Harriet Jacobs Argumentative Essay

The system of slavery, which brutally exploited the labour of a large and primarily Black population, shaped the history of the United States of America for over four hundred years (Davis: African Slavery, Sept 28). A primary tactic that was implemented in the system was to eliminate any motive of forming black communities by discouraging family ties. Many slaves resorted to documenting and preserving these experiences of slave cruelty through slave narratives, a genre of literature similar to autobiographies. Slave narratives can be regarded as a source that appeals to collective humanity through the complicated and multilayered acts of resistance carried out by the protagonists against their masters. By using Harriet Jacobs’ narrative entitled …show more content…
According to scholar Bush, many individuals in the White dominated society undermined the “social significance” of Black families since they believed that female slaves became mothers unintentionally and ended up neglecting their children because their primary responsibilities rested in their work as slaves (Bush 18). This “Mammy” stereotype describes mothers as being more loyal to their master’s family as opposed to their own. Jacobs’ inclination to nurture her children ultimately negates this stereotype that prevailed within the American society. To add on, Jacobs’ acts of resistance illustrate the notion of matrofocality as described by scholar Stevenson (177) since she holds the decision-making power of her family. For example, by escaping from the plantation, she implicitly makes the decision that her children will not be plantation slaves. Although her decision within this example was inherently tacit, Jacobs was still able to maintain a degree of power within her household that ultimately determined the fate of her children. By embracing her motherhood through her family ties, Jacobs established an identity characterized as defiant and resilient which then undermined the patriarchal ideologies of the White