Product Description

After enduring years of cruelty and abuse at the hands of several families who successively owned her in Bermuda and the West Indies, Mary Prince traveled to London in 1828, in the service of the Woods family. There she was granted her freedom in accordance with English law. But England's anti-slavery ruling did not extend to Antigua, and, in order to remain free, Prince had to abandon hopes of rejoining her husband, who had been left behind. Seeking help from Britain's Anti-Slavery Society, she was offered domestic employment and met her employer's friend, Susanna Strickland, to whom she dictated this gripping story of her life.

When it was published in 1831, Prince's History provoked a libel action and counter-suit and required three editions to keep up with public demand. A moving, painstakingly detailed record of the experiences of the author and of her fellow slaves, it became a powerful instrument in the Anti-Slavery Society's campaign against the slave trade. Sara Salih's introduction and notes place the narrative within the context of black history, and examine, as well, Victorian constraints, which required the narrative to be made palatable for contemporary audiences. This edition also includes a chronology and supplementary material on slavery and the case of Mary Prince.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #690900 in Books
• Published on: 2001-02-01
• Released on: 2001-01-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780140437492
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"I was born in Brackish-Pond, in Bermuda, on a farm belonging to Mr. Charles Myners. My mother was a household slave; and my father, whose name was Prince, was a sawyer belonging to Mr. Trimmingham, a ship-builder at Crow-Lane." In this brief straight-forward, and often poetic narrative, Mary Prince describes her life of labor as a household and field slave was made heavier by illness and pain brought on the abject cruelty of her "masters." The text of this autobiography, the first by a female slave to be published, is prefaced and followed by letters written by British people attesting to the honor of her character and the truth of her testimony. Mary's heartfelt and unselfpitying life story, often so wrenching she cannot bring herself to remember or describe the details, contrasts sharply with the polite words of her white protectors' proclamations about the truth of her words. Moira Ferguson's excellent introduction and a critical afterword by Ziggi Alexander give a historical perspective to this lucid and powerful life-story. -- For great reviews of books for girls, check out Let's Hear It for the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14. -- From 500 Great Books by Women; review by Jesse Larsen

About the Author
Mary Prince, born in Brackish Pond, Bermuda, in 1788, was the property of Charles Myners until she was given to Captain Williams, and then sold to a series of other masters in Bermuda, Turks Island, and Antigua where in 1826 she married a free man. In 1828, she moved to London where she dictated her narrative.

Sara Salih is a lecturer at Wadham College, Oxford.

Customer Reviews

A Woman's Voice and the Experience of Slavery
First published in 1831, "The History of Mary Prince" is an extraordinary cultural document. It is the first published account of a female British ex-slave. Mary Prince, a slave in the West Indies in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, tells the story of her life in an effort to awaken sympathy for the abolitionist movement in England.

Mary particularly emphasizes instances of the arbitrary punishments meted out by her various masters. She repeatedly questions how the British, a civilized nation, could permit its colonists to treat its colonial work force like brute beasts. Mary elicits our attention and respect in the ways she manages to resist the brutality of her masters, both physically and vocally. She often shows herself speaking out against cruelty regardless of social taboos, accepted colonial norms of unquestioning obedience, and the image of the "benevolent" slave owner.

Mary's narrative is also remarkable for her characterization as the "self-made heroine." Mary tells us extensively about her attempts to save enough money to purchase her freedom, and to engage, convert, and marry the man of her choice. As the editor of this edition points out, as Mary begins to learn the value of her labor, she more easily manipulates her owners into realizing their own powerlessness over her. A sort of Wollstonecraftian feminist hero, Mary Prince bases her self-definition on her ability to be financially, as well as physically independent, and to improve herself through education and religion.

One limitation of "The History of Mary Prince" is the fact that it was only dictated by Prince. It was transcribed and published by British abolitionists, who may have suggested the emphasis on brutality and deemphasis on specifically sexual violence. It is impossible to know the extent of the editing process, which was out of Prince's hands. Nonetheless, this edition, edited by Moira Ferguson, contains many relevant historical documents which provide a rich context for Prince's narrative.

An important document of the slave experience
Born in Bermuda in the late 18th century, Mary Prince was a Black woman who survived enslavement in the colonial world of the Caribbean. She orally told her story to a third party, who transcribed it. First published in England in 1831, "The History of Mary Prince, a West Indian Slave" is one of the most important narratives of the slave experience in the Americas.

This book describes in detail the reality of the slave experience: the dehumanization of Black people, the moral degradation of their masters, and the ever-present violence. Prince's story is also an important early defense of the humanity of people of African descent. She notes that slave masters "think that black people are like cattle, without natural affection. But my heart tells me it is far otherwise."

Prince tells of her labor in the salt ponds of Turk's Island, her conflict with a hired mulatto woman, her spiritual life in the Moravian Church, and many other topics. Ultimately, she celebrates the desire and hope for freedom: "All slaves want to be free."

"The History of Mary Prince" does not quite attain the level of literary craftsmanship and psychological complexity as do some other classic slave narratives (I am thinking in particular of those of Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs). But it is still a powerful, authoritative, and important human testament. Mary Prince declares, "I have been a slave--I have felt what a slave feels, and I know what a slave knows." We of later centuries need to hear her words.

A brave voice 4.5
Having visited Turks & Caicos a few times I figured it was time to read this book. The vision brought to light, by the brave voice of Mary Prince, is real.

Born in Bermuda, Mary traveled to and fro across the caribbean in search of her freedom. Her story takes you through beatings, hangings by the wrist for such a minimal incident, and working the days from 4:00 in the morning until 9:00 at night. The story continues through to her final escape to the refuse of Mr. Thomas Pringle.

Thomas Pringle was a member of the Anti-Slavery movement. He assisted Mary Prince in her freedom and with getting her story down on paper for all to see.

Highly Recommend.