Imagery in Harper and Whittier

Imagery was used in both Harper and Whittier's poems. In reading Harper's "The Slave Mother", many lines of imagery was used. This poem describes a mother being separated from her son due to slavery and the tossing back and forth to multiple slave owners. From lines, 5- 9, Harper states: 
"Saw you those hands so sadly clasped
The bowed and feedble head
The shuddering of that fragile form
That look of grief and dread?"
This stanza stood out to me the most due to the fact that it provided visuals to the reader and makes the reader feel how the character feels. The description Harper uses reflects what slave women had to endure and the emotional pain one had to undergo. In addition, Harper uses continual imagery with the stanza stating:
"He is not hers, for cruel hands
May rudely tear apart
The only wreath of household love
That binds her breaking heart."
In reading his, Harper describes the scene of a child being taken away from a mother or parent during the transition of slave owners. It shows a clear visual of not only emotion but physical pain of the separation of a family. 
Imagery in this particular poem provides detail that one can gain emotions from in just one read. While reading Harper's poem, you are automatically drawn to the words of imagery and can feel or understand what the character is going through in regaurds to slavery. 

Race and Culture

In both readings, the characters were definitely caught between cultures. In Jacobs' Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, she describes how difficult for an African American woman to live in society at that time. Jacob's describes the slave girl's sister going through "misery and degradation being forced to suffer in slavery." In addition, she goes on to say "Mortified and tormented beyond endurance, this child came and threw herself on her mother's bosom, the only place where she could seek refuge from her persecutor; and yet she could not protect her child that she bore into the world" (Jacobs 766). Jacob later discusses in the reading how even her mother was punished for taking or trying to protect her daughter from this injustice stating "My mother was dragged to jail, there remained twenty-five days, with negro traders to come in as they liked to examine her, as she was offered for sale." In describing how African American slaves were treated really shows how it was hard to adapt to the American culture. In the case of the Native Americans, they were in a way forced to adapt to the American culture and believe in the American dream; Wearing clothing, listening to the white settlers, etc. However, in the case of the African Americans, it was a sense of fear as to "if we don't like what they are doing to us, we can't really do anything about it because punishment would be involved." In Jacob's writing, she explains how she doesn't write this to gain sympathy or anything to that extent but she states, "But I do earnestly desire to arouse the women of the North to a realizing sense of the condition of two millions of women at the South, still in bondage, suffering what i suffered, and most of them far worst" (Jacobs 769). In Jacobs stating this, it really shows the problem between the two cultures: one was more dominant than the other and harder for the less dominant to gain a voice in this country. In being a slave, slaves had no rights given to them and seemed to be considered "worthless" in the eyes of the white American. 


In Child's The Quadroons, the characters portrayed are definitely represented by being caught between cultures. From the beginning of the reading, Child's describes Rosalie having a better than usual life as a slave. Rosalie, though a slave, had a very wealthy owner and was not mistreated as most slaves were (like in Jacobs' account). However, being in love with another slave name Edward turned into a spiral when things could not work out between them due to the fact that they were slaves. In having a daughter, they were not allowed to officially be declared married, so things between the couple ended. In Child's reading she states "What would be the destiny of this fascinating young creature, so radiant with life and beauty? She belonged to a proscribed race; and though the brown color on her soft cheek was scarcely deeper than the sunny side of a golden pear, yet was it sufficient to exclude her from virtuous society." I felt this quote to be sufficient evidence to state that society had looked down upon many African American slaves. This quote shows the uncertainties many had, thinking about the future of their children and what would life be like for them. Would they have to face the injustice and torture they endured?

Both readings show conflict the characters felt in society due to their race. In Jacobs' writing, she lived in fear most of her life, enduring the worst from society. The reading shows that as an African American, you had no voice at all in this country. If you were to be beaten or treated unfairly, there was no way out. In Child's reading, it shows how society looked down upon the African American slaves, disregarding their rights as human beings and what was to happen in the future.

