A True Story

Content Warning: This section references racism and enslavement.

Aunt Rachel is the protagonist of “A True Story,” most of which unfolds in the first person from her point of view. However, the short story opens with Misto C’s perspective on her. He mentions that she sits “respectfully” below the level of Misto C and his family and that she is “of mighty frame and stature” (591); he also describes her as a “cheerful, hearty soul” (591). With the exception of the physical description, this direct characterization proves to be inaccurate; Aunt Rachel is neither docile nor carefree, and Misto C’s perceptions of her as such reveal his own racial biases.

Aunt Rachel is the primary vehicle for the story’s exploration of Black Women Defying Racism and Sexism, and through her narration of her life story, a more rounded picture of her emerges. Aunt Rachel is a caring mother, as shown by her threatening to kill the enslavers who want to sell her young son Henry. Her reflections on her mother suggest she was a loving and dutiful daughter; certainly, she looks up to her mother, channeling her strength by using her favorite phrase and hands-on-hips stance to command attention and respect.