I have often been asked to write my life, as those who know me know that it has been an eventful one. At last I have acceded to the importunities of my friends, and have hastily sketched some of the striking incidents that go to make up my history. My life, so full of romance, may sound like a dream to the matter–of–fact reader, nevertheless everything I have written is strictly true; much has been omitted, but nothing has been exaggerated. In writing as I have done, I am well aware that I have invited criticism; but before the critic judges harshly, let my explanation be carefully read and weighed. If I have portrayed the dark side of slavery, I also have painted the bright side. The good that I have said of human servitude should be thrown into the scales with the evil that I have said of it. I have kind, true–hearted friends in the South as well as in the North, and I would not wound those Southern friends by sweeping condemnation, simply because I was once a slave. They were not so much responsible for the curse under which I was born, as the God of nature and the fathers who framed the Constitution for the United States. The law descended to them, and it was but natural that they should recognize it, since it manifestly was their interest to do so. And yet a wrong was inflicted upon me; a cruel custom deprived me of my liberty, and since I was robbed of my dearest right, I would not have been human had I not rebelled against the robbery. God rules the Universe. I was a feeble instrument in His hands, and through me and the enslaved millions of my race, one of the problems was solved that belongs to the great problem of human destiny; and the solution was developed so gradually that there was no great convulsion of the harmonies of natural laws. A solemn truth was thrown to the surface, and what is better still, it was recognized as a truth by those who give force to moral laws. An act may be wrong, but unless the ruling power recognizes the wrong, it is useless to hope for a correction of it. Principles may be right, but they are not established within an hour. The masses are slow to reason, and each principle, to acquire moral force, must come to us from the fire of the crucible; the fire may inflict unjust punishment, but then it purifies and renders stronger the principle, not in itself, but in the eyes of those who arrogate judgment to themselves. When the war of the Revolution established the independence of the American colonies, an evil was perpetuated, slavery was more firmly established; and since the evil had been planted, it must pass through certain stages before it could be eradicated. In fact, we give but little thought to the plant of evil until it grows to such monstrous proportions that it overshadows important interests; then the efforts to destroy it become earnest. As one of the victims of slavery I drank of the bitter water; but then, since destiny willed it so, and since I aided in bringing a solemn truth to the surface as a truth, perhaps I have no right to complain. Here, as in all things pertaining to life, I can afford to be charitable.
It may be charged that I have written too freely on some questions, especially in regard to Mrs. Lincoln. I do not think so; at least I have been prompted by the purest motive. Mrs. Lincoln, by her own acts, forced herself into notoriety. She stepped beyond the formal lines which hedge about a private life, and invited public criticism. The people have judged her harshly, and no woman was ever more traduced in the public prints of the country. The people knew nothing of the secret history of her transactions, therefore they judged her by what was thrown to the surface. For an act may be wrong judged purely by itself, but when the motive that prompted the act is understood, it is construed differently. I lay it down as an axiom, that only that is criminal in the sight of God where crime is meditated. Mrs. Lincoln may have been imprudent, but since her intentions were good, she should be judged more kindly than she has been. But the world do not know what her intentions were; they have only been made acquainted with her acts without knowing what feeling guided her actions. If the world are to judge her as I have judged her, they must be introduced to the secret history of her transactions. The veil of mystery must be drawn aside; the origin of a fact must be brought to light with the naked fact itself. If I have betrayed confidence in anything I have published, it has been to place Mrs. Lincoln in a better light before the world. A breach of trust—if breach it can be called—of this kind is always excusable. My own character, as well as the character of Mrs. Lincoln, is at stake, since I have been intimately associated with that lady in the most eventful periods of her life. I have been her confidante, and if evil charges are laid at her door, they also must be laid at mine, since I have been a party to all her movements. To defend myself I must defend the lady that I have served. The world have judged Mrs. Lincoln by the facts which float upon the surface, and through her have partially judged me, and the only way to convince them that wrong was not meditated is to explain the motives that actuated us. I have written nothing that can place Mrs. Lincoln in a worse light before the world than the light in which she now stands, therefore the secret history that I publish can do her no harm. I have excluded everything of a personal character from her letters; the extracts introduced only refer to public men, and are such as to throw light upon her unfortunate adventure in New York. These letters were not written for publication, for which reason they are all the more valuable; they are the frank overflowings of the heart, the outcropping of impulse, the key to genuine motives. They prove the motive to have been pure, and if they shall help to stifle the voice of calumny, I am content. I do not forget, before the public journals vilified Mrs. Lincoln, that ladies who moved in the Washington circle in which she moved, freely canvassed her character among themselves. They gloated over many a tale of scandal that grew out of gossip in their own circle. If these ladies, could say everything bad of the wife of the President, why should I not be permitted to lay her secret history bare, especially when that history plainly shows that her life, like all lives, has its good side as well as its bad side! None of us are perfect, for which reason we should heed the voice of charity when it whispers in our ears, "Do not magnify the imperfections of others." Had Mrs. Lincoln's acts never become public property, I should not have published to the world the secret chapters of her life. I am not the special champion of the widow of our lamented President; the reader of the pages which follow will discover that I have written with the utmost frankness in regard to her—have exposed her faults as well as given her credit for honest motives. I wish the world to judge her as she is, free from the exaggerations of praise or scandal, since I have been associated with her in so many things that have provoked hostile criticism; and the judgment that the world may pass upon her, I flatter myself, will present my own actions in a better light.
