Born in Slavery
During the 1930s, a New Deal program called the Federal Writers Project provided work for unemployed writers and journalists. One of the great tasks undertaken by these writers was to interview and transcribe the reminiscences of African Americans who had grown up in slavery.
Since this project took place more than 70 years after emancipation, the sources are all quite elderly—but their accounts are often extraordinarily vivid. They are now part of the Born in Slavery collection from the Library of Congress’s American Memory website. These testimonies are valuable to us for two reasons. First, the variety of experiences and wealth of details they describe give a matchless portrayal of the world that gave rise to Huckleberry Finn. Second, because they are based on oral interviews, they are told in the kind of vernacular speech that makes Huck such a remarkable narrator. As you read these accounts, consider the role such reminiscences might have played in Twain’s composition of his novel. Transcribing spoken language Before you go on to these readings, however, a word of caution: the writers who transcribed these words had little training in ethnographic collection. Their own prejudices and stereotypical views often intrude into the narrative—for instance, one source is described as a “typical, old-time negro.” Furthermore, their attempt to represent the speech of their subjects can be quite uneven, and it is affected by the ways of spelling African American speech that were common in that day. For an example, compare these two very different renderings of the speech of George Bollinger, a subject from Cape Girardeau, Missouri, as completed by two different interviewers: To hear for yourself an example of a speaker from the Born in Slavery archive, listen to this interview of Isom Mosely, who was a child in Alabama during the Civil War. You can turn on the captions to see a transcript of his speech. To find out more about the process of interviewing and transcription, read A Note on the Language of the Narratives from the Born in Slavery website.
Slavery in Missouri The first set of accounts you will read is from African Americans who lived in Missouri before emancipation. As these interviews reveal, simple generalizations about the differences between slavery in the border states of the upper South and in the cotton-growing areas of the deep South can give a poor understanding of just how varied and difficult slave life could be no matter where a slave lived. As you read these accounts, remember that for these few who survived to have their stories recorded, there were millions more whose stories we can only guess at. Sarah Graves This narrative gives vivid details of daily life on a Missouri plantation. With her emphasis on constant work, harsh conditions, and the breakup of families life, Graves touches on themes that are common to many of these testimonies. Charlie Richardson This narrative begins with a discussion of food, a constant concern for underfed slaves. Richardson also describes the slave auctions that became common in border slave states like Missouri, as the cotton boom in the states farther south created a constantly growing demand for labor (this is why Jim is worth so much money in Huck Finn). Notice that Richardson is a skilled storyteller—the story about the parrot and the hoe cakes sounds like something Huck might have told. Do you think a story like this supports critic Shelly Fisher Fishkin’s assertion that Twain drew on his memories of African American speakers when he created the character of Huck? Emma Knight Knight lived on a smaller farm near Hannibal, Twain’s home town. This kind of small establishment, with just five slaves, provides a contrast to the large plantations where hundreds of slaves might live. The slaves on the “one-horse” Phelps farm at the end of Huck Finn might have lived a life much like this. Notice that Knight, like so many of the other narrators, lost a parent to the auction block. “My father was took away,” she explains, “...cause de master wanted money to buy something for de house.” Hannah Jones Jones was raised on a very different establishment that she chillingly describes as a “Nigger farm”: the only “crop” raised on these farms were enslaved people, who were eventually sold down the river in New Orleans. Edward Taylor Taylor describes the famous meteor shower in 1833 that became known as the “night the stars fell.” What is remarkable is Taylor’s assertion that he knew he was safe as long as he was with the “white folks,” because he regarded them as God: “I thought de white folks made de stars, sun, and everything on de earth.” Taylor’s statement gives a glimpse into the twisted psychological conditions created by slavery, especially considering the horrific tortures and cruelty he goes on to relate at the hands of these same “gods.” Stories of Resistance A common myth perpetuated by whites is that slaves were docile and largely contented with their lot. In fact, the opposite is true: African Americans showed a strong inclination to resist slavery, in both subtle and overt ways. White fear of this resistance accounts for much of the tension and violence that marks these accounts. Walter Rimm One of the most common forms of resistance was running away. Our view of running has been shaped by the stories of those who escaped successfully to the North, but many of the accounts in the Born in Slavery collection tell of slaves simply running off to hide in the woods for a few days, or even for a few weeks. Rimm, who lived in Texas, tells of “runawayers” whose ability to outwit their pursuers has clearly made them heroes among other African Americans. William Moore Another Texan, Moore tells an amazing story of cruelty and resistance. The ability of the slaves to oppose “Marse Tom” is probably conditioned by the ongoing war, which must have been nearing its close by this time, and by the impending liberation of the slaves. Charlie Moses Moses, who lived in Mississippi, tells of the death of his cruel master at the hands of a hidden sniper. This act of resistance, like that described above by William Moore, is framed by the context of the war. In the time that Huck Finn takes place, such overt violence would have been more likely to meet with harsh reprisals. The same can also be said of the later time when Twain was writing his novels, as the Ku Klux Klan and other white terrorists had re-imposed much of the subjugation and violence of slave times. Folk Religion and Folk Belief Among enslaved African Americans the mix of Christianity, West African religions, and European superstition gave rise to a vibrant belief system described by Henry Bibb as “conjuration and witchcraft.” This set of beliefs and practices, which continues today in the form of Hoodoo, is visible throughout Huck Finn not just in Jim’s hairball or witches, but also in many of Huck’s ideas and practices. The following sources from the WPA project provide an interesting comparison for the superstitions depicted by Twain. George Bollinger A Missouri native like Jim, Bollinger speaks of his firm belief in—and experience of—“hants.” Compare his account to Jim’s ghosts. Note the matter-of-fact, almost analytical way Bollinger speculates on the reasons for the spirits’ presence. Four sources from Georgia Although the speakers in this selection come from Georgia, the beliefs and practices they describe were common throughout the South. This compilation includes descriptions of voodoo and conjure, apparitions and ghosts, and perhaps most interesting for readers of Huck Finn, “witch riding.” “Mrs. Avery” This woman from Georgia tells more about conjure, and how to avoid bad luck. Notice how naturally her beliefs are bound up with storytelling, as she expresses her ideas through the recounting of vivid narratives. |