Question

Sojourner Truth by Joanna Evans

In 3 short sentences and 60 or more words, describe what the audience knows that the characters do not. Then, explain how this knowledge most likely affects the audience's perception of the characters and their actions.

Answer 1

The audience knows who Sojourner Truth really is—an enslaved woman named Isabella Baumfree whose dignity and courage will transform her into a national voice for abolition and women's rights. The other characters in the scene, however, treat her as property, a subordinate, or a silent domestic figure whose future is limited by their assumptions. Audience awareness of her past, intelligence, and future public power creates dramatic irony because characters cannot see the greatness that history will reveal.

That knowledge makes the audience sympathize with and admire Sojourner while judging the other characters more harshly: their dismissive, controlling, or abusive actions feel short-sighted, unjust, and morally wrong. It heightens tension and emotional investment because viewers anticipate her eventual rise and feel frustration at the obstacles she faces, turning what might be ordinary behavior into evidence of prejudice and blindness to human worth.