The History of Mary Prince

The History of Mary Prince

by Mary Prince
The History of Mary Prince

The History of Mary Prince

by Mary Prince

Paperback

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Overview

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.

Author Bio: 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.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781494884970
Publisher: CreateSpace Publishing
Publication date: 01/07/2014
Pages: 62
Product dimensions: 5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.13(d)

About the Author

Mary Prince (1788-1826) was born a slave in Bermuda. In 1815 she was sold to John Wood and taken to Antigua. Here she met Daniel James, a freeman, whom she married in 1826. In 1828, Prince was taken to England and claiming that the Woods had mistreated her she was allowed, under English law, to exercise her right to freedom and found employment as a domestic servant. Her story was published in 1831 and led to two libel trials.

Sara Salih is Assistant Professor in English at the University of Toronto. She is the author of Judith Butler (Routledge 2002), and the editor, with Judith Butler, of The Judith Butler Reader (Blackwell, 2004). She is currently working on a book about representations of 'brown' women in England and Jamaica from the eighteenth century to the present day.

Table of Contents

The History of Mary Prince Acknowledgments
Introduction
Further Reading
Chronology
A Note on the Text

THE HISTORY OF MARY PRINCE

Notes
Appendix One
Appendix Two
Appendix Three
Appendix Four

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