Elizabeth Keckley. 14 Carroll Place, New York, March 14, 1868.
背景介绍和作者介绍
这段文字摘自伊丽莎白·凯克利的自传，她是一位杰出的非裔美国女性，出生于奴隶制，但后来成为一名成功的裁缝、女商人，也是亚伯拉罕·林肯总统的妻子玛丽·托德·林肯的知己。凯克利的自传写于19世纪后期，为我们提供了一个罕见而亲密的视角，让我们得以一窥一位奴隶的生活，她见证了美国内战的动荡时代，以及美国奴隶制、自由和种族关系的复杂性。
伊丽莎白·凯克利于1818年出生于弗吉尼亚州的奴隶制下。获得自由后，她搬到了华盛顿特区，在那里成为了一名技艺高超的服装设计师。她的才华和品格使她进入了林肯家族的核心圈子，在那里她担任玛丽·林肯的私人裁缝和知己。凯克利的自传不仅是一部个人史，也是一部社会文献，揭示了她那个时代的道德和政治问题。
详细解读和意义
这段文字反映了凯克利在讲述她的人生故事时的勇气和诚实。她承认了奴隶制的艰辛和不公正，但也努力通过承认冲突双方的人性来呈现一个平衡的观点。她强调，虽然奴隶制是一个残酷的制度，但它深深地嵌入了当时的法律和社会结构中，使得根除奴隶制成为一个缓慢而艰难的过程。
凯克利还谈到了公众对玛丽·托德·林肯的严厉评判，她通过揭示她公开行动背后的私人动机和挣扎来为她辩护。这种辩护突出了超越表面现象去理解他人的主题，鼓励读者去寻求更深层次的真相，而不是仓促的判断。
这部回忆录是对韧性、道德复杂性和对正义的追求的有力见证。它促使读者反思历史上的不公正以及个人应对这些不公正的方式，通常是带着勇气和尊严。
给学生的经验教训和见解
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通过个人故事理解历史： 凯克利的自传表明，历史不仅仅是日期和事件，而是关于真实人物的生活和经历。学生可以通过与个人的故事建立情感联系来欣赏历史。
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同情心的重要性： 这段文字鼓励读者超越刻板印象和偏见。通过理解玛丽·林肯的意图和凯克利自己的挣扎，学生们学会了练习同情心，避免根据不完整的信息做出严厉的判断。
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韧性和勇气： 凯克利的一生体现了韧性——克服逆境并保持希望的能力。学生们可以从中获得启发，以坚强和决心面对自己的挑战。
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道德复杂性： 这部回忆录告诉我们，人和事很少是简单的非好即坏。认识到道德复杂性有助于学生培养批判性思维和细致的观点。
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声音和讲故事的力量： 凯克利决定写回忆录表明了讲述自己故事的重要性。学生们可以了解到他们的声音很重要，分享他们的经历可以促进理解和改变。
在日常生活中应用这些经验教训
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在学习中： 学生们可以带着好奇心去学习历史和文学，寻求理解不同的观点和事实背后的人类故事。
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在社交互动中： 练习同情心和克制判断可以促进与同伴之间更友善、更有支持性的关系。
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在个人成长中： 拥抱韧性可以帮助学生们应对在学校、家庭和友谊中遇到的困难。
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在社区意识中： 理解历史和社会问题可以培养负责任的公民意识和对正义的承诺。
从故事中培养积极的价值观
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仁慈和宽恕： 凯克利呼吁“不要放大他人的不完美”，这教导了善良和宽恕，这对于和平共处至关重要。
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诚实和正直： 她在写回忆录时的坦率树立了诚实的榜样，即使这会招致批评。
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敢于发声的勇气： 凯克利愿意为了更大的利益分享敏感信息，这鼓励学生们为正义而战。
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对多样性的尊重： 认识到所有人的共同人性，无论其背景如何，都能促进包容和尊重。
结论
伊丽莎白·凯克利的自传不仅仅是一份历史文献；它也是年轻读者的灵感和教育的源泉。通过探索她的人生和反思，学生们可以深入了解勇气、同情心和对正义的持续追求。这些教训不仅与理解过去相关，而且对于今天建立一个富有同情心和公正的社会也至关重要。