Travel as Subversion in 19<sup>th</sup> Century Black Women’s Narratives

Abstract

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.