Regionalism of "And Ain't I a Woman"

“And Ain’t I a Woman?” by Sojourner Truth is a work that displays many characteristics of Regionalism. The language used is obviously Southern vernacular, which implies that this speech given is in the genre of Regionalism. The subject of women’s rights in general, and more specifically the rights of African American women who were slaves is also a sign of Regionalism because this was a huge issue following the Civil War not just in the South but in the North too. Social issues are a very important part of all works of Realism, and this speech addresses many of those issues.

Upon reading this speech by Sojourner Truth, the first thing one pays particularly close attention to is the type of language that she uses. Many of the terms used are part of word choice that comes from living in the South. Addressing the audience of the speech as “children” and “honey” are choices that make this a work of Regionalism (Truth 370). Language is often a very important part of Regionalism, as it gives the audience a chance to understand where that author has come from and allows the audience that is also from that particular area to connect on an even deeper level to the author. This is exactly what Sojourner Truth accomplishes with this speech and this is a very important part of Regionalism (Anderson).

Regionalism is all about focusing on one specific area and this speech does just that. The main idea of this work is to address the issue with treatment of African American women from the South (Truth 370). Sojourner talks about how women are not treated as they should be because they are not white. She says that there are men that say women should “be helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere,” but she does not ever receive any of these things (Truth). This particular issue to the Southern women who were slaves is another important part of this speech that exemplifies Regionalism literature.

Being written in 1851, this work was a part of the early movement for Realism in the world of literature (Truth 370). Not only did this work speak of the problems of women being treated less because of their color, but also of how women in general are treated. This is an example of some of the first literature for women’s rights in general. Content about real life issues oftentimes points to a work being of the genre of Realism (Quinn). This speech given helped spark the movement for women’s rights and general equality throughout the entire nation.

With its Southern style of writing and vernacular and ideas about the rights of African American women “And Ain’t I a Woman” is an excellent example of Regionalism literature. Sojourner Truth with all of the things she did is one of the most important figures in equality movements for all types of people and this work shows those characteristics of her. Not only did this speech add to the strides taken in the advancement of African American women, but also to the rights of all women of the country making it a very important part of history.


Works Cited


Anderson, George P., Judith S. Baughman, Matthew J. Bruccoli, and Carl Rollyson, eds."regionalism." Encyclopedia of American Literature: Into the Modern: 1896–1945, vol. 3, Revised Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2008. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. Online. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= EAmL1330&SingleRecord=True. February 13, 2011.

Quinn, Edward. "realism and naturalism in American literature." A Dictionary of Literary and Thematic Terms, Second Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2006. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. Online. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= Gfflithem0707&SingleRecord=True. February 13, 2011.

Truth, Sojourner. "And Ain't I a Woman." Glencoe American Literature. comp. Wilhelm, Jeffery. McGraw Hill. Columbus, OH. 2009. pg. 370.