of Mary Prince"; whereas sexual abuses were not addressed openly but were present in the subtext. The reader gets a hint that Sojourner Truth may have been sexually assaulted. This is a possibility in the way one of her former mistresses, Mrs. Dumont is depicted. "Isabella suffered many hardships at the hands of Mrs. Dumont, whom Isabella later described as cruel and harsh. Although she did not explain the reasons for this treatment in her later biography narrative, historians have surmised that the unspeakable things might have been sexual abuse or harassment, or simply the daily humiliations that slaves endured" (Women in History). However, one is inclined to believe that there is a reason as to why the author was not willing to highlight some of the abuses Truth experienced. It is very possible to extrapolate from this information that she was most likely sexually abused (a very common practice that oppressed many slave women). One can see an example of the implied sexual abuses as written in Mary Prince's narrative: " Mr. D--, to whom conduct of peculiar atrocity is ascribed" (Prince 1). The narrator does not openly condemn the acts of the Masters/Mistresses, but implies that their actions may have been sexually abusive. One can only infer upon the limited information provided in the text that these events may have been sexually abusive.

In addition to subtle hint of sexual abuse, Sojourner Truth's narrative distinctly fallows that of a spiritual narrative. Throughout the narrative, there is a strong presence of spirituality. In one of her spiritual awakenings the author quotes: "Her heart recoils now, with very dread, when she recalls these shocking, almost blasphemous conversations with the great Jehova . And well for herself she deem it, that, unlike earthly potentates, his infinite character combined the tender father with the omniscient and omnipotent Creator of the universe" (612). Truth's journey out of slavery coincides with her spiritual journey to god. This can be related to that of "Memoir of Old Elizabeth A Colored Woman". Both women ended up becoming preachers, and both women experienced some sort of spiritual conflict to overcome. Slavery denied these women the right to express their spiritual freedoms. In addition, both women found peace in the lord. Old Elizabeth exclaimed: " I then renewed my struggle, crying for mercy and salvation, until I found that every cry raised me high and higher, and my head was quite above the fiery pillars. Then I thought I was permitted to look straightforward, and saw the Savior standing with his hands stretched out to receive me" (Old Elizabeth 6). This rhetoric only helps to add to the character's credibility. The period public likes to see that the person written in the narrative has strong spiritual connections to god. The authors like to distinct between past spiritual ignorance and revelation. It is common in slave narratives to underline the spiritual journey of the enslaved.

The narrative fallows the general formula of many slave narratives. Like Frederick Douglass, Harriet Jacobs, Mary Prince, Old Elizabeth, and many others, Sojourner Truth's narrative fallows a line of conflict and conflict resolution. There is normally a point of struggle for the enslaved (foremost living under slavery) in which the character most likely uses religion as an aid to solve their internal/external problems. Like Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs, Sojourner Truth struggles to cope with the degradation of slavery on her physical and psychological well being (conflict). The readers are inclined to see some degree of resolution when the character escapes bondage and (sometimes) finds faith. Sojourner Truth merely used her faith as a tool to deal with the oppressiveness of slavery on her and her children. Again, the strong use of faith to overcome enumerable odds works to promote the character (credibility is further established among readers and the characters).

An important quality of slave narratives is that trials and tribulations facing the the (ex)slave is overcome. In addition, a commonality that exists between many narratives (Douglas and Jacobs included) is that the main character walks away from his/her trial as a stronger and better person. On is greatly inclined to see this in Sojourner's narrative as they're are continual references that Sojourner now knows better then she did back then: "She then firmly believed that slavery was right and honorable. Yet she now sees very clearly the false position they were all in" (591).

Also, it is pertinent to re-consider how important textual mediation is in Sojourner Truth's narrative. There exists striking similarities between Harriet Jacob's narrative and Sojourner Truths. Though Jacob's wrote her narrative and Sojourner's was dictated, both narratives were heavily influenced by outside forces. Jacobs was influenced by such influences such as white, abolitionist, and woman's right activist Amy Post. Truth's narrative was actually influenced by Olive Gilbert and white radical, William LyodGarrison. A deep understanding must be noted that both works were the product of white men and women. Sojourner Truth's work was entirely made up by white people. The thoughts of the narrator are included in Truth's narrative indicating a strong outside presence: "And the writer of this knows, from personal observation, that the slaverholders of the South feel it to be a religious duty to teach their slaves to be honest, and never to take what is not their own! Oh consistency, art thou not a jewel?" (591).

