Ain't I A Woman

Much of Truth’s speech focuses on the physical and emotional strength of women. As a former enslaved person, Truth performed hard labor and withstood physical pain. In her address, she references this personal history: “I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns” (Paragraph 2). Truth aims to prove that women possess physical strength. Prejudices about the supposed weakness of women should not be a basis for denying equal rights.

Truth also recounts her suffering as a mother. She states: “I have borne thirteen children, and seen most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother’s grief, none but Jesus heard me” (Paragraph 2). Considering that motherhood was a key feature of womanhood in American society at the time, Truth’s reference to her experience as a mother establishes her similarity to other women, especially the white women in her audience.

Truth uses the symbols of pints and quarts to create a visual representation of the rights and resources suffragettes are calling for. She argues that women are only asking for what they can already “hold” (Paragraph 3), which is less than a man currently holds. She states that women want only a “half measure full” (Paragraph 3) compared to the quart that men have.