The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman
In February , within the rustic confines of a cabin situated on the sharecroppers’ quarters of the Samson property in Louisiana, a small group of close friends gathers to serenade Miss Jane Pittman (Cicely Tyson) with the soulful notes of Happy Birthday. Today marks a significant milestone, as she joyously blows out her candles, celebrating an astonishing years of life. Amidst the festivities, she turns to her dear friend, Lena (Beatrice Winde), asking, “You gonna be with me here this time next year, Lena?” to which Lena replies with heartfelt optimism, “God willing.”
As the day unfolds, two young men arrive at the door, with Jimmy (Arnold Wilkerson), identified as Lena’s son, among them. They request a moment of privacy to discuss a pressing matter with Miss Jane. Moving to the porch, they reveal their intention to have a young girl sip from the White folks’ fountain in front of the courthouse, a symbolic act of defiance against the oppressive rules of segregation—an act that could lead to undesirable consequences. They wish for Miss Jane to join them, believing her presence would inspire the protesters. However, unwaveri
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A recurrent motif that appears in the novel is the idea that the former slaves have no clue on what to do after they are released from their masters. Having lived all their life doing what the others told them to do; they suddenly had to decide for themselves. This shift was hard for many and some chose to remain with their old masters and continue working for them as a result of this.
The moment when Jane decides that she wants to be called Miss Jane is a moment where she rebels against her masters. As a salve, she had no control over her life and she could decide nothing for herself. When Jane decides to change her name, she tries to be independent and do something that only the masters did until then. Because of this, Jane’s act is seen as being a symbol that stands for her desire to be free.
Soon after Jane is freed, she encounters a white lady returning to her lands with her slaves. The lady offers to take Jane and Ned with her but Jane refuses, telling her how her former masters killed her mother while she was still young. Whe
The autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman
"This is a novel in the guise of the tape-recorded recollections of a black woman who has lived years, who has been both a slave and a witness to the black militancy of the 's. In this woman Ernest Gaines has created a legendary figure, a woman equipped to stand beside William Faulkner's Dilsey in The Sound And The Fury." Miss Jane Pittman, like Dilsey, has 'endured,' has seen almost everything and foretold the rest. Gaines' novel brings to mind other great works The Odyssey for the way his heroine's travels manage to summarize the American history of her race, and Huckleberry Finn for the clarity of her voice, for her rare capacity to sort through the mess of years and things to find the one true story in it all." -- Geoffrey Wolff, Newsweek.
"Stunning. I know of no black novel about the South that excludes quite the same refreshing mix of wit and wrath, imagination and indignation, misery and poetry. And I can recall no more memorable female character in Southern fiction since Lena of Faulkner's Light In August than Miss Jane Pittman." -- Josh Greenfeld, Life
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Written by Timothy Sexton
Here’s a timed quiz for you: name a memorable African-American female character living in the post-Civil War era from American Literature published before the Civil Rights Movement that wasn’t either a mammy, a prostitute or an ill-fated jazz singer. You have exactly 24 hours. Kidding, of course, but most people probably would need at least a day to come up with a single example and a great deal of others likely would require even longer. That particular absence in the canon of the American fictional narrative is exactly one of the driving motivations behind Ernest Gaines deciding to pen The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.
Slap the word “autobiography” in the title of your book and count on it being found at least occasionally sitting on shelves in the non-fiction section. Although the character of Jane Pittman is based on the Aunt to whom his novel is partially dedicated—Augusteen Jefferson—and although the authenticity of it
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