Harriet Ann Jacobs (February 11, 1813 – March 7, 1897) was an African-American writer who escaped from slavery and was later freed. She became an abolitionist speaker and reformer. Jacobs wrote an autobiography, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, first serialized in a newspaper and published as a book in 1861 under the pseudonym Linda Brent. It was a reworking of the genres of slave narrative and sentimental novel, and was one of the first books to address the struggle for freedom by female slaves, explore their struggles with sexual harassment and abuse, and their effort to protect their roles as women and mothers.
After being overshadowed by the American Civil War, the book was rediscovered in the late 20th century, when there was new interest in minority and women writers. One scholar (Jean Fagan Yellin) researched the book, identifying Harriet Jacobs as the author and documenting many events and people in her life that corresponded to this autobiographical account.