- You have a choice of websites: https://www.loc.gov/collections/slave-narratives-from-the-federal-writers-project-1936-to-1938/?fa=location:mississippi%7Csegmentof:mesn.090/&sb=title_s&st=galleryLinks to an external site. or this one: http://msgw.org/slaves/Links to an external site.
- Select a narrative and read it.
- Select a second narrative and read it.
- Compose a medium-sized paragraph (6-8 sentences) that comments on the narratives for this assignment. Be sure to indicate which narratives you read. Try to draw comparisons and contrasts to the video you just viewed and to Harriet Jacob’s life. You should also comment on the veracity of the narrative. These were recorded in Mississippi during the 1930s; the ex-slaves were living in a very racist state under the strict Jim Crow laws. Do you think the speakers felt safe telling the truth or did they “sanitize” their comments to please the obviously white and educated interviewer?