God-image and self-image in conversion testimonies of ex-slave women

This dissertation analyzes images of God and self as presented in former slave women's post Civil War narratives, with a view to discovering that which sustained them during and after the horrors of American slavery. The thesis is that God-image and self-image are symbiotically related. Those slave women who had early nurturing relationships within the segregated slave community usually formed healthy self-images that led to positive God-images. These images of self and God were often strengthened through a later experience of religious conversion. Women who lacked loving care early in life often were aided in developing positive self-regard by the God-images present during conversion.;Chapter One lays a foundation for appreciating the ex-slave narratives by presenting four germane types---the female narrative, the conversion narrative, the ex-slave autobiography, and the ex-slave interview. Some of the issues surrounding the source-value of slave narratives are discussed, and the 34 narratives to be studied in this dissertation are introduced.;Chapter Two presents the life of the antebellum slave woman as a backdrop for understanding the improbability of slave women developing positive self-image, with suggestions of possible avenues, including religion, that enabled them to move toward this end.;The transition from West African traditional religion to slave Christianity is presented in Chapter Three as a way of comprehending the conversion experiences of the women in this study. This religious experience, like the slave religion of which it was a significant ingredient, consisted of elements from both West African traditional religion and from Protestant evangelical Christianity, spawned by the Great Awakening.;Chapters Four and Five present a close reading of the sample ex-slave interviews and autobiographies, with special attention given to the women's composite God-images and indications of positive self-regard. Connections between God-images and self-images are noted, as well as the personal growth and development that resulted from the conversion experiences of these women.;The final chapter summarizes the principal insights from the preceding chapters, and advances some conclusions and implications.