#AP African American Studies: Ultimate Study Guide 🚀

Hey there! Let's get you prepped for the AP exam with this supercharged study guide. We'll break down everything you need to know, focusing on what's most important and making sure it all sticks. Let's do this! 💪

#1. Resistance to Sexual Violence: Women's Fight for Dignity

#Methods of Enslaved Women 🚺

• Enslaved African American women faced constant sexual abuse with zero legal protection. Laws against rape? Didn't apply to them. 💔
• Physical Resistance: They fought back! 👊 They weren't passive victims.
• Abortion-Inducing Plants: Used herbs like cotton root bark and peacock flower to end pregnancies resulting from rape. 🌿
• Infanticide: A heartbreaking choice to spare their children from slavery's horrors. 😢
• Escape: Running away with children to protect their families. 🏃‍♀️💨
• Hiding: Harriet Jacobs hid in a tiny attic for seven years to avoid her master's advances. 🏠

*Harriet Jacobs, who hid for years to escape sexual exploitation*.

#2. Gender in Slave Narratives: Telling Their Stories

#Themes and Genre Impact 🎭

• Slave narratives: Firsthand accounts of slavery's brutality. 📖
• They detailed escape methods, like the Underground Railroad, and how enslaved people learned to read despite it being illegal. 🚂
• These stories emphasized the humanity of enslaved people, challenging the dehumanizing nature of slavery. 💡
• Women's Narratives: Focused on domestic life, motherhood, and maintaining dignity amidst sexual exploitation. 🤱
• Men's Narratives: Centered on autonomy, reclaiming manhood, and physical resistance. 💪

#Gender Norms in Narratives ♀️♂️

• Women's Narratives:
  • Adhered to 19th-century gender norms to appeal to white female readers. 🧐
  • Portrayed themselves as virtuous, pious, and devoted to their families. 🙏
  • Emphasized vulnerability to sexual violence to evoke sympathy. 🥺
  • Harriet Jacobs' "Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl" is a prime example. 📚
• Men's Narratives:
  • Asserted their masculinity, challenging the emasculation of slavery. 😠
  • Recounted acts of defiance and physical confrontation. 💥
  • Stressed self-reliance, education, and providing for family as markers of manhood. 👨‍🏫
  • Think Frederick Douglass' "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass." ✍️

#3. Impact of Women's Narratives: Fueling Change

#Influence on Political Movements ✊

• Black women's narratives were crucial for the abolitionist movement. 🌟
• Harriet Jacobs' story humanized enslaved women, galvanizing Northern opposition to slavery. 🔥
• Sojourner Truth's "Ain't I a Woman?" speech linked racism and sexism. 🗣️
• Mary Prince's narrative supported the abolitionist campaign in the British Empire. 🌍
• These narratives also informed early feminist movements by highlighting the intersection of race and gender oppression. 👯‍♀️
• Frances Ellen Watkins Harper advocated for both abolition and women's suffrage. ✍️
• Ida B. Wells-Barnett exposed the horrors of lynching and sexual violence against Black women. 😠

The intersection of race and gender is a HUGE theme. Make sure you understand how these identities interact and shape experiences.

*Sojourner Truth, whose speech linked racism and sexism*.

#4. Required Sources: Deep Dive 📚

#The History of Mary Prince, a West Indian Slave by Mary Prince, 1831

• Background: Mary Prince's firsthand account of slavery in the West Indies. 🏝️
• Cruelty: Exposed the brutal realities of the transatlantic slave trade and plantation life. 💔
  • "To strip me naked--to hang me up by the wrists and lay my flesh open with the cow-skin, was an ordinary punishment for even a slight offence."
• Family Separation: Highlighted the emotional toll of family separation. 😢
  • "Oh dear! I cannot bear to think of that day,--it is too much..."
• Journey to Freedom: Her experiences in England and legal challenges faced by former slaves. 🇬🇧
  • "I was willing to come to England: I thought that by going there I should probably get cured of my rheumatism..."
• Impact: Her testimony helped sway public opinion against slavery in Britain. 🌟
  • "I will say the truth to English people who may read this history..."

#Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl: Written by Herself by Harriet A. Jacobs, 1860 (sections V-VIII, XIV, XXI)

• Background: Harriet Jacobs' autobiographical account of enslaved women in the antebellum South. 🇺🇸
• Sexual Exploitation: Unflinching portrayal of sexual harassment and abuse. 😠
  • "My master began to whisper foul words in my ear."
• Powerlessness: Highlighted the lack of legal protection for female slaves. ⚖️
  • "No matter whether the slave girl be as black as ebony or as fair as her mistress. In either case, there is no shadow of law to protect her from insult, from violence, or even from death"
• Motherhood: The burden and anguish of motherhood under slavery. 😥
  • "Slavery is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women."
• Resistance: Extreme measures taken for freedom, like hiding in a tiny attic. 🏠
  • "The garret was only nine feet long, and seven wide..."
• Impact: Galvanized the abolitionist movement by humanizing enslaved people. 🔥

#5. Final Exam Focus: What to Prioritize 🎯

• High-Value Topics:
  • Resistance to sexual violence (methods, motivations). 🚺
  • Gender differences in slave narratives (themes, perspectives). 🎭
  • Impact of women's narratives on abolition and early feminism. ✊
  • Key details from The History of Mary Prince and Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. 📚
• Common Question Types:
  • Multiple Choice: Analyzing primary source excerpts, identifying themes, understanding historical context.
  • Short Answer: Comparing and contrasting narratives, explaining the impact of gender on experiences of slavery.
  • Free Response: Analyzing the significance of resistance, evaluating the role of women's narratives in social movements.
• Time Management:
  • Quickly scan questions for key terms and requirements.
  • Use outlines to organize your thoughts before writing.
  • Don't get bogged down on one question; move on and come back if time allows.
• Common Pitfalls:
  • Not fully reading and understanding the question.
  • Failing to use specific evidence from the texts.
  • Ignoring the nuances of gender and intersectionality.

#6. Practice Questions

Practice Question

#Multiple Choice Questions:

1. Which of the following best describes a primary difference in the themes of slave narratives written by men versus those written by women? (A) Men's narratives focused on domestic life, while women's focused on physical resistance. (B) Men's narratives emphasized autonomy and reclaiming manhood, while women's emphasized domesticity and the struggle to maintain dignity. (C) Men's narratives rarely discussed family separation, while women's narratives frequently did. (D) Men's narratives were primarily written to appeal to white male readers, while women's were aimed at white female readers.

2. Harriet Jacobs' Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl is significant because it: (A) Primarily focuses on the economic aspects of slavery. (B) Provides a rare firsthand account of the sexual exploitation faced by enslaved women. (C) Argues for the continuation of slavery in the United States. (D) Is the only known slave narrative written by a woman.

3. Mary Prince's narrative, The History of Mary Prince, was particularly influential in Britain because it: (A) Detailed the economic benefits of slavery to the British Empire. (B) Offered a rare firsthand account of slavery in the West Indies from an enslaved woman's perspective. (C) Focused on the positive relationships between enslaved people and their owners. (D) Argued that slavery was a necessary institution for maintaining social order.

#Short Answer Question:

Explain how enslaved women used both resistance and accommodation strategies in response to sexual violence. Provide specific examples from the texts studied.

#Free Response Question:

Analyze the role of gender in shaping the themes and perspectives in slave narratives. Using specific evidence from The History of Mary Prince and Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, discuss how these narratives contributed to the abolitionist and early feminist movements.

Scoring Rubric for FRQ

• Thesis (1 point): A clear, defensible thesis statement that addresses the prompt's focus on the role of gender in slave narratives and their impact on social movements.
• Evidence and Analysis (4 points):
  • Provides specific evidence from both The History of Mary Prince and Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl to support the analysis. (2 points)
  • Explains how gender shaped the themes and perspectives in the narratives. (1 point)
  • Analyzes how these narratives contributed to the abolitionist and early feminist movements. (1 point)
• Contextualization (1 point): Demonstrates an understanding of the historical context of slavery and the social movements of the time.
• Synthesis (1 point): Connects the analysis of slave narratives to broader themes of resistance, oppression, and social change.

Alright, you've got this! Remember to stay calm, trust your preparation, and show the AP exam what you're made of. You've got this! 🎉