"Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl"

In reading this chapter of, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, by Harriet Jacobs, we learn about her living situations and the reasons behind it. She tells us that she lives in an attic in her grandmother's house that is 9 feet long, 7 feet wide, and 3 feet tall (at the tallest point). We can truly see how uncomfortable this must have been when she says, "the slope [of the ceiling] was so sudden that I could not turn on my other side without hitting the roof" (106). Another consequence of living in the attic is that she is truly subject to the elements. She talks about the long, hot summers, the cool fall, and the horrible winters. She says that, "with all of [her] precautions, [her] shoulders and feet were frostbitten" (109). Although, something happens mid-way through the chapter that helps illuminate her situation, literally and figuratively. Jacobs creates a small opening in the wall so she can see out and get some light. This creates more for her to do and see. She begins to read with the little light that she has and gets to look at her children when they are outside. Along with that, she also overhears conversations between slave hunters and other people walking past the house. There was one conversation in particular that changed how I saw her situation completely. At the beginning of the reading, I had assumed that she was put in there by her master for torture, but I was corrected when I learned that she went in there willingly. I did not realize this until she said that, "The opinion [of where she was] was often expressed that I was in the Free States" (109). This made me realize that no one knew where she was, including the people of the town, her master, and her children. Overall, I found this reading very interesting, sad, and hard to process. The fact that she had to hide from her children, to protect herself is something I had not even thought about. In Frederick Douglass we talked a lot about the theme of separation and how apparent it was in his story and the lives of many slaves. I think these stories are similar in the fact that both Jacobs and Douglass had to deal with separation from their families. 

Chapter 10-Appendix Frederick Douglass

In this reading, Douglass makes two escape attempts, the second one being successful. Douglass is determined that 1835 will be the year he becomes his own master. He and several of his fellow slaves make a plan to canoe up the Chesapeake Bay on the Saturday before Easter. Their plan was unsuccessful as they were somehow betrayed and arrested by Mr. Hamilton and several other men soon after. Douglass was accused of being the mastermind behind the escape. After being released, Douglass is sent to Baltimore to work for Hugh Auld who sent him to work for Mr. Gardner. While he was working in much better conditions, his desire for freedom grew. He writes, "whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only increased my desire to be free, and set me to thinking of plans to gain my freedom" (58). Thus, he began to plan his second escape attempt. Because of his success, he was unable to share the details regarding his final escape for the risk of being caught and taken back to his master. What struck me most while reading about his escape was how painful it was for him to leave behind the friends he made in Baltimore. He said, "the thought of being separated from them forever was painful beyond expression" (63). Though leaving his friends was hard, he started a brand new life with his new bride, Anna. Anna was a free woman. living in New York. I thought it was interesting how he thought that people up north did not own slaves because they could not afford them. He soon realized that that was not the case. He mentions that free slaves often had better living conditions then slaveholders in the south. He was surprised by how different the working conditions were and how people had a, "sober, yet cheerful earnestness" (67). After three days in New Bedford, he found work and he and Anna began to settle down. At the close of the final chapter, while at an anti-slavery convention in Nantucket, he felt strongly moved to speak. He felt a degree of freedom while speaking to white people that he had never felt before. From then on, he fought for the end of slavery.

Chapter 5-10 Frederick Douglass

This was a fairly long reading assignment that included many different stages of Douglass's life. It begins with his arrival in Baltimore to serve Mr. Hugh and Mrs. Sophia Auld at a very young age (probably around 7 or 8 years old). It ends with him under Mr. Freeland, the best of his masters thus far. There were two parts of this reading that I thought were very important insights into Douglass's mind: the treatment of his grandmother and his Sabbath school. When Colonel Lloyd passes, his property (including his slaves) must be divided between his two children: Andrew and Lucretia. Douglass is placed under Lucretia, the better of the two, but his grandmother is left to die alone. She served Colonel Lloyd from his infancy to his death. She was the mother to twelve children, who became his slaves, as did her children's children, and her great-grandchildren. In the division of property, she saw her family "divided, like so many sheep, without being gratified with the small privilege of a single word, as to their or her own destiny" (28). She is sent to live in a hut by herself and left to die alone, mourning the loss of her children. It is evident in how Douglass compares her treatment of Colonel Lloyd in his last days and Colonel Lloyd's children's treatment of her in her last days that his frustration with the injustice of slavery is increasing. Douglass finds a new family in the slaves within his Sabbath school once he is under the "care" of Mr. Freeland. He calls this time the "great days to [his] soul" (48) and describes his role as teacher to be "the sweetest engagement with which [he] was ever blessed" (48). His school becomes his family- a large family, like that of his grandmother's. A recurring idea throughout these chapters was that education would be his gateway to freedom, something he dreams about while watching the ships in the harbor. His envy of their ability to leave while he remains in the chains of slavery gives us a glimpse into how important his freedom is to him, and that he is determined to escape.