Apress and Sigourney's Theme

     In reading both Apess' and Sigourney's writings, the central theme that came across was civil rights for classes or cultures of society, focusing on Native Americans. In "An Indian's Looking-Glass for the White Man" Apress brings some very valuable information to the table in regaurds to Native American rights. In the beginning, Apress states, "Now I ask if degradation has not been heaped long enough upon the Indians? And if so, can there not be a compromise? Is it right to hold and promote prejudices? If not, why not put them all away?"(Apress 641) Apress is asking questions as to why is this happening and what is the reason for this, also leading up to some of his final thoughts. Apress also asks the question, "Can you charge the indians with robbing a nation almost of their whole continent, and murdering their women and children, and then depriving the remainder of their lawful rights, that nature and God require them to have? and to cap the climax, rob another nation to till their grounds and welter our their days under the lash with hunger and fatigue under the scorching rays of the burning sun?" (Apress 642) Apress brings up the point leading back to day one of our readings when we discussed who was actually here first. In addition, he points out that the Indians have endured much since the Englishman have been there and turns it around asking if the Indians have done that to their own people.
      Just like Apress, Sigourney has the same theme dealing with rights among different cultures or societies. In her biography, "Signourney was a popular poet who used conventional forms, writing elegies to honor dead friends and lyrics about nature. But she also wrote about social and political problems in the United States" (Signourney 1204).In her poem "Indian Names, Signourney has the same message as Apress, stating about the mistreatment of the Native Americans. She describes how the Indians are no longer present due to the Englishmen basically cutting them away from society. In describing their non presence, Signourney states, " Ye say, they all have passed away, that noble race and brave, that their light canoes have vanished from off the crested wave" (Signourney 1204). In ending, she clearly takes a stab at the Englishmen by stating, "Monadnock on this forehead hoar doth steal the sacred trust, your mountains build their monument, though ye destroy their dust" (Signourney 1205). In both pieces of writing, both writers make clear that the Indians have a ways to gain their rights of individuals. Both analyze their struggles on this land and once they had had everything, it was abruptly taken away.

The Tenth of January

Style, in modern writing, represents tone or language of the writing the author presents. In reading The Tenth of January, the style of writing tends to be solemn and a bit depressing. Starting from the beginning, the reader senses sadness when the author describes the city of Lawrence and the people presiding. "For simooms that scorch you and tempests that freeze; for sand-heaps and sand-hillocks and-roads; for men digging sand, for women shaking off sand, for minute boys crawling in sand; for sand in the church-slips and the gingerbread-windows, for sand in your eyes, your nose, your mouth, down your neck, up your sleeves, under your chignon, down your throat; for unexpected corners where tornadoes lie in wait" (Phelps 1). In reading the description, you can, as the reader, feel what the town is made of and how people feel; people's sense of emotions. In reading along, the author describes Aseneth who is a struggling young women for perfection in other peoples eyes. The author goes on to describe her as "her neck and shoulders were closely muffled" (Phelps 2). From the descriptions of the city and the people along with it's main character, the author makes it a slightly sad read just because reading about a character undergoing harsh judgement and other problems creates sympathy among the reader.

Irving's "The Wife"

In reading the "The Wife" by Irving, Irving describes a couple during the time period facing hardships and relates it back to the time and the endurance one faces in being an American. What I had understood from the reading was the different roles than man had in the relationship between England and America. In today's time versus the time this story was written, the roles were significantly different. While in one country the man was to be the provider and if he could not hold his family together and provide for them, society would look down upon him. However, in the other country (America), it wasn't so bad if something were to happen where providing for the family became difficult. In Irving's story, he basically send the picture that economic status meant a lot during that time as described above. As far as marriage, if this couldn't be lived up, it would be hard for the man to let his wife know what they are dealing with. In the story, Leslie was a tad ashamed of the hardships they were facing and found it difficult to inform his wife about what was going on. Even so, women, as portrayed in this story, showed compassion for their husbands and actually held their head up when situations like this came upon them.