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Narrative of Sojourner Truth | Reading Pointers for Sharper Insights

Reading Pointers for Sharper Insights

As you read Narrative of Sojourner Truth, pay attention to the following:

  1. Narrative of Sojourner Truth as a dictated biography and a narrative

    • Since Sojourner was illiterate and could not read or write, she dictated her life story to another woman, Olive Gilbert, who recorded the events; the actual Narrative was not directly read or reviewed by Sojourner.

    • Consider how much of the Narrative is accurate (Sojourner's own words and feelings, for example) and how much is inferred and embellished by the writer.

  2. Sojourner Truth's change in beliefs throughout her life

    • In the beginning, Isabella knew slavery to be the law of the land and believed that it was honorable.

    • During her life, Truth, a former slave, challenged the court system and won custody of her child, quite unusual in that era.

    • Sojourner came under the influence of the false prophet Robert Matthews, who called himself Matthias, but later she learned that his teachings were dishonest and self-serving.

    • After she was freed, Truth took it upon herself to travel around the country as an itinerant preacher. Her chosen name indicates that she was a traveler who spoke the truth about slavery.

    • She encountered and talked with followers of various faiths, such as Pentecostals, Methodists, Quakers, Shakers, and Second Day Adventists.

  3. Hardships of slavery

    • Slavery in the South versus slavery in the North

      • In the South, slave owners owned large numbers of slaves, and slaves lived and worked together in groups; treatment was frequently much more harsh than for Northern slaves.

      • In the North, slave owners owned fewer slaves. Slaves often worked side by side with other workers and even lived in the houses of their masters. It was, as in the South, common for children of slaves to be taken from their parents and sold. Northern slaves also had fewer peers with which to share and preserve their heritage and culture.

    • Because of a lack of education and illiteracy, slaves' viewpoints and thoughts were limited; Sojourner overcame these limitations and challenged authorities.

    • Weaker or older slaves were often abandoned in their old age and left without care, food, and shelter. Slave owners would even grant aged slaves freedom to avoid the responsibility of owning and providing for them.

    • Punishments for slaves were often severe. It is ironic that religious slave owners could claim to have strong religious beliefs, yet treat their slaves inhumanely.

  4. Sojourner Truth as a symbol of a strong black woman

    • In her life, she transformed herself from a slave named Isabella to a free woman who captivated audiences with her oratory.

    • Women were typically not permitted to present formal speeches in public, as they had no rights and were not allowed to speak in front of mixed groups of men and women. Sojourner dodged this obstacle by preaching to informal audiences in the streets.

    • Sojourner played a large part in the women's rights movement—the longest non-violent struggle in U.S. history—before it was acceptable to speak out against discrimination against women.

  5. Dialect

    • In the Narrative, dialect and language indicate one's social standing: Sojourner learned Low Dutch as a child, was beaten for it later, as it was the only language she knew, and had to learn English, which enabled her to communicate with her listeners.

    • Note that Sojourner Truth's use of English, as translated for the book by Olive Gilbert, is excellent; in actuality, however, it was filled with the typical slave jargon, mispronunciations, and grammatical shortcuts.