Relegated to a footnote in most literary anthologies, better known for being the mother of Anthony Trollope, Frances Milton Trollope was a remarkably prolific author, a staunch advocate of human rights, a skilled traveler, and a truly transnational artist. Indeed, even though she began her writing career in her fifties, prompted by the financial necessity to support her family, she published over one hundred acclaimed narratives, including several travelogues, novels, and shorter pieces. In 1827 she followed her friend, the Scottish reformer Frances Wright, to Tennessee, to join the Nashoba Community, a short-lived and controversial utopian experiment. Purchased by Wright, African American slaves in Nashoba were educated and gradually prepared to be repatriated to Africa or Haiti. Trollope became fully acquainted with the slave question in the US, where she lived for a few years before moving back to England: she witnessed the hardships slaves had to endure and the violence inflicted on fugitives seeking sanctuary in Canada. By focusing on her groundbreaking abolitionist novel, The Life and Adventures of Jonathan Jefferson Whiltlaw (1836), this essay sets out to explore the strategies she employed to tackle the issue of slavery in the US; special emphasis will be placed on her treatment of the real protagonist of the novel: Juno, a woman in her seventies who interprets Trollope’s ideal of maternal feminism.

Marino, E. (2023). Frances Trollope and the African American Question: "The Life and Adventures of Jonathan Jefferson Whitlaw; or Scenes on the Mississippi". LA QUESTIONE ROMANTICA, 15(1/2), 85-97.

Frances Trollope and the African American Question: "The Life and Adventures of Jonathan Jefferson Whitlaw; or Scenes on the Mississippi"

elisabetta marino
2023-12-01

Abstract

Relegated to a footnote in most literary anthologies, better known for being the mother of Anthony Trollope, Frances Milton Trollope was a remarkably prolific author, a staunch advocate of human rights, a skilled traveler, and a truly transnational artist. Indeed, even though she began her writing career in her fifties, prompted by the financial necessity to support her family, she published over one hundred acclaimed narratives, including several travelogues, novels, and shorter pieces. In 1827 she followed her friend, the Scottish reformer Frances Wright, to Tennessee, to join the Nashoba Community, a short-lived and controversial utopian experiment. Purchased by Wright, African American slaves in Nashoba were educated and gradually prepared to be repatriated to Africa or Haiti. Trollope became fully acquainted with the slave question in the US, where she lived for a few years before moving back to England: she witnessed the hardships slaves had to endure and the violence inflicted on fugitives seeking sanctuary in Canada. By focusing on her groundbreaking abolitionist novel, The Life and Adventures of Jonathan Jefferson Whiltlaw (1836), this essay sets out to explore the strategies she employed to tackle the issue of slavery in the US; special emphasis will be placed on her treatment of the real protagonist of the novel: Juno, a woman in her seventies who interprets Trollope’s ideal of maternal feminism.
dic-2023
Pubblicato
Rilevanza internazionale
Articolo
Esperti anonimi
Settore L-LIN/10
Settore ANGL-01/A - Letteratura inglese
English
African American question; Frances Trollope; The Life and Adventures of Jonathan Jefferson Whitlaw
Marino, E. (2023). Frances Trollope and the African American Question: "The Life and Adventures of Jonathan Jefferson Whitlaw; or Scenes on the Mississippi". LA QUESTIONE ROMANTICA, 15(1/2), 85-97.
Marino, E
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2108/373723
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