The bondwoman's narrative / Hannah Crafts ; edited by Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Crafts, Hannah.

Contributor:

Gates, Henry Louis, Jr., editor.

Joanna Banks Collection of African American Books (University of Pennsylvania)

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Crafts, Hannah--Fiction.

Crafts, Hannah.

Enslaved women--United States--Fiction.

Enslaved women.

United States--Social life and customs--19th century--Fiction.

United States.

Manners and customs.

Genre:

Fiction.

Autobiographical fiction.

Penn Provenance:

Banks, Joanna (donor) (Banks Collection copy)

Physical Description:

lxxiv pages, 2 unnumbered pages, 338 pages, 2 unnumbered pages : illustrations, map, portraits ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Warner Books, an AOL Time Warner Company, 2002.

Summary:

An unprecedented historical and literary event, this tale written in the 1850s is the only known novel by a female African American slave, and quite possibly the first novel written by a black woman anywhere. A work recently uncovered by renowned scholar Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr., it is a stirring, page-turning story of "passing" and the adventures of a young slave as she makes her way to freedom. When Professor Gates saw that modest listing in an auction catalogue for African American artifacts, he immediately knew he could be on the verge of a major discovery. After exhaustively researching the hand-written manuscript's authenticity, he found that his instincts were right. He had purchased a genuine autobiographical novel by a female slave who called herself -- and her story's main character -- Hannah Crafts. Presented here unaltered and under its author's original title, The Bondwoman's Narrative tells of a self-educated young house slave who knows her life is limited by the brutalities of her society, but never suspects that the freedom of her plantation's beautiful new mistress is also at risk...or that a devastating secret will force them both to flee from slave hunters with another powerful, determined enemy at their heels. Together with Professor Gates's brilliant introduction -- which includes the story of his search for the real Hannah Crafts, the biographical facts that laid the groundwork for her novel, and a fascinating look at other slave narratives of the time -- The Bondwoman's Narrative offers a unique and unforgettable reading experience. In it, a voice that has never been heard rings out, and an undiscovered story at the heart of the American experience is finally told.

Contents:

Introduction / Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

The Bondwoman's Narrative / Hannah Crafts

Textual Annotations

Appendixes: A. Authentication Report

Dr. Joe Nickell; B. Testimony of Jane Johnson. Version I; Version 2; John Hill Wheeler's Library Catalogue, compiled by Bryan C. Sinche.

Notes:

"First Printing: April 2002."

"Book design by Giorgetta B. McRee."

"Throughout the text, every effort was made to print the novel as it appeared in the original holograph. Hannah Crafts's spelling has been retained, though, on occasion, a bracketed insertion has been added to aid readability ..."--Note on Punctuation and Spelling.

Includes bibliographical references.

Local Notes:

Kislak Center Banks Collection copy presented to the Penn Libraries in 2018 by Joanna Banks.

Banks Collection copy: dustjacket retained.

ISBN:

0446530085 :

OCLC:

49393359