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Keys to the Archive: Miss Jane Pittman

Typescript of "The Travels of Miss Jane Pittman"

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Religion By Francisco Rodriguez
Many African slaves converted to Christianity upon their arrival in the Americas, some willingly, but most forcibly. Compulsory or not, Christianity exposed slaves to new beliefs, ideas, concepts and perspectives which contributed to many hybrid forms of spirituality, such as Hoodoo. But religion itself could be, and was, reworked and rebranded. Christianity was utilized by slaves not only to comfort and alleviate their agony during their enslavement but also as a motivation and tool for liberation and rebellion, open or discreet. The ingenious move of appropriating their oppressors’ religion for their own benefit facilitated further victories in the struggle for emancipation and later civil and legal equality. Many white slave owners were wary of this potential for resistance, which would certainly have been disruptive of their power and interests, and responded with admonishment, condemnation and even outright persecution, but the persistence and hope of slaves for a better life prevailed in the end (Raboteau 220).
Christianity afforded slaves outlets for consolation and rest from brutal work in the form of holidays and times of observance such as Christmas and Sundays (Raboteau 223-4). Prayer meetings, often forbidden, facilitated discussions and preparations which led to revolts in the most extreme cases, but usually they were spent simply addressing the improvement of conditions in the daily sphere. The reading and preaching of Biblical stories provided catharsis, easing the emotional suffering of slaves, and as community building, with slaves identifying themselves with the Israelites in bondage in Egypt, as recounted in the book of Exodus, thus increasing solidarity and group understanding (Raboteau 258). In short, for whatever problems the enslaved faced, whether they be large or small, their Christian beliefs provided a solution or at least empowered the slaves to find one.
One of the most striking examples of Christianity’s visceral influence on slaves' lives was the conversion experience. Bordering on religious ecstasy, the conversion experience, colloquially referred to as “finding religion,” solidifies and embodies the moment in a slave’s life when religion is fully acknowledged as an essential component of their deliverance from oppression, both spiritual and physical (Sernett 70-3). Consistent features of conversion narratives are dramatic encounters with Christ and Satan, a struggle to complete a task given by Christ while being tempted by the Devil, and a feeling of victory at having won the struggle by God’s grace commonly described as a sensation of lightness (Raboteau 269-70). It is ultimately a strong emotional catharsis that liberates both slaves and freed people alike from the burden of their woes and sins.
When Jane Pittman “finds religion,” it is an occurrence that is very highly celebrated in the novel. Her conversion experience is quite typical of what one would find in many conversion narratives. It serves as Jane’s purging of the awful memories and the carrying about of so much that she regrets, which, after so many decades, she must be ready to let go. With Christ, Jane knows she is not alone anymore in living and struggling through life. It is also a community affair, as many of Jane’s friends and acquaintances are also praying for religion, which strengthens the bonds of that community and increases their mutual understanding.
Not much changes between drafts of the chapter "The Travels of Miss Jane Pittman" in Book III: the Plantation. As far as narrative structure goes, Jane’s conversion is consistent throughout its compositional development. Small changes include the character Tom Joe, who was Jacques Toulouse in some earlier drafts (see Folder 6-3, 188). Sometimes, the spiritual "Tone the Bell, Done got Over" at the end of the published chapter is absent in earlier versions (see Folder 6-16, 184). The single most significant change is one of perspective. In some manuscripts the character of Grace Turner, a close friend of Jane’s, is the one who recounts the events of Jane’s conversion, not Jane herself. This could be an effect of Gaines changing his mind about the narration, with him wanting to give Jane the benefit of her own explicit opinion, thus creating a greater, more intimate sense of relief and joy when she finds Christ. Perhaps this perspective change demonstrates an earlier idea on the part of Gaines to exhibit Jane’s fading memory and needing other people to fill in the blanks for her. Certainly the different perspective echoes Gaines's narrative technique in his earliest draft, "The Short Biography of Miss Jane Pittman," which begins after Jane's death and is narrated by her community.