Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives

Feb 10, 2003

1h 15m

★ 4.8

In their words, our shared history.

Overview

When the Civil War ended in 1865, more than four million slaves were set free. Over 70 years later, the memories of some 2,000 slave-era survivors were transcribed and preserved by the Library of Congress. These first-person anecdotes, ranging from the brutal to the bittersweet, have been brought to vivid life in this unique HBO documentary special, featuring the on-camera voices of over a dozen top African-American actors.

Genres

History

Documentary

Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives Trailers

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Cast

Narrator (voice)

Whoopi Goldberg

Angela Bassett

Michael Boatman

Roscoe Lee Browne

Don Cheadle

Ossie Davis

Ruby Dee

Robert Guillaume

Jasmine Guy

Samuel L. Jackson

CCH Pounder

LaTanya Richardson Jackson

RICHARD WRIGHT was an African-American author of novels, short stories and non-fiction that dealt with powerful themes and controversial topics. Much of his works concerned racial themes that helped redefine discussions of race relations in America in the mid-20th century. Born on a plantation in Mississippi, Wright was a descendent of the first slaves who arrived in Jamestown Massachusetts. This program follows his arduous path from sharecropper to literary giant. Through authors like H.L. Menken, Sinclair Lewis, Theodore Dreiser, he discovered that literature could be used as a catalyst for social change. In 1937 Wright moved to New York and his work began to garner national attention for it's political and social commentary. Much of Wright's writing focused on the African American community and experience; his novel Native Son won him a Guggenheim Fellowship and was adapted to the Broadway stage with Orson Welles directing in 1941.

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Cast

Narrator (voice)

Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives

Overview

Genres

Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives Trailers