Slave in a Box: The Strange Career of Aunt Jemima

by M.M. Manring

Book Overview

In "Slave in a Box," M. M. Manring investigates why the troubling figure of Aunt Jemima has endured in American culture. The author traces the evolution of the mammy from her roots in Old South slave reality and mythology, through reinterpretations during Reconstruction and in minstrel shows and turn-of-the-century advertisements, to Aunt Jemima's symbolic role in the Civil Rights movement and her present incarnation as a 'working grandmother.'...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813918111
• ISBN13: 9780813918112
• Release Date: March 1998
• Publisher: University of Virginia Press
• Length: 210 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.1" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

fascinating and challenging

This is a simply fascinating work that weaves business history, marketing theory and techniques, economic differentiation, and overt and unconscious racism. The most interesting dimensions (for this unapologetic Son of the South) is the isolation of the feelings and thoughts of nostalgia that the Quaker Oats image of Aunt Jemima invoked and Manring examines in detail. He follows the work of James Young and illustrator N.C. Wyeth's creation and adaptations of the image from conception to modern politically correct adaptation. I'm not sure I completely buy into Manrings total thesis, since as a child I always just thought of Aunt Jemima's big old smile as normal, and after all, who doesn't like pancakes? Her image to me meant "proud," "good cooking," and "skilled" not contented servitude as Manring proposes. Still, this is a fascinating and challenging read.

Using this book to teach business history

Slave in a Box is a great study of the racism and sexism embodied in the birth of advertising. It is not only provocative but also chock full of great facts about the era--from the importance of paper bags in marketing to the story of an African American who actually wrote for minstrel shows. I am writing because I am a historian and used the book in my Industrialization of America class. The class generally hated it, because it is so detailed, but despite their response I recommend using it in a course. Our discussion was painful--black students said the book was "depressing" and white students denied that race had anything to do with the power of this trade name (they harped on the convenience, as if the stereotype was irrelevant!). I learned so much about them and so much about what we all need to do as teachers that I think it was a very valuable experience.

Fantastic book!

Very often, histories/studies of Aunt Jemima and the mammy stereotype are simply descriptive; this book does a great job of showing how Aunt Jemima's image and products were designed to complement/support ideal white femininity. My only criticism is that Aunt Jemima's presence on television and radio wasn't discussed enough. A great read for anyone interested in issues of race, gender and domesticity. I have recommended this book to many people, and continue to do so.

absorbing, thorough, and highly readable

Prof. Manring has accomplished something rare: an academic book free of jargon, a cultural history free of polemic, and a thorough analysis that never drags. She writes clear, lively prose -- this is a book for the general reader as well as the student of American history. Brava!

Thought provoking. Well written.

This book and its contextualization of Aunt Jemima or the mammy stereotype, as I refer to it, is well-written and thought-provoking. The material has been very helpful to me in exploring how this particular stereotype of black women functions in American culture and I will be using it as a key reference in my dissertation. Thanks.