Chapters 1-5 "The Life of Frederick Douglass"

The Life of Frederick Douglass begins with William Lloyd Garrison reflecting on his encounter with Frederick Douglass in Nantucket at an antislavery convention in 1841. As characterized by Garrison, we immediately see the bold and determined character of Frederick Douglass. Within the preface, it is evident through Garrison’s perspective that Douglass was a “a blessing to his race” as he constantly advocated for his fellow laborers and represented the voice of his people (viii). The narrative begins as Douglass reflects on his life and the adversity in that he faced throughout his lifetime; he has no idea of his age, and states that as a child he does not remember having a strong relationship with his mother. Throughout the first chapter, we can see the barbaric events that have shaped Frederick Douglass and his being. Following the next chapters, a dejected tone echoes, as words and reflections are made by Douglass. He reflects on slave owners such as: Mr. Severe, Colonel Lloyd, Mr. Austin Gore, and more. He states that: “The children unable to work in the field had neither shoes, stockings, jackets, nor trousers, given to them; their clothing consisted of two coarse linen shirts per year. When these failed them, they went naked until the next allowance-day” (6). Not only did slaves like Douglass face such harsh conditions, but he also watch the slaughtering of many of his loved ones. These barbaric events serve as a testament of the horrific times that Douglass encountered and grew up with. As chapter five commences, we see a change of tone in the story, as we read about Douglass’ depart from Lloyd’s farm and his settlement in Baltimore. Although the beginning of the book resembles sadness and hardship, chapter five was more promising, as more joy and hopefulness was resembled throughout the chapter.

"A Rose for Emily" Reflection

            "A Rose for Emily" is set in the 1870's and depicts the idea of a diminishing era having to reinvent itself. In the second paragraph this becomes clear to the audience as we discover that the main character, Emily, lives in a home that was once apart of an upscale street, however the house now stands alone overshadowed by the "cotton wagons" and "gasoline pumps." The story is split into five different parts, all taking place during different times. The beginning is in the present and describes how the town has come together to attend the funeral of Emily Grierson. The second part shifts to the recent past and introduces Colonel Sartoris who states that Emily's father was a donor to the town, so therefore she does not have to pay taxes. Although, with the town reinventing itself, this no longer applied to her. When she is confronted about this the audience learns more about her personality, which is harsh and mysterious. The third part transitions back to the past where we are informed of not only her father's death, but the abandonment of her sweetheart. The only person whom she seems to interact with is Tobe, her servant, but even then Faulkner describes his voice as growing weary from its disuse, so we can infer that she keeps to herself and does not speak much to others. Complaints of Emily's house's odor begin to pile up, so four men sprinkle lime to take care of the problem. The fourth part dates back to two years before the smell where we learn about Emily's want for poison. The public's theory is that she is going to kill herself, the towns people describe that as "the best thing." Also, a new character, Homer Barron is introduced. He begins to take Emily out on Sundays, which at first people approved of but then this became a disgrace to the town. When Homer's work in town was done, he returned three days later, stayed with Emily, and neither were seen much after that. The final part loops back around to the present where the narrator describes what happens after Emily's death. An upstairs door is opened and reveals Homer's body laid on a bed with an indentation of a head next to him with one of Emily's gray hairs on the pillow. I believe that Emily used the poison to kill Homer, then grew lonely and slept next to him each night until her death. The author's use of different time periods keeps the audience engaged. I will admit in the beginning I was confused, but when we arrived at the ending, the story made logical sense. The motif of her gray hair was mentioned throughout, symbolizing her aging. Learning about the smell before the dead body created intensity as the story grew. Overall, the story conveyed a mysterious front about Emily while the narrator, who can be described as a towns person, slowly reveals the mystery behind her.

