Linda Brent And Nathaniel Hawthorne Essay Research

Linda Brent And Nathaniel Hawthorne Essay, Research Paper

Understanding History for Hawthorne and Brent

Knowing and understanding social, political, and cultural history is extremely important when reading many novels, especially Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Linda Brent and any short story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Both of these authors had many extinuating circumstances surrounding their writings that should be noted before reading their works. Without knowing what was happening both in the outside world and in the respected author’s life, one cannot truly grasp what the author is trying to say or what the author truly means by what he or she is saying. In this paper, I will show how important it is for the reader to understand the social, political, and cultural happenings in the writer’s lives and in the world surrounding them during the times that their works were written.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is an incredible example for what I am trying to show. This book was written during a time of extreme racial segregation and the hatred and cruelty shown, in general, towards blacks from whites is extremely important to understand before reading the story. This book tells the story of the life of a young, black, female slave in the south and focuses on trying to explain the trials, tribulations, and emotional and physical suffering that she, and many others like her, endured while being involuntary members of the institution of slavery. Brent, like every other victim of the atrocity we call slavery, wished those in north would do more to put a stop to this destructive practice. As she stated, slavery is de-constructive to all who surround it. It tears apart families; not just families raised in slavery, but the master’s family as well. How could the free men and women of the north remain silent while such a great atrocity is still in practice? Brent confronts her reader one on one in order to reemphasize her point. She uses the family and sentiment to appeal to and challenge the 19th century white women reader in order to effectively gain their support in the movement for abolition.

Understanding what was going on in our nation, in the southern states, and in the northern states is incredibly important when reading this story. Slaves were nothing more than property and, in many cases, were treated with less respect than the family dog. Nonetheless, most northerners did not know this. When white northerners would come down to see how the slaves were being treated, the plantation owners would put on a show (the plantation myth) for the northerners, pretending that the slaves were treated well, not beaten, and were living good lives. For the most part, Brent wrote this book to try and show northern whites what was really happening to the slaves in the south and to convince them that slavery was wrong and that something should be done to end this horrid institution. She was looking for northern women that would recognize that they have a duty and an obligation to put a stop to slavery in the south, the trading of slaves in the north, and the recapture of runaway slaves in the north. She not only wanted them to recognize this fact but she wanted them to act upon it and to take into their own hands the duty of putting a stop to the demoralizing, destructive way of life known as slavery. This way of life tainted all who took part in it with the horrid stench of evil. This evil stench of slavery was found both on the involuntary members of slavery and, most of all, the voluntary proprietors of the barbaric ritual known as slavery.

“O, what days and nights of fear and sorrow that man caused me!

Reader, it is not to awaken sympathy for myself that I am telling you truthfully

what I suffered in slavery. I do it to kindle a flame of compassion in your

hearts for my sisters who are still in bondage, suffering as I once suffered.”

As represented above, Brent deemed it necessary to gain emotional support from her reader. She did this by writing in a way that allowed the reader to be drawn into acquiring a feeling of sympathy for both her and, as she states, her sisters in bondage. She tries to kindle in her readers a flame of passion that will be forever lit and slowly spread throughout the north. This flame that Brent wished to enlighten in the north, in accordance to her wishes, would put an end to the demoralizing institution of slavery. Without understanding the background and history of this time period, one cannot expect to draw nearly as much out of this story as someone else who knows the social, political, and cultural history that enveloped the world of slavery during this time.

A great example as to how important it is to know the social, political, and cultural history when understanding the work of Nathaniel Hawthorne can be seen by looking at the beliefs of Hawthorne, and many others, during the time his stories were written. Hawthorne was a transcendentalist for much of his life, though much of the rest of his ancestors were Puritan. Understanding these beliefs and ways of life makes it possible to understand where Hawthorne is coming from. Being a transcendentalist, Hawthorne believed in nature, the oversoul, self- reliance and non- conformity, intuition, social reform and in being idealistic and optimistic. However, his writing style does not really show this.