The Mistresses

    The stereotype of a “good Christian woman” is very common, but when it comes to slavery this does not seem to fit. Mary Prince and Harriet Jacobs both write about how they were treated badly by their masters, but also by their mistresses. They were not given much love by their mistresses, even though they were taught to show love. They were given examples of good Christian actions from those around them, but not from those closest to them. 

    Mary Prince wrote her own story, The History of Mary Prince, A West Indian Slave, in 1831. She writers that her mistress “did not care to take any trouble about me; and if the Lord had not put it into the hearts of the neighbours to be kind to me, I must, I really think, have lain and died” (Prince 14). Only the neighbors of Prince’s mistress showed any kindness towards Prince. Her mistress could not be bothered with Prince’s well-being. She even threatens to have Prince whipped because the mulatto woman the mistress hired would complain about Prince (Prince 15). Both women were not on Prince's side and made sure she knew her place as a slave.

    Harriet Jacobs, an American slave, wrote Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl in 1858. Her story was about a slave named Linda, but she insists that everything in it is what happened to Jacobs herself. Her story was used to show how even the best Christian woman can be brought down due to owning a slave. She mentions that her former mistress and how the woman taught Linda about God’s Word and that everyone should love their neighbor. When the woman dies, Linda realizes her mistress never thought of them as neighbors; Linda was always viewed as a slave (Belasco 771-2). Linda’s former mistress still treated Linda like a slave, not like a neighbor. Jacobs uses this example in her hopes her readers believe the mistress was not following the Word. She told Linda to love others, but did not show love towards Linda.

    Mary Prince and Harriet Jacobs lived in different countries, yet both seemed to experience the “good Christian woman” acting horribly. The mistresses did not take pity on their slaves and, in the words of Prince and Jacobs, did not follow the words they should live by. Slavery brought out the worst in people. It is highly likely that many slaves did not think of their mistresses as good or Christian women.