The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman is history rewritten and sifted through the mind of a talented novelist. It has been likened to Faulkner's novel, The Sound and the Fury—though such comparison has relevance only in terms of themes. The themes of guilt and redemption, enmity and hatred, of men trapped in old patterns are as much a part of this novel as they are of that of the white Southerner. To these themes, however, Gaines has brought a black sensibility, which transforms them and makes them less important than his major character. Faulkner knew that such themes were an intricate part of the dust and blood of the South and thus attributed great importance to them. Gaines, on the other hand, sees such themes as only part of the historical record; he deems people more important in the over-all historical picture. To endure in Faulkner's universe is to accept predominance of guilt and redemption and, thus, to accept, too, the inevitability of fate. To endure in Gaines's universe is to minimize such themes, concentrate upon people, and, thus, to struggle endlessly against fate.
The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman is about struggle, fate, and people. To travel with Miss Pittman from adolescence to old age is to embark upon a historic journey, one staked out in the format of the novel. Divided into four books—"The War Years," "Reconstruction," "The Plantation," and "The Quarters"—Miss Pittman's life is scrutinized and explored, her struggle to maintain dignity and self-esteem recorded, and her eventual victory over fate, declared. She emerges at the end of the novel, much as she appears at the beginning—a symbol of strength and endurance. (pp. 294-95)
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