What Was The Importance Of Literacy For Jacobs

Jacobs was one of the few slaves in her time that had the ability to read and write. Most slaves found that reading, writing was a luxury, and only the chosen ones were able to read and write. Many slaves believe that these two skills would lead them to a life of freedom and happiness because they would be able to break away from slavery. This wasn’t the case for Jacobs, because Jacobs was able to read and write this cased to be victim of inappropriate and vulgar messages from her owner Dr. Flint. Since Jacobs had the ability to read and write Dr. Flint started to make special signs and messages out of these signs so only Jacobs would be able to understand them and so Dr. Flint wouldn’t be caught be either his wife or others in the town. These skills of Jacobs definitely hinder her as she tried to elude rape. I believe that literacy for Jacobs is a couple of things. First, literacy is an entrapment to a world of sexual abuse by Dr. Flint’s messages he writes to her. Second, I believe literacy is a way for Jacobs to express how women slaves are sexually harassed and sexual abused by their white owners. Jacobs uses literacy as a voice to share all the terrible things …show more content…
Flint. I believe that Jacobs intended read was women all over. I think women were her intended reader because men wouldn’t be able to relate to her struggles and suffering while women would be able to understand and have empathy for her. Since, Incidents is often described as the first Black Feminist text this says to me that she was using her story and her literacy to speak on the behalf of all women and show the world that what is happening to them is not right and needs to be