ENG 381B (1451-FA24) - Slave Narratives

Course Introduction: 

This course will examine the slave narrative and other genres (gothic fiction, autobiography, and domestic fiction) that have contributed to its making. By studying the influences on the slave narrative and the slave narrative itself, we will be able to see the development of anxieties as they relate to the representations of Black bodies. Furthermore, in this course, we will see how, although slave narratives contain shared characteristics and tropes, there are gendered differences in the ways Black bodies are represented. 

Course Objectives

  • Students will understand and be able to identify elements that comprise the slave narrative.
  • Students will understand how gender affects how similar stories of bondage can be expressed differently.
  • Students will understand race as a social construct.
  • Students will learn how to effectively incorporate textual support and secondary sources. 
  • Students will learn how to structure an effective 5-6 page analytic paper that uses MLA format and adheres to Dominant Academic Discourse conventions.
  • Students will understand at least one legacy of slavery and its effects in contemporary U.S. society.

Required Texts:

·         “Ligeia,” Edgar Allen Poe. Published: 1838 (M).

·         “The Birth-Mark,” Nathaniel Hawthorne. Published: 1843 (M).

  • The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Benjamin Franklin. Published: 1771-1788 (M).
  • Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Frederick Douglass. Published: 1845 (M).

·         My Bondage and My Freedom, Frederick Douglass.  Published: 1855 (M).

  • The Narrative of the Life and Escape of William W. Brown, A Fugitive Slave (1832-1837), William W. Brown Published: 1847 (M).
  • Clotel, William W. Brown. Published: 1853 (M).
  • “Appeal to the Christian Women of the South,” Angelina E. Grimké. Published: 1836 (M).
  • An Appeal in Favor of that Class of Americans Called Africans, Lydia Maria Child (M). 
  • Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs. Published: 1861 (M).
  • The Bondwoman’s Narrative, Hannah Crafts. Published: 2002 (Buy in bookstore).