Sojourner Truth- "Ain't I a Woman"

In "Ain't I a Woman" by Sojourner Truth can be depicted as a work of Realism.  This speech given by Sojourner Truth in Akron, Ohio at the Women's Convention of 1851 resembles the work of a realist because of the simplicity of it all.  A realist is someone who keeps their writing simple and basic.  She does not use a lot of figurative language within this speech so it is easy to read and pretty clean cut to the chase.  This is what makes it so simple(Anderson).  Her speech can also be classified as a branch off of realism because she uses her dialect to describe certain things.  Today, we would not use words such as "ain't" and "cause" just for the reason that they do not fit in with our culture where we live now.  This is regionalism because of the fact that she uses the socially acceptably dialect of her region to express what she is trying to express(Anderson).  In "Ain't I a Woman" Sojourner displays the qualities of Ralph Waldo Emerson's philosophy of self reliance.  An example you may find in the text is quoted by Truth below.

If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back , and get it right side up again! And now they is asking to do it, the men better let them.

Sojourner explains how unfair and unjust the world is treating women.  She goes back on what she believes is the best thing for her(Truth 370).  This quality of doing whats the best thing for yourself is self reliance(Emerson). This quote also displays some qualities of Henry David Thoreau's philosophy of Civil Disobedience because Truth is doing what she thinks is right for the rest of the women of the world(Thoreau).  She is giving this speech to help women rise up and tackle the discrimination that is upon them(Truth 370).  

Emerson, Ralph W. "Self-Reliance." Ralph Waldo Emerson Texts. Web. 10 Feb. 2012. <http://www.emersoncentral.com/selfreliance.htm>.

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, 2012.

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

"Thoreau's Civil Disobedience - 1." The Thoreau Reader. Web. 25 Jan. 2012.