Author(s)

Joyce Hope Scott

American Studies & Humanities, Wheelock College, Boston, MA, USA.

Race and gender proved to be two daunting obstacles for African American and Afro-Caribbean women in the 19^th century; thus success outside those domains often depended on women’s ability to keep a strong feminist stance. Prescribed female roles and racial prejudice hindered many in their ambitions and endeavors. This paper argues that some 19^th century black women’s narratives, however, point to a body of resistance texts in contention with prescribed roles for such women. The textual personas of such narratives transcend the confines of home and racially-configured communities. In fact, the narratives foreground a female agency where personal worth and identities are reconstructed through traveling and working in the global arenas and economies of the 19^th century world.

Black Women, Agency, Liminality, Transnational, Travel, Subversion, Narrative, Transgression, Travel/Travelers, Imperialism and Female Agency

Scott, J. H. (2017) Travel as Subversion in 19^th Century Black Women’s Narratives. Advances in Literary Study, 5, 105-121. doi: 10.4236/als.2017.54009.