Frances Harper was renowned in her lifetime not only as an activist who rallied on behalf of blacks, women, and the poor, but as a pioneer of the tradition of 'protest' literature, whose immense popularity did much to develop an audience for poetry in America. This collection of her poems is drawn from ten volumes published between 1854 and 1901. Their main issues are oppression, Christianity, and social and moral reform. Consolidating the oral tradition and the ballad form, and merging dramatic details and imagery with a strong political and racial awareness, Harper's poetry represented a distinctly Afro-American discourse that was to inspire generations of black writers.

An original work of fiction first published in 1893, this is one volume in a series of thirty, The Schomberg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Writers.

The Schomburg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Writers

General Editor: HENRY LOUIS GATES, JR.

The past two decades have seen a dramatic resurgence of interest in black women writers, as authors such as Toni Morrison and Alice Walker have come to dominate the larger African-American literary landscape. Yet the works of the writers who founded and nurtured the black women's literary tradition--nineteenth-century African-American women--have remained buried in research libraries or in expensive hard-to-find reprints, often inaccessible to twentieth-century readers.

Oxford University Press, in collaboration with the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, a research unit of The New York Public Library, rescued the voice of an entire segment of the black tradition by offering thirty volumes of these compelling and rare works of fiction, poetry, autobiography, biography, essays, and journalism. Responding to the wide recognition this series has received, Oxford now presents four more of these volumes in paperback (to add to the four already available). Each book contains an introduction written by an expert in the field, as well as an overview by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the General Editor.

This collection of literature attempts to compile many of the classic, timeless works that have stood the test of time and offer them at a reduced, affordable price, in an attractive volume so that everyone can enjoy them.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was a poet and abolitionist. She joined the American Anti-Slavery Society as a traveling lecturer. Iola Leroy was published in 1892 and tells the story of a black slave and the south after the Civil War. Iola was the daughter of a slave and a plantation owner. She was rescued by a Union soldier. When given the opportunity to marry and pass for white she declines the offer and instead marries a black doctor and returns to South Carolina. Iola fights to uplift her race and searches for her family. Frances Harper tells the story of this young black woman along with moral lessons and practical life lessons.

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was a poet and abolitionist. She joined the American Anti-Slavery Society as a traveling lecturer. Iola Leroy was published in 1892 and tells the story of a black slave and the south after the Civil War. Iola was the daughter of a slave and a plantation owner. She was rescued by a Union soldier. When given the opportunity to marry and pass for white she declines the offer and instead marries a black doctor and returns to South Carolina. Iola fights to uplift her race and searches for her family. Frances Harper tells the story of this young black woman along with moral lessons and practical life lessons.