Nat Turner

In 1967 William Styron won a Pulitzer Prize for his novel The Confessions of Nat Turner and at the time he was hailed by the black community and historians for his work. Some time later opinion about his novel changed and he was widely and harshly criticized for "errors" he made regarding Turner and the black response to slavery in general. This even thou the book was a novel thus a work of fiction. In the article I note here Styron speaks in his own defense. This article-written 20 years ago-implies the debate has passed into history. Styron notes there was only one primary document about Turner from which to gain information; that was a 7000 word account by Turner's court-appointed lawyer-Thomas R. Gray. That document was entitled "Confessions of Nat Turner".

Regarding the critics it would seem that the issues in dispute were Turner's "madman" mentality and his killing of a white woman he had known; the only death linked directly to Turner. Another issue was whether he had a wife-Turner gives him one-that many historians believe he did not have. Many black critics also note that a white man could not possibly know the black slave experience.

A rebuttal to Styron came with Ten Black Writes Respond which was critical. Historian Eugene D. Genovese-"preminent historian of American slavery" defended Styron and disputed Ten Black Writes...

The bottom line is Styron's book came to be treated with hostility and went un-read by the black community. It would also seem that no one really knows what Nat Turner was like because there is little primary source material on him.

This source also mentions that before the Turner revolt many in the South were considering abolishing slavery.

(Source: "Nat Turner Revisited" by William Styron. American Heritage October 1992)