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ence,including letters,maps,notices,contracts,newspaperclippings,photos,etc.Through many historical detective works,Yellin systematicallyresearched Jacobs’s life and creation to prove that Harriet Jacobs was the actual writerand that her narrative was a true story.He confirmed that Jacobs was the first to writeautobiographically as an enslaved person before the American Civil War.Yellin alsostated that Incidents in the life of a slave girl plays an essential role inAfrican-American literature,especially in African American female literature.

Chapter 2 Sexual Exploitation under American RacialSlavery

2.1 Sexual Exploitation of Black Men

White people had absolute power over enslaved people under slavery,whichmeans they could have sex with them at will.The sexual relations between two racescan be divided into two categories:one is between white men and black women,while the other is between white women and black men.Although it was morecommon for white men to have sex with black female slaves,the sexual relationshipbetween white women and black men can not be ignored.The sexual exploitation ofblack men was mainly from white mistresses.

The sexual relationship between black men and white women was forbidden atthat time.Because“the sexual relationship between white men and black womenmainly reflected the superior racial status of the whites.In contrast,the sexualrelationship between white women and black men may imply gender and racialequality”(Huang,2008:85).It was unacceptable in the society based on racial slaveryand white supremacy.White women were taught and believed to hold the virtue of“pure,pious,submissive,and domestic”(Doriani,1991:204).In order to protect thefame and dignity of white women,black men who conducted a sexual relationshipwith white women were also considered“virile,promiscuous,and lusty”(Foster,2011:449).Such negative images brought great pain to black men’s psyches.The whitesalso enacted laws to punish sexual relationships between black men and white women.“Castration and other genital mutilations”(Foster,2011:451)were used aspunishments for black men.Another reason for white men to prohibit sexualrelationship between black men and white women was that they felt embarrassed andashamed.To some extent,the sexual relationship between white women and black men implied that black men were more suitable than white men to be sexual partners.It challenged the prevailing ideology of white supremacy.

2.2 Sexual Exploitation of Black Women

Compared with black men,black female slaves were under more severe sexualexploitation.Because in the patriarchal society,white men held more power thanwhite women.White women were somehow worried about the exposure of theirsexual relationship with black men,while white men took it for granted to have sexwith black women.Black female slaves were seen as property and white mastersclaimed the absolute right over them.In the white masters’eyes,black females wereonly sexual tools and breeding tools.They could have sex with female slaves casuallywithout worrying about any punishment because there was no law to protect thevirginity of black female slaves.As Jacobs described in her narrative,Black femaleslaves were powerless to protect themselves from being raped.They would be“whipped or starved into the submission to their will”(47).

Under slavery,slave owners had absolu本论文由英语论文网提供整理，提供论文代写，英语论文代写，代写论文，代写英语论文，代写留学生论文，代写英文论文，留学生论文代写相关核心关键词搜索。