Sojourner Truth's narrative displays very prominent characteristics for a period slave narrative. Her spiritual narrative, textual mediation, purity question, and subtext of sexual abuse is few of many other distinctions between slave narratives. It can be said that there are many more correlations one can see between narratives. Truth stands as an exemplary figure to that of slave narratives alike, and continues to be put under the microscope of academic examination.

Annotated Sources (Entry #4)

"Truth, Sojourner - Introduction." Nineteenth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Juliet Byington. Vol. 94. Gale Cengage, 2001. eNotes.com. 2006. 18 Nov, 2009

Truth was no doubt a very important player in the abolitionist and feminist movement, but she was also uneducated and illiterate. How history judges her apparently is not based on her lack of fundamental educational skills, but her ability to orate and preach extremely effectively. The author highlights how Truth was able to captivate her audience through her speeches and inspire them to a great degree. As the author closes, her "short comings" did not effect the way she was recieved through history because she was inducted into the women's hall of fame in the eighties.

Darlene Clark Hine. The Journal Of Blacks In Higher Education. No. 13 (Autumn, 1996): pg. 127-128. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2963183?seq=1&Search=yes&term=Sojourner&term=truth&list=hide&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicResults%3Fhp%3D25%26la%3D%26wc%3Don%26gw%3Djtx%26jcpsi%3D1%26artsi%3D1%26Query%3DSojourner%2Btruth%26sbq%3DSojourner%2Btruth%26dc%3DAll%2BDisciplines%26si%3D26%26jtxsi%3D26&item=26&ttl=1947&returnArticleService=showArticle&resultsServiceName=doBasicResultsFromArticle

Sojourner Truth, the legendary figure, many know, may have not actually been all that legendary. Darlene Clark describes Sojourner Truth's life as almost nothing more than a quest for mere survival. Clark points out that Truth primarily used white people for economic security and acceptance. In addition, Clark indicates that Sojourner's spiritual quest was influenced by a psychotic so-called prophet. The author does this to expose the true Sojourner Truth behind the legend. Clark does this, not to put a damper on her image, to point out that Sojourner Truth's life wasn't as fantastic as many believe. Clark paints Truth in a whole new picture that many are not familiar with.

"Sojourner Truth and Rosa Parks." Sojourner Truth.org Home Page. Web. 18 Nov. 2009.

Sojourner Truth was an abolitionists and women's rights advocate, but many may be surprised to find out that she also pushed for equal rights for blacks. This article relates Rosa Parks to Sojourner Truth by pointing out that she, like Parks, refused to be segregated and discriminated on public transportation. In fact, Truth sat wherever she pleased on trolleys and she even ran after a trolley that refused to stop for her because she was a black woman. The author establishes that Rosa Parks wasn't actually the first to openly refuse to abide by the Jim Crow rules, and Truth was doing it long before Rosa Parks was born.

"Sojourner Truth :." Voices From the Gaps : University of Minnesota. Web. 19 Nov. 2009. .

This Article talks about how Sojourner Truth, although an abolitionist, established herself as a prominent women's rights advocate, and a inspiration for future generation of women. The author goes through Sojourner Truth's life and describes certain speeches/events that dealt with addressing rights for women. The reader is left with the author's view that Truth lead an unconventional life as a women who did not believe in the traditional roles of women, and continued to advocate for slaves and women until her death.

"This Far by Faith . Sojourner Truth |." PBS. The Faith Project, 2003. Web. 17 Nov. 2009. .

This blurb (feature on PBS) explores Sojourner Truth's religious experiences as a slave and freed woman. As one can view, Sojourner experienced many religious events throughout her narrative (as her narrative is written in part as a spiritual journey). The author highlights these spiritual events by placing them in chronological order (starting from her days in slavery all the way to her preaching days). The purpose of the author is to indicate how much of a role religion had in influencing Sojourner Truth to become the women she was. In addition, the article highlights what a great role religion played in her life, and the prominence that inspired her.

Annotated sources (Entry #3)

Jean Lebedun. American Literature, Vol. 46, No. 3 (Nov., 1974) pp. 359-363

Harriet Beecher Stowe, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucretia Mott are considered invaluable players towards the fight for women suffrage. Few would think how much of a role Sojourner Truth played in advocating women's rights, and captivating the attention of period celebrity, Harriet Beecher Stowe. Lebedun explains how one meeting with Sojourner Truth caused Stowe to write an introduction to one of Sojourner's narratives, and inspired her to get a sculptor to create a work in Sojourner's image. Lebedun's aim is to indicate that an illiterate, uneducated, former slave could influence one of the most prestigious writers of the period.

