At the core of autobiography lies a sense of ownership over oneself, ones voice and ones story. It is not surprising that this form would become such a powerful tool in the fight for abolition and, later, Civil Rights in America. The institution of slavery denied men and women their selfhood and forbade the acquisition of literacy. The slave narrative was born of these denials and became one of the most significant genres in the development of African American letters. This course will begin with a study of several slave narratives that established the genre. We will then consider post-abolition autobiographies, autobiographical novels, and neo-slave narratives which both echo the early slave narratives and tackle contemporary concerns.

Assignments will include two short response papers, a midterm, a group presentation, and a final paper based on students’ individual research. We will also have periodic in-class writings and reading quizzes. Sample texts may include:

• Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
• Harriet Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl
• William and Ellen Craft, Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom
• Booker T. Washington, Up from Slavery
• James Weldon Johnson, Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man
• Richard Wright, Black Boy
• Ernest J. Gaines, The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.