Women In Slavery in Harriet Jacobs Incidents in the life...

The notion of slavery, as unpleasant as it is, must nonetheless be examined to understand the hardships that were caused in the lives of enslaved African-Americans. Without a doubt, conditions that the slaves lived under could be easily described as intolerable and inhumane. As painful as the slaves treatment by the masters was, it proved to be more unbearable for the women who were enslaved. Why did the women suffer a grimmer fate as slaves? The answer lies in the readings, Harriet Jacobs Incidents in the life of a Slave Girl and Olaudah Equianos Interesting Narrative which both imply that sexual abuse, jealous mistresses, and loss of children caused the female slaves to endure a more dreadful and hard life in captivity.†¦show more content†¦Because of such gruesome occurrences as the sexual attacks, it would certainly be safe to assume that the young slave girls were not only physically hurt but also emotionally distraught. They were prone to grow into young women who felt stripped of their dignity and carried the burden of shame. Not only did young women get sexually abused at a young age, but also the abuse continued on as they matured. As the slaves got older they were forced to engage in sexual affairs with their married masters, as is seen in the case of Harriet Jacobs. This naturally caused the slaves to feel shameful, immoral, and wrongful in doing so. However, they did not have much of a choice in the matter. To make matters worse, the mistresses who were jealous that their husbands, the masters, were being unfaithful to them with the slaves. This commonly resulted in persecution of the slaves by the mistresses. Although the mistresses knew that the masters were committing wrongful acts in sexually abusing the slaves, they did not show any compassion. Instead, they were enraged. Harriet Jacobs explains the typical reaction of a mistress as she writes: The mistress, who ought to protect the helpless victim, has no other feelings towards her but those of jealousy and rage.Show MoreRelated Interpretations of Slavery Essay3734 Words   |  15 PagesInterpretations of Slavery INTRODUCTION Slavery is known to have existed as early as the 18th century B.C. during the Shang Dynasty of China. Slavery was widely practiced in many other countries, including, Korea, India, Greece, Mexico and Africa. (Britannica 288-89). When most people consider slavery, however, they think of Western slavery in North America because it is well documented and it was such a horrible institution. Even though there is no one definition of slavery, the people who studyRead MoreThe Moral Dilemma And Hypocrisy Of Slavery Essay1907 Words   |  8 PagesAbraham Lincoln gave a speech in which he addressed the moral dilemma and hypocrisy of slavery. â€Å"We cannot be free if this is, by our own national choice, to be a land of slavery.† President Lincoln’s rhetoric reflects the challenge to define freedom in America; moreover, it reflects his morality and commitment to upholding personal freedom. It justifies why he does not ignore slavery, as well as why he did not see slaves as prop erty, but as a group of humans who had been abusively denied freedom, andRead MoreEnslavement Disrupted the African’s Authentic Culture Essay1593 Words   |  7 PagesAmerica as slaves. As a result, their authentic cultures were drastically changed from the way of life in their native Africa to life in the plantation society of the Americas. In this essay, I will attempt to show how the conditions of enslavement disrupted all dimensions of the African’s authentic culture. To aid in my analysis, I will be using the â€Å"Reid Culture Conflict Model† as a guide and also drawing upon the works of Olaudah Equiano, Venture Smith, Frederick Douglas, Harriet Jacobs, andRead MoreThe Plight of The African Slave Essay1558 Words   |  7 PagesIntroduction Slavery was one of the darkest periods in African American history. Africans were taken from their homes in West Africa and brought to America to work on plantations. However, slavery was not something new as it existed in Africa before Europeans partook in it, but slavery in Africa was very different from slavery in America. During their voyage through the Middle Passage many slaves perished. Those who survived were sold and subjected to the harsh life on the plantations. When