Carleton Mabee. The New England Quarterly, Vol. 61, No. 4 (Dec., 1988), pp. 519-529

In a effort to discover the real relationship between Sojourner Truth and President Lincoln, Mabee sifts through past historical documents and accounts to prove that many events that supposedly took place between the President and Sojourner were fabricated or overly exaggerated. There exists this notion that Sojourner Truth had influence in some of Lincoln's greatest achievements. As Mabee points out, there exist a lot of myths of what took place between Sojourner and Lincoln (some painting Lincoln as overly sympathetic to slaves and some overly aggrandizing the relation between Sojourner Truth and Lincoln). The Author conveys that it is improbable that Sojourner advised the president on National Policy, educated Lincoln on the hardships of slavery, tried to get her face on a bill, and convinced him to enlist more blacks into the army. In addition, Lincoln wasn't all that close to Sojourner, nor did he get her a position in the Freedmens Bureau. The author does this, not necessarily try to take away from the image of Lincoln and Sojourner, but to indicate that many past publications about the President and
Sojourner were merely false.

Washington, Patricia. "Political Resistance." Black Women in America, Second Edition. Ed. Darlene ClarkHine. Oxford African American Studies Center. Mon Nov 16 22:24:23 EST 2009. .

Patricia Washington references Sojourner Truth in an attempt to convey the political resistance exhibited in America (ranging from abolition to modern day civil rights). Sojourner Truth took great risks in openly denouncing slavery and advocating women's rights. Patricia concludes that Sojourner and others like her fought to stop dichotomy between gender and race. The risks these women took were to resist the politically unfair practices of the time.

Background (entry #2)

Sojourner Truth's narrative was not actually written by herself (Sojourner was illiterate) but was published by multiple authors of the time. The earliest edition was written by white abolitionist, Olive Gilbert, in 1850. The last edition was authored by Frances Titus in 1884 (one year after Sojourner Truth's death).

During her stay at the Northampton Association (a Utopian community based on the philosophy of Charles Fourier), Truth became involved with some key players of the Abolition movement (such as Frederick Douglass and William Loyd Garrison). Olive Gilbert met Truth at the association and started taking dictations for Sojourner's narrative. Gilbert remained with Sojourner two years after the convention came to an end so that she could finish writing Sojourner's narrative (Hutchins).

Olive Gilbert was friends with the well known radical abolitionist: William Loyd Garrison. Garrison actually wrote the preface to Sojourner's narrative. One is easily inclined to see the way in which Garrison attacks the institution of slavery. His radical view of slavery is depicted in the opening of the story without any mercy for his readers:
"Hypocrites! liars! tyrants! men-stealers! atheists! Professing to believe in the natural equality of the human race- yet dooming a sixth portion of your immense population to beastly servitude, and ranking them among our goods and chattels! (NST 570)

In addition to Gilbert and Garrison, Sojourner Truth became acquainted with former slave and abolitionist, Frederick Douglass. During one of Douglass' speeches (orated in Boston Massachusetts at Faneuil Hall), Sojourner stood up and asked Douglass a very famous question: "Douglass, is God dead?". Douglass had relayed a speech that urged black slaves to rise up in arms against their oppressors, and Truth (who accepted the fact that Douglass was frustrated, but not that he had lost faith in G0d) fired back by asking him if god had left African Americans (Sellman). Douglass and Sojourner both went on to speak at a women's rights convention in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1850 (Painter). Frederick actually wrote about Truth's unrelenting faith in some of his writings.

Sojourner Truth also came into contact with the widely popular author of Uncle Tom's Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe. Stowe made Truth famous by publishing an article about her in an 1863 Atlantic Monthly. In Stowe's article, Truth was hailed as being an iconic symbol of faith. Truth "became a national icon of the evangelical and abolitionist movements" (Hutchins).

During her lifetime, Sojourner truth met up with a myriad of "celebrities" at the time. She became friends with Amy Post and visited President Lincoln at the White House during the Civil War. She worked with the Freedman's Bureau and National Freedman's Relief Association from 1864-1866. In the later part of her life, Sojourner joined the American Woman's Suffrage Association. In 1880, Sojourner moved back to her daughters where she lived with them until her death in 1883.

Works Cited:

Hutchins, Zachary. "Summary of Narrative of Sojourner Truth, a Northern Slave, Emancipated from Bodily Servitude by the State of New York, in 1828." Documenting the American South homepage. Web. 12 Nov. 2009. .
Painter, Nell Irvin. "Truth, Sojourner." African American National Biography. Ed. Henry LouisGates Jr.. Ed. Evelyn BrooksHigginbotham. Oxford African American Studies Center. Thu Nov 12 11:49:25 EST 2009.
Sellman, James. "Truth, Sojourner." Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience, Second Edition. Ed. Kwame AnthonyAppiah. Ed. Henry LouisGates Jr.. Oxford African American Studies Center. Thu Nov 12 11:51:44 EST 2009. .

