The island nation of Iceland is known for many things—majestic landscapes; volcanic eruptions; distinctive seafood—but racial diversity is not one of them. So the little-known story of Hans Jonathan; a free black man who lived and raised a family in early nineteenth-century Iceland; is improbable and compelling; the stuff of novels. In The Man Who Stole Himself; Gisli Palsson lays out the story of Hans Jonathan (also known as Hans Jónatan) in stunning detail. Born into slavery in St. Croix in 1784; Hans was taken as a slave to Denmark; where he eventually enlisted in the navy and fought on behalf of the country in the 1801 Battle of Copenhagen. After the war; he declared himself a free man; believing that he was due freedom not only because of his patriotic service; but because while slavery remained legal in the colonies; it was outlawed in Denmark itself. He thus became the subject of one of the most notorious slavery cases in European history; which he lost. Then Hans ran away—never to be heard from in Denmark again; his fate unknown for more than two hundred years. It’s now known that Hans fled to Iceland; where he became a merchant and peasant farmer; married; and raised two children. Today; he has become something of an Icelandic icon; claimed as a proud and daring ancestor both there and among his descendants in America. The Man Who Stole Himself brilliantly intertwines Hans Jonathan’s adventurous travels with a portrait of the Danish slave trade; legal arguments over slavery; and the state of nineteenth-century race relations in the Northern Atlantic world. Throughout the book; Palsson traces themes of imperial dreams; colonialism; human rights; and globalization; which all come together in the life of a single; remarkable man. Hans literally led a life like no other. His is the story of a man who had the temerity—the courage—to steal himself.
#1276254 in Books 2015-08-28Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x .90 x 6.00l; .0 #File Name: 022628056X256 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Excellent!By JohnPowerful and moving.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Okay people; where are the reviews? This is an important book that more people should read.By lyndonbrechtC'mon; people; where are the reviews? The subject is grim; but this book deserves more readers. I read it this morning and found I had to pause after each chapter; to reflect on whether it has any resonance for American society today. If nothing else; it makes plain that the view that slaves were happy and that slavery wasn't so bad is a lie.Snyder's book is well-written; with a slight tendency to academic style in some sections. Among other details; she emphasizes that the sources must be used with care; and that slave suicide was a constant element throughout slavery times. There is no way of estimating the toll; save that it was sizable in the Middle Passage--one study she mentions found about 7% of embarked slaves killed themselves during transit. The toll of slave suicides must have been many thousands; but more than that is likely impossible to know. Slaves might kill themselves to avoid execution; to avoid torture; or as a consequence of families broken up for sale (infanticide and abortion is related but not described in this book); or from despair.Her thesis is that suicide was a way for slaves to assert some control; and it forced reactions. For one thing; a slave suicide was a lost investment. For another; suicides were noticed and in the long run served the purposes of abolitionist propaganda well. There seems to have sometimes been a grudging respect for suicides as resistance. There was also anger: a suicide's body might be decapitated; burned or left to rot. Slave owners feared that suicides could be contagious--and they seem to have been on board the slave ships.Chapter 6 examines slave suicide in literature; largely the impact a poem called "The Dying Negro;" written in the 1770s about a real incident in which an American slave hoping for freedom in Britain was caught and about to be transported back to slavery in the colonies. This had huge impact in the propaganda wars between proponents and opponents of slavery. Another chapter discusses how slave suicide made a large appearance in fiction and theater of the day; making it seem like a morally proper and admirable act. There's also some discussion of how suicide is regarded in the Federal Writers' project of the 1930s interviewing former slaves; they regarded it as matter of fact and sometimes brought it up without it being asked about.Overall; this is a difficult but important subject.
