1 When discussing Civil War-era
narratives, critics almost invariably refer
to slave narratives published before
1865. However, many ex-slaves wrote
5 about their return to the South after the
war, and about reunions with their
former masters. These significant
postbellum narratives have been largely
ignored.
10 What is perhaps most striking about
many of these narratives is the
incidence of emotionally charged
reunions between the protagonists and
their former "owners." In many
15 instances, long-standing class
differences were surprisingly bridged,
and reconciliation occurred between
black and white. One of the most
important of such accounts was written
20 by Frederick Douglass himself.
The Life and Times of Frederick
Douglass contains what is probably the
most famous scene of reconciliation in
postbellum narrative. In the summer of
25 1877, Douglass returned to Talbot
County hoping to see his former master,
Thomas Auld. Auld, by then more than
eighty years old, was much weaker than
the young man that Douglass-now an
30 international celebrity-had hated and
feared. Believing it unseemly to speak
words of bitterness and reproach to a
man so close to death, Douglass made
an effort to make peace with Auld. "After
35 all," said Douglass, "I regarded both of
us as victims of the system."
This idea of mutual victimization was
certainly not something Douglass had
argued in his previous autobiographical
40 accounts of slavery. Nevertheless, like
many slave narrators in the postbellum
era, he was not averse to showing
slavery's harmful effects on whites as
well as blacks. In the end, Douglass's
45 reunion with Auld is described as joyful.
Accounts such as the one written by
Douglass were often criticized or
condemned by other opponents of
slavery. To some, including many
50 modern observers, the narrative
appeared to undermine the long-
standing abolitionist scorn for the
patriarchal justification of slavery.
Moreover, one of the chief results of
55 antebellum slave narratives was that the
sentimental image of the relationship
between slave and master was
discredited. But Douglass rejected such
attacks on personal, cultural, and
60 political grounds. He believed that his
narrative was not one of weakness but
strength, the strength to hold on to the
past despite its painful associations.
With which of the following statements regarding postbellum narratives would the author be most likely to agree?
A.While postbellum narratives often describe emotional reunions between blacks and whites, these accounts do not necessarily indicate forgiveness on the part of the former slaves.
B.Critics of postbellum narratives are well justified in condemning these accounts for downplaying the horrors of slavery.
C.The idea of mutual victimization by slavery is the only explanation for the willingness of former slaves to meet with their former masters.
D.Critics who refer only to antebellum slave narratives are unaware of the many extant postbellum narratives.
E.Scenes of reconciliation between ex-slaves and their former masters are marked by a reluctance on both parts to confront longstanding class differences.
I picked option B based on lines 40-44
narratives, critics almost invariably refer
to slave narratives published before
1865. However, many ex-slaves wrote
5 about their return to the South after the
war, and about reunions with their
former masters. These significant
postbellum narratives have been largely
ignored.
10 What is perhaps most striking about
many of these narratives is the
incidence of emotionally charged
reunions between the protagonists and
their former "owners." In many
15 instances, long-standing class
differences were surprisingly bridged,
and reconciliation occurred between
black and white. One of the most
important of such accounts was written
20 by Frederick Douglass himself.
The Life and Times of Frederick
Douglass contains what is probably the
most famous scene of reconciliation in
postbellum narrative. In the summer of
25 1877, Douglass returned to Talbot
County hoping to see his former master,
Thomas Auld. Auld, by then more than
eighty years old, was much weaker than
the young man that Douglass-now an
30 international celebrity-had hated and
feared. Believing it unseemly to speak
words of bitterness and reproach to a
man so close to death, Douglass made
an effort to make peace with Auld. "After
35 all," said Douglass, "I regarded both of
us as victims of the system."
This idea of mutual victimization was
certainly not something Douglass had
argued in his previous autobiographical
40 accounts of slavery. Nevertheless, like
many slave narrators in the postbellum
era, he was not averse to showing
slavery's harmful effects on whites as
well as blacks. In the end, Douglass's
45 reunion with Auld is described as joyful.
Accounts such as the one written by
Douglass were often criticized or
condemned by other opponents of
slavery. To some, including many
50 modern observers, the narrative
appeared to undermine the long-
standing abolitionist scorn for the
patriarchal justification of slavery.
Moreover, one of the chief results of
55 antebellum slave narratives was that the
sentimental image of the relationship
between slave and master was
discredited. But Douglass rejected such
attacks on personal, cultural, and
60 political grounds. He believed that his
narrative was not one of weakness but
strength, the strength to hold on to the
past despite its painful associations.
With which of the following statements regarding postbellum narratives would the author be most likely to agree?
A.While postbellum narratives often describe emotional reunions between blacks and whites, these accounts do not necessarily indicate forgiveness on the part of the former slaves.
B.Critics of postbellum narratives are well justified in condemning these accounts for downplaying the horrors of slavery.
C.The idea of mutual victimization by slavery is the only explanation for the willingness of former slaves to meet with their former masters.
D.Critics who refer only to antebellum slave narratives are unaware of the many extant postbellum narratives.
E.Scenes of reconciliation between ex-slaves and their former masters are marked by a reluctance on both parts to confront longstanding class differences.
I picked option B based on lines 40-44
