Prompt two
choose one short story and one poem from the 19th century.

write to compare the ways in which each of these may be considered representative of american culture during the time period in which it was written. cite specific evidence from the literature to support your ideas.

my short story is the martyr

In the document "Ain't I A Woman" I infer that time during that period for african american women was not equal compared to the whites. As a matter of fact in the document the author Sojourner Truth tells us " he says women can't have as much rights as men, 'cause Christ wasn't a woman! Where did your Christ come from? Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman!". This is such a powerful sentence to me because I agree. Not only was she black, but she was a woman and yet she could still do as much as any man could. Yet she is treated unfair because she was a woman. This document shows that in the 19th century there was racism, and neglected rights toward black men and women.
Paragraph two
The mood of this story is quite confusing. I really felt sad and terrible for Louise knowing that not only is she ill but her husband died. Then through out the story she starts to react differently. She starts to scream "free" and "Free! Body and soul free!". Then I started to realize that she was not sad but happy that her husband was gone and she could live her "long" life free. Yet very tragically and ironic she gets a visit from her undead husband and has a heart attack and dies. What I can infer from this story is that in that time period women had more rights. She was saying that she was free and day dreaming of the days she could have now. 
Paragraph three
Both of these stories are from a woman's point of view. There was the same message coming from both authors and that was the woman's right to be equal or to be "free". In "Ain't I A Woman" the author wants her rights! In her tone she is demanding to be heard and to inform the audience that she deserves to do as much as any other person man or white. While in "The Story of an Hour" the author tells us a story of a woman who wants to be "Free" and live her life with no one to oppress her. I think women felt trapped and restricted and just wanted to be free.