Reflection on "Pantaloon in Black"

      Over the weekend we read "Pantaloon in Black" by William Faulkner. In this short story, the main character, Rider, is seen struggling with his wife's recent death. He turns to alcohol for relief isolating himself from his family and friends. As the story continues tensions begin to rise as Rider spirals into a deep depression. The climactic result of this engulfing depression is the murder of Mr. Birdsong.
       I found the format of Faulkner's story very interesting, simply because he chose for "Pantaloon in Black" to have two parts. the second being told by a police officer involved in the case of Birdsong's murder. through this other perspective, we see the social class system and prejudices of this time being expressed as the white cop bestows crude labels upon Rider. Faulkner's use of extended, run-on sentences also caught my attention. This choice made it more challenging for me to read but once I thought about it I could see why long sentences may be a stylistic choice. By using run-on sentences Faulkner commands the full attention of his readers.
        If I am being completely honest I found myself very confused at the beginning of this story. At first, I thought that Rider was dead and was a spirit wanting to go back to his old home and visit his wife. Then I realized that Rider actually was alive and his wife had passed away. I think part two of the story helped clear up a lot of my confusion on what was going on because it was less poetic and was clearly put. I do have one lingering question about the title. I'm confused about what it means in relation to this story. Also, I was thinking about how the story followed rider as he experienced grief and how it began to overcome him but to me, it seemed as though he was wanting to be killed and returned to his wife towards the end as he was escaping jail. I guess I'm just confused on why Rider was putting himself in harm's way on purpose.

Review of "A Good Man is Hard to Find"

"A Good Man Is Hard To Find" by Flannery O'Connor began with an innocent family's road trip to Florida. In the opening paragraph, the grandmother discusses 'The Misfit's' escape from prison and his route to Florida, hoping to visit east Tennessee instead. On their way to Florida, the family crashes and receives help from a group of men armed with guns. The grandmother eventually concludes that one of the men is the infamous Misfit. At the end of the short story, the grandmother and her family encounter The Misfit’s wrath. I find it interesting to think about how the title of the short story relates to the plot. The family sought help from a good Samaritan; I believe they were looking for a “good man”. Instead, the family encountered an evil group, making it “hard” to find “a good man”. The ending was foreshadowed when Red Sammy said, “A good man is hard to find. Everything is getting terrible. I remember the day you could go off and leave your screen door unlatched. Not no more” (O’Conner 147). Also, I noticed the special use of diction throughout the short story. When each character spoke, he or she had an apparent southern accent. Some examples include “not no more”, “Ain’t she cute?”, “Yes’m”, and “I ain’t recalled it to this day”. Also, I found the use of religion interesting especially if you compare this short story to “Revelation” by Flannery O’Conner. In “Revelation”, Mary Grace served as the messenger for Mrs. Turpin to save herself before dying. In a similar way, I believe the grandmother serves as the messenger for The Misfit. The grandmother continues to question The Misfit’s beliefs in God throughout their encounter. She even says, “If you would pray, Jesus would help you” (152). The grandmother gives The Misfit a chance to change his lifestyle before continuing down the same path.  Even though she was shot and killed, the grandmother serves as an important character to help the readers understand who The Misfit is. 

Review of Revelation

Revelation by Flannery O'Connor is an intriguing piece that I was happy to read. The term "grotesque" is definitely a word that can be used when describing this short story, as O'Connor makes the main character Mrs. Turpin incredibly offensive and short-sighted. Mrs. Turpin has very out-dated and harsh outlooks on society. She only chooses to speak to people with evident higher social class. I think it is important to discuss Mrs. Turpin's behavior because whether we like it or not, people all around the world, even today, act like her. Based off the way people are reared, they develop perspectives on other people and either refuse to change their attitude or adapt. Although there are other ways to deal with difficult people such as Mrs. Turpin, Mary Grace strangles her and tells her to "go back to hell". Mrs. Turpin does not know how to react to this, as Mary Grace is considered "lower" than Mrs. Turpin and very much expressed her dismay for the bigoted woman. Mrs. Turpin then goes on to question her own life and how it is possible someone of the lower class (in her opinion) can think such terrible things about their "superior" (as she would most likely reference herself). Not only is she racist, but prejudiced, xenophobic, and spits on overweight people. Most people in this day and age do not know how to face Mrs. Turpin's comments and opinions or this short story in general, because we were taught to think everyone is equal and valuable, no matter their skin color, age, weight, sexuality, etc. Reading this short story is beneficial to initiate a conversation about bigoted people who still practice their beliefs quietly in modern day life.