Paper Assignment
This paper your task is to compare and contrast the relations between women in the lives of Bethany Veney and Celia. Specifically, what aspects of women's lived experiences united them and which divided them and why?
Specifically, focus on the relations between enslaved women (as children, women, mothers, and "mammys") and white women. You might want to consider the varying degrees of control the women had over their own lives, whether enslaved or free. How much independence or control did Newsom's daughters or the white women in the Veney narrative have within their own lives and families? How much control did Veney or Celia or other enslaved women have? In what ways did Veney and Celia seek to control what happened to them, to shape their own destinies? Were either of them successful or partially successful? Where do we see white/free women assisting or helping (or not helping) enslaved women?
In your essay, please avoid summarizing the narratives but, rather, focus on specific details/moments in the readings to support your claims.
Word count should be about 800-900 words. Successful essays will conform to the conventions of standard written English appropriate to the task of writing in an academic setting and use proper citation format [in-text parenthetical citations at the end of the sentence, e.g. (Ulrich 22)].
A note about citation:
A work cited page is not required for this paper, however, I have included below the MLA citation format for the two readings. Parenthetical citations are required. Proper format for these is below as well.
Work Cited:
Linder, David O. "Celia, A Slave Trial (1855)." Famous Trials.
Veney, Bethany. The Narrative of Bethany Veney, A Slave Woman. Boston, MA: Geo. H. Ellis, 1889. Documenting the American South. 1997.