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E-202 Marginalized Whiteness, Morten Oddvik, 22.10.2002
Mary Prince and Collective Identity
In this essay I will look at how the writer in
The History of Mary Prince
creates a collective identity for Anglo-Africans, Africans and especially how she makes herself part of this identity. I will also look moreclosely at the text and discuss the importance of narration in relation to my question of collectiveidentity. I will try to clarify the implications that the narrative holds. By using the text and additionalmaterial associated with the main text of Mary Prince I will argue that the narrator creates a collectiveidentity because she feels part of a community, not only by experience, but an emotional one as well. Inthe end of the narrative Mary Prince becomes the spokeswoman for all slaves and the desire for freedom.The narrative perspective implies some problems. First of all it is important to bear in mind that the storyas it is presented in
The History of Mary Prince
is a story that Susannah Strickland has written asrelated by Mary Prince herself. For this reason I find it necessary to make a distinction between thewriter and the narrator where Ms. Strickland is the writer and Mary Prince is the narrator. AdditionallyThomas Pringle has definitely had his impact on the story and how it has been presented in his role aseditor and Anti-Slavery activist.It is interesting to note how Mary Prince relates her story to Ms. Strickland in retrospective andespecially her choice of words and pronouns. If we look at her descriptions of her childhood in Bermudaat Brackish Pond in the first couple of pages it is presented as being quite tranquil and peaceful. Shelooks back at her childhood with happiness. She experienced happiness through play with Miss Betseyand in a sense enjoyed freedom. Mary Prince interestingly expresses a close bond to her masters, and in particular her mistress, and as she says: «I was truly attached to her, and, next to my own mother, lovedher better than any creature in the world» (
The History of Mary Prince
, 8). Little Mary Prince could still
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E-202 Marginalized Whiteness, Morten Oddvik, 22.10.2002
not distinguish between her own family and their status in relation to their masters. As an adult MaryPrince regards this oblivion as a blessing, but she acknowledges the fact that: «Those days were too pleasant to last» (
The History of 
 
Mary Prince
, 9).When Mary Prince and her sisters are brought to Hamble Town to be sold she begins to realizethe distinction between the black and white and their respective communities. This terribly shockingexperience did obviously make a great impact on Mary Prince and her happy days are over. At this pointin the story she makes an interesting remark about white people:«They were not all bad, I dare say, but slavery hardens white people’s hearts towards the blacks; and many of them were not slow to make their remarks upon us aloud, without regard toour grief - though their words fell like cayenne on the fresh wounds of our hearts. Oh those white people have small hearts who can only feel for themselves.»(
The History of 
 
Mary Prince
, 11)At Spanish Point where Mary Prince are brought in her new captivity she begins to feel a newaffinity with other slaves and acknowledge the miserable facts of slavery. In the case of a French Black slave named Hetty Mary Prince witnesses for the first time gruesome atrocities committed against fellowslaves and a collective identity is starting to take form: «Poor Hetty, my fellow slave» (
The History of Mary Prince
, 15) The terrible atrocities that Mary Prince relates from this time strengthens the collectiveidentity, where suffering is a central issue. The work in the salt ponds at Turk’s Island presents thereader with a new kinship of sufferers, between Mary Prince and her fellow slaves:«Our feet and legs, from standing in the salt water for so many hours, soon became full of dreadful boils, which eat down in some cases to the very bone, afflicting the sufferers with great torment.»(
The History of Mary Prince
, 19)This kinship of sufferers is a collective identity in which Mary Prince can consolidate herself with. She experiences incredible hardship and atrocities, but finds some comfort in the collective senseof suffering in the way they are being treated: «We slept in a long shed, divided into narrow slips, likethe stalls used for cattle» (
The History of 
 
Mary Prince
, 19) They, as slaves, feel closer to cattle thantheir white masters, and by this the collective identity becomes even more alienated from humanity.There exists a great divide between the ruling white race and their slaves.
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E-202 Marginalized Whiteness, Morten Oddvik, 22.10.2002
Furthermore Mary Prince takes on an important role as an observer. In the case of Old Daniel atTurk`s Island she says of his condition: «This poor man’s wounds were never healed, and I have oftenseen them full of maggots, which increased his torments to an intolerable degree» (
The History of Mary Prince
, 21). Not only does Mary Prince’s role as observer strengthen the collective identity in thenarrative, but it does also provide shocking evidence for English readers. Mary Prince seems to be awareof her position as an observer and an informer in her retrospective perspective: «Oh that Turk’s Islandwas a horrible place! The people in England, I am sure, have never found out what is carried on there.Cruel, horrible place!» (
The History of Mary Prince
, 21). These passages in
The History of Mary Prince
does also serve as propaganda as Sara Salih reminds us of in her introduction: «Most importantly, itdocumented accounts of the abuses inflicted upon slaves in the colonies; graphic and harrowingaccounts which were undoubtedly intended to provoke the reader to a sense of outrage and anti-slaverycrusading zeal.» (Introduction, xxvi)The collective identity is very strong at the end of 
The History of Mary Prince
. Mary Prince is becoming a spokeswoman for all slaves in the 19th century: «All slaves want to be free - freedom is verysweet. I will say the truth to English people who may read this history (...)» (
The History of Mary Prince
, 38).The main text of Mary Prince has narrative implications as I suggested above. The involvement of Susannah Strickland and Thomas Pringle forms the text as much as Mary Prince herself. As the editor Sara Salih writes in her introduction: «It is also important to bear in mind that the History is a piece of  propaganda and that it was certainly `pruned` by Pringle and Strickland so that it could be used in theAnti-Slavery Society’s campaign against the slave trade.» (Introduction, xxxi)
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