![]() The Nat Turner he introduces seems both evil and heroic. Gray's "The Confessions of Nat Turner: The Leader of the Late Insurrection in Southampton, Virginia," remains the most cited and controversial account of Nat Turner and his rebellion. Between these two extremes lie other interpretations, none of which has been able to capture the "real" Nat Turner, but all of which have attracted considerable interest nevertheless.ĭuring the past 187 years, writers have tried to recreate Nat Turner in various images, beginning with Thomas Rufflin Gray. … Slaves were about as well aware of what was going on as their masters were" (150). Daniel Goddard, a former enslaved man in South Carolina, tells of the early spread of the Nat Turner story: "The Nat Turner insurrection in Virginia and the Vesey uprising in Charleston was discussed often, in my presence, by my parents and friends. On the other hand, among the black community and to some whites in the North, Nat Turner became an immediate hero. Whites in the deep South, in particular, created a "monstrous" Nat whose revolt became proof of potential danger from other like-minded slaves: "For weeks after the insurrection, reports of additional uprisings swept over the South, and scores of communities from Virginia to Mississippi convulsed in hysteria" (Oates 105). Nat Turner's assault on the whites of Southampton County, Virginia, in August 1831 has had a strong and enduring impact on conceptions of black identity throughout the United States and on formulations of the mythic Turner. W hen W illiam S tyron published his controversial novel T he Confessions of Nat Turner in 1967, the book reignited interest in the man who conducted the most violent attack on white slave owners before the Civil War.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |