Exploring Voices in Black Autobiography
The black autobiographies we read in class aren't written just for personal stories, but rather with a purpose. The authors who convey these stories often have a person in mind they direct their points towards, focusing their stories on changing their minds, opening their eyes, or asserting spaces in society that tried to silence them. We can see clear connection when comparing Incidents in the Life of a Slave girl by Harriet Jacobs and Up from Slavery by Booker T. Washington. Both of these authors manage to create a cohesive story, describing their journeys out of slavery; using different voices and tones shaped by their simple but complex experiences, reaching their audiences. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is written in a deeply personal and emotional way. In many parts of the story she speaks directly to the reader, wanting them to picture what it was like to live through what she had to endure. Jacobs puts the emphasis especially on enslaved women, as she depicts hers...