Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl - Essay Example

?Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Linda was born into a family of generational slaves. They were slaves who were treated as free people by theirowners and their parents and grandmother did their best to shield the children from the fact they were born into slavery. Brent related that throughout most of her childhood, “They lived together in a comfortable home; and, though we were all slaves, I was so fondly shielded that I never dreamed I was a piece of merchandise, trusted to them for safe keeping, and liable to be demanded of them at any moment. “ (7). Which is why Linda led a relatively happy life up until the age of six when her mother died. It was only then that she learned that she was to be a slave in the employ of her mother's former mistress. In Brent's own words; “Such were the unusually fortunate circumstances of my early childhood. When I was six years old, my mother died; and then, for the first time, I learned, by the talk around me, that I was a slave” (7). When her mistress dies and she is passed on to other masters, her life totally changes in such a manner that is is speedily robbed of her innocence. She is given to the Flint family headed by Dr. Flint. He was described as ; “... an epicure. The cook never sent a dinner to his table without fear and trembling; for if there happened to be a dish not to his liking, he would either order her to be whipped, or compel her to eat every mouthful of it in his presence. The poor, hungry creature might not have objected to eating it; but she did not object to having her master cram it down her throat till she choked” (13). She thwarts the sexual advances of Dr. Flint by consenting to having an affair with her white neighbor. That neighbor is named Mr. Sands, he fathers her two children named Benjamin and Ellen. It is important to note that Jacobs wrote her protagonists point of view in such a way that she thought it was better to live the life of a kept woman with mulatto children than to be the product of a sexual rape. It is the opinion of the author that because women slaves lead a different life than the white women, they are offered a different standard of morality than the free women. At the end of Linda's affair with Mr. Sands, he leaves her to go south. He takes a bride,fathers a child with her,purchases his children with Linda and treats them as slaves even when he promised her that he would free then, then becomes a congressman. Throughout the ordeal of Linda's life there was one constant personality who tried to stand up for her family no matter the cost, her grandmother known as Aunt Martha. She lived to see her grandchildren escape from slavery even though it meant losing them as family. She was a strong willed woman who stood up for herself and put fear into Dr. Flint. In one of the more famous scenes in the book she admonishes the doctor and tells him to "Get out of my house… Go home and take care of your wife and children" (15). Aunt Martha, through the grace of the universe managed to gain her freedom when it was provided to her by a kindly white woman. The situation occurred this way; Dr. Flint chose to sell Aunt Martha after the death of her mistress because he thought her old and feeble. Nobody wanted to buy her on the auction block except for an old white woman who immediately granted her freedom upon the close of her sale. One of the most touching depictions of slavery in the book has to do with the method by which the slaves celebrate New Years Day. Their eve is spent among their family and little possessions as they await the decision of their master as to whether or not they will be sold to another master and permanently parted from their family the next day. Those up for sale can be heard begging the masters who are looking over the slaves like produce to “Please, massa, hire me this year. I will work _very_ hard, massa." (15). It is because of the way that the slave families find themselves separated and divided that Aunt Martha tries to buy the freedom of her grandchildren from their masters, including Linda from Dr. Flint. She explains her reason as; “Stand by your own children, and suffer with them till death. Nobody respects a mother who forsakes her children; and if you leave them, you will never have a happy moment. If you go, you will make me miserable the short time I have to live.”(16). The author's opinion is that there is no real freedom from slavery because although they are declared free, the society that they live in does not treat them as anything but slaves. Therefore, they are free from slavery in words alone. There was no follow through in action and acceptance from the 19th century society. While still the slave of Dr. Flint, she was sent to his son's plantation to be broken in. While working there she learns that her daughter has been sent by Mr. Sands to live with his cousin, Mrs. Hobbs and is being treated as a slave in New York City. In an attempt to rescue her daughter, Linda goes to New York as the nursemaid of the Bruce family. Linda managed to escape from Dr. Flint's plantation by hiding in the crawlspace of her grandmother's attic for several years. Hoping that Dr. Flint would tire of searching for his missing slave. Although she could have escaped alone, she refused to leave her children behind because “... it was more for my helpless children than for myself that I longed for freedom. Though the boon would have been precious to me, above all price, I would not have taken it at the expense of leaving them in slavery” (89). Mr. Sands claims that Linda's brother escaped from him in order to join the abolitionists, an excuse that he used in order to explain why he no longer pursued the slave. In reality, William was allowed to escape by Mr. Sands because he respected the point of view that although his master treated him with respect and kindness, privileged slaves will still desire to have true freedom. However, the actions of William negatively impact the children of Linda who are then sold into slavery by Dr. Flint. Linda's Aunt Nancy was a slave who was constantly abused by Mrs. Flint. She stands in stead of Linda's deceased mother and died on the sixth year of Linda's hiding in her grandmother's crawlspace. It destroys Linda emotionally to not be able to attend her beloved aunt's burial. Instead, she watches the burial from the crawlspace she is hidden in. After seven years of hiding in the crawlspace and surrendering her motherhood in the process, Linda takes her chance to escape through the kindness and assistance of her friends both black and white who help her gain passage on a boat going to the North. She is not alone during this endeavor. After moving from her grandmother's crawlspace to under the kitchen floor of Betty, a fellow slave whom she befriends, the mistress of Betty contacts Phillip who in turn contacts Peter who accompanies her to the wharf where Aunt Nancy's husband assists her in becoming a stow away. She is joined during this trip by another slave, Fanny. While in Philadelphia, Linda befriends the Pastor Durham and his family with whom she relates all of her experiences as a slave. It was here where Linda experienced northern prejudice. Although she was allowed to board the train, she was forced to sit in coach. Being a mulatto, Linda was open to prejudice not only from the whites but also the blacks. Upon her arrival in New York, Linda and Fanny part ways. A few days later, Linda runs into her daughter Ellen and learns of her treatment at the hands of Mrs. Hobbs. This is the time when Linda is again forced to make contact with Dr. Flint. She sends him a letter asking him to sell her but he refuses. Linda's relationship with the Bruce family, was quite kind and became the key by which she gained a semblance of freedom. After the death of the first Mrs. Bruce, her master remarried and his second wife purchased Linda when it became evident that Mrs. Flint was going to do her best to get her fugitive slave back. The freedom Linda craved was achieved, not physically since she was still serving the 2nd Mrs. Bruce at the time she wrote the book. Her life experiences and enlightened mind gave her a different sense of freedom. One that need not be physical in order to achieve. Word Count = 1500 / 1500 max. Works Cited Brent, Linda. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. 1st Edition. New York: Dover Thrift Publications. 2001. Print. Read More