Karmen Collins
TR
8:00-9:15am
Corbly Hall
#306

Sojourner Truth

Biographical information on the author

Isabella Van Wagenen whom everyone knows her as Sojourner Truth was born into world as well as slavery in 1797 in New York. She was born into a huge family, one of thirteen. As a young child she wasn’t close with her brothers and sisters because they were quickly sold off to become slaves. As well as her brothers and sister she was quickly sold off to become a slave to the master of Mr. Dumont who arranged for her to marry another slave by the name of Thomas. She wed Thomas and soon had become pregnant bearing five children. Mr. Dumont sold her children as soon as they were the age to work.

Isabella was a remarkable and smart woman despite her illiteracy. She was released from Mr. Dumont following the New York Anti Slavery Law of 1827. She moved on to live with a Quaker family who gave her an education and helped get back one of her kids.

Isabella was a tall lean 5 foot 11 inch female of which she put to use. She became an outspoken female at the woman’s rights and also the blacks’ rights. In 1843 that is when she changed her Isabella Van Wagenen to Sojourner Truth.

Sojourner Truth continued to travel and help out Black troops during the Civil War and she spoke at different events from northwest and Midwest from her home in Battle Creek. Sojourner then died in Michigan in 1883 at the age of 84.

Brief Summary of Essay

In the essay “Aren’t I Woman?” Sojourner stresses the main points she is trying to make as an African-American Female. Sojourner talks about how African-American women were treated the complete opposite from Caucasian women as far as daily living. What I mean by daily living is shopping, asking for things, being helped into carriages, being helped over dirty ditches and eating in the best places. She also talks about how her master treated her as if she had special treatment. She releases her anger by saying I have plowed, planted and gathered into barns and your saying I’m not good enough. I work just as hard as a man; even harder and your saying I’m still not good enough. I bear the lash and eat just as much and I’m still not good enough. Sojourner is trying to prove everything a black woman can do maybe even more then a man and she is asking who ever is listening, “Aren’t I A Woman?”.

Questions the essay raises for you

I feel as though Sojourner is presenting more then two points of view that are very important and are still important today. One is Women’s Rights, another is African-American Rights, and the last is Slavery. All three issues were very important and still are important in today’s societies. I also feel as though she is contradicting herself because first she says she should be helped everywhere she goes because she is a female and then she complains when she gets special treatment because she is a female.

Themes

Sojourner Truth repeats one phrase throughout the whole essay which is “Aren’t I A Woman?”

Ideas for genres I might explore in my final project

Other ideas for my genres later on in my project on Sojourner Truth are newspapers, movies, magazines, books, clothes, music, speeches, movements, associates, and education.