We have a new exhibit on display in our foyer: The Early African American Novel.⁠ ⁠ Literature written by African American authors expanded enormously during the 19th century. Autobiographical narratives of enslavement, such as Frederick Douglass's 1845 'Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave' and Harriet Jacobs's 1861 'Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl' were particularly prominent and influential to the rhetoric of abolition.⁠ ⁠ At the same time, the African American Novel was developing. This nascent genre dealt with many of the same topics as the autobiographical narrative - such as enslavement, escape, and identity - but in a different literary medium and through a different lens. We've put together a selection of five early works by African American novelists, dating from the mid-1800s to the turn of the century, each important to the growth of that literary tradition.⁠ ⁠ #africanamericannovels #blacknovels #blackauthors #blackbooks #rauner #raunerlibrary #dartmouthlibrary #dartmouthcollege #dartmouth #rarebooks #specialcollectionsofinstagram