Fictionalized Characters
In the book, Harriet Jacobs uses fictionalized names to protect the identities of persons in the story. Note that not all of the characters in the book are listed here.
Linda Brent is Harriet Jacobs, the book’s protagonist and a pseudonym for the author.
William Brent is John Jacobs: Linda’s brother, to whom she is close. William’s escape from Mr. Sands, his relatively “kind” master, shows that even a privileged slave desires freedom above all else.
Ruth Nash is Margaret Horniblow.
Emily Flint is Mary Matilda Norcom, Dr. Flint’s daughter and Linda’s legal “owner.” Emily Flint serves mainly as Dr. Flint’s puppet, sometimes writing Linda letters in her name, trying to trick her into returning to Dr. Flint.
Dr. Flint is Dr. James Norcom. Although he is based on Harriet Jacobs’s real-life master, Dr. Flint often seems more like a melodramatic villain than a real man. He is morally bankrupt and lacks any redeeming qualities. He is thoroughly one-dimensional, totally corrupted by the power that the slave system grants him. He sees no reason not to use and abuse his slaves in any way he chooses, and he never shows any signs of sympathy for them or remorse for his crimes.
Aunt Martha is Molly Horniblow, Aunt Martha is one of the narrative’s most complex characters, embodying Jacobs’s ambivalence about motherhood and maternal love. She is a second mother to Linda, a positive force in her life, and a paragon of honesty and decency. She is loving and family-oriented, representing an ideal of domestic life and maternal love. She works tirelessly to buy her children’s and grandchildren’s freedom.
Mr. Sands is Samuel Tredwell Sawyer; he is Linda’s white lover and the father of her children. Mr. Sands has a kindlier nature than Dr. Flint, but he feels no real love or responsibility for his mixed-race children. He repeatedly breaks his promises to Linda that he will free them.
Benny Sands is Joseph Sawyer, Ellen Sands is Louisa Sawyer, Mr. Bruce is Nathaniel Parker Willis, and Gertrude Bruce is Cornelia Grinnel Willis.
Read more about this topic: Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl
Famous quotes containing the word characters:
“When the characters are really alive before their author, the latter does nothing but follow them in their action, in their words, in the situations which they suggest to him.”
—Luigi Pirandello (1867–1936)