Blogging the Slave Narrative: Sojourner Truth (entry #1)

The Narrative of Sojourner Truth, A Northern Slave, Emancipated From Bodily Servitude By The State of New York (NST), In 1828 tells the life story of the famous abolitionist and woman's rights advocate, Sojourner Truth. Her story begins with her birth in 1797-99, born a slave in Ulster County New York. Truth, named Isabella Baumfree, was the daughter of James and Elizabeth Baumfree. She was the youngest of her brothers and sisters (though she did not know how many she had because the lot of them were sold off), and was under the ownership of Colonel Ardinburgh (a man of low-dutch descent).

From the onset, the reader is immersed in the trials and tribulations of slavery. The author of the narrative makes a point to highlight the physical and psychological hardships of being a northern slave. The readers are inclined to see how the breaking of slave families can effect the psyches of the broken:
"she was often surprised to find her mother in tears; and when...she inquired...she [Elizabeth] would answer. 'Oh my child , I am thinking of your brothers and sisters that have been sold away from me'. And she would proceed to detail many circumstances respecting them. But Isabella long since concluded that in was impending fate of her only remaining children, which her mother but too well understood, even then, that called up those memories from the past, and made them crucify her heart" (NST 578).

In addition, after the death of her master, Sojourner Truth finds herself torn apart from her family and auctioned off to a new master: "At length, the never-to-be forgotten day of the terrible auction arrived, when 'slaves, horses, and cattle'...were put under the hammer, and again change masters" (NST 579). The author of this text underlined the fact that slaves were considered nothing more than chattel, and they were placed on the same level as horses and cattle. Truth was auctioned off to a man by the name of Mr. Dumont, and lived under his care for a number of years.

Sojourner changed masters one last time and fell under the household of Mr. Van Wagone. During her stay at Dumont's, Truth was briefly married and blessed with five children: "In process of time, Isabella found herself the mother of five children, and she rejoiced in be permitted to be the instrument of increasing the property of her oppressor!" (Truth 593). As one can gather from this quote, the tone of the author portrays Isabella as ignorant to the practices of slavery. Truth's journey from slavery to freedom is actually told in terms of spiritual and religious growth. Her demeanor portrayed in this quote is ignorant because she is also ignorant to the practices of Christianity. Religious enlightenment reveals to her the "ignorance" of her beliefs, and the highlights Sojourner's change in beliefs.

In any case, like many slave families during the time, Sojourner's family got ripped apart by the institution of slavery (mind that this all takes place in the north). Truth was finally emancipated under New York law in 1828, and went about to try and patch together her tattered family. In a momentous event, Sojourner found out that a relative of her former master illegally kidnapped and sold her emancipated son. In a attempt to gain custody of her son, Truth actually used the New York court system to sue Mr. Dumont's relative into giving back her son. Sojourner Truth, an illiterate and uneducated slave (who didn't even know what it meant to swear into court), stood before and grand jury and was able to successfully bring her son's captor under the law.
Near the end of her narrative, Sojourner lived in New York City for a number of years. During her habitation of the city, She tried to create a nurturing environment for her and her family. After a failed attempt to keep her juvenile son in check, Sojourner found love for faith and religion while working in the house of her employer. She ends up leaving New York in determination to spread the word of god and faith.

Her new found love of Christianity aids her in becoming an established preacher, and Sojourner ends up living for very simple life devoted to the word of god. At the closing of the narrative, Truth finds peace at a religious community in Northampton. During her stay "A party of wild young men, with no motive but that of entertaining themselves by annoying and injuring the feelings of others, had assembled at the meeting... (NST 653). All who tried to subdue these men were at a loss. In a act of faith and courage, Truth stood at the top of a hill and started to sing hymns. The mob was so captivated by her singing that they all crowed around her to listen. She made a deal with the group that she would sing to them if they would but leave peacefully. Amazingly, the mob agreed and left peacefully when she was done.

Sojourner Truth's narrative displays personal and spiritual growth. From the depths of northern slavery, Truth was able to pull herself up from bondage and establish a respectable life of preaching. Her testament of personal struggle, survival, and courage reverberates on the lips of many. Truth's narrative continues to captivate both scholarly and private citizens alike.