North Carolina Slave Narratives: The Lives of Moses Roper, Lunsford Lane, Moses Grandy, and Thomas H. Jones (The John Hope Franklin Series in African American History and Culture)

The autobiographies of former slaves contributed powerfully to the abolitionist movement in the United States, fanning national--even international--indignation against the evils of slavery. The four texts gathered here are all from North Carolina slaves and are among the most memorable and influential slave narratives published in the nineteenth century. The writings of Moses Roper (1838), Lunsford Lane (1842), Moses Grandy (1843), and the Reverend Thomas H. Jones (1854) provide a moving testament to the struggles of enslaved people to affirm their human dignity and ultimately seize their liberty.Introductions to each narrative provide biographical and historical information as well as explanatory notes. Andrews's general introduction to the collection reveals that these narratives not only helped energize the abolitionist movement but also laid the groundwork for an African American literary tradition that inspired such novelists as Toni Morrison and Charles Johnson. General Introduction / By William L. Andrews -- A Narrative Of The Adventures And Escape Of Moses Roper -- The Narrative Of Lunsford Lane -- Narrative Of The Life Of Moses Grandy -- The Experience Of Rev. Thomas H. Jones. William L. Andrews, General Editor ; David A. Davis ... [et Al.], Editors. Includes Bibliographical References. A fascinating collection of narratives from escaped North Carolina slaves offers readers a window into these personal accounts of life in bondage that inflamed Northern sentiments against slavery, including the work of Moses Roper, Lunsford Lane, and Reverend Thomas H. Jones, among others. Almost all of the available information about Moses Roper comes from his own account of his life and from a smattering of extant correspondence.