Mini-Essay "Trapped and Frustrated" (Posted by Kate Buehler)

Writing of Sarah Pharaoh’s story is odd because we lack a story in her own voice. The tale that is presented to us is a retelling of the events surrounding her trial for infanticide. Because we see only the side of those prosecuting Sarah Pharaoh, we are slightly biased against her as readers. Her place in society as a woman is works against her, as she is a lower citizen, and has the physical ability to be guilty of attempting to terminate a pregnancy. The charges against her were strong: she was observed to have telltale signs of pregnancy and the corpse of a dead infant was found near her residence. No evidence is offered in support of Pharaoh’s argument, only against her.
Her frustration would have stemmed from being trapped in her situation, regardless of her guilt. If she had been guilty, she would have been torn as to whether or not to confess. If she did confess, her guilt would have been absolved, but she would have been executed for her crime. If she failed to confess, her mortal life would be spared, but she would have to live with her guilt, and her soul would likely be damned. If she was innocent of the charges, asserting her guiltlessness would have done no good, because no one would have believed her. In every instance, Pharaoh was facing frustration inextricably tied with her supposed guilt.
In addition to her frustration with her situation, none of Pharaoh’s contemporaries seemed at all willing to back up her story. One must wonder how “the willingness of her compatriots to testify against her “ affected Pharaoh. In a time when women were treated as second-class citizens, it would have stood to reason that they would support each other through difficult times. However, Pharaoh’s contemporaries reported her changing physique, her pregnancy symptoms, and her quest for the means to abort her pregnancy. It seems as though none of them showed any loyalty to her. While in the midst of an already stressful and frustrating situation, that form of abandonment would have caused a great amount of anxiety for Pharaoh. The women who were called upon to testify at Pharaoh’s trial were respected, and had they provided testimony for her instead of against her, it may have absolved Pharaoh of her guilt. “[Sambo]…comes across as a diligent, responsible matron, questioning Pharaoh’s “burley” shape, examining the places where she had lain or sat, and questioning Pharaoh as to the ‘reason of it.’” Those presiding were quite willing to accept Sambo’s testimony against Pharaoh, whichs begs the question: what if she had testified that Pharaoh had never been pregnant? Would they have been willing to believe Sambo’s testimony if it was not useful to them? Or would her position as a woman have undermined her testimony unless it worked for Pharaoh’s accusers?
From a modern perspective, in a time when women are accustomed to having the right to choose, reading the tale of a woman who was trapped in a situation that she had no escape from, one that we would consider amendable, triggers something. It is almost painful to read about a woman who has endured not only the trial for a crime that is not concretely proven, but to have experienced the abandonment of her contemporaries, who she no doubt counted on for support.
In trying to see this situation from Sarah Pharaoh’s point of view, it becomes clear that she was trapped in every way possible. Her abandonment by her fellow women meant that she had no one to speak for her, and her life and her soul were in peril, regardless of the outcome of the trial. She was an unfortunate woman, trapped by the constraints of her gender. Clearly, frustration would have been a prominent emotion for Sarah Pharaoh during the time that she was accused.

“A Faithful Narrative of the Wicked Life and Remarkable Conversion of Patience Boston”, 1738.

Bross, Kristina and Wyss, Hilary E. Early Native Literacies in New England: A Documentary and Critical Anthology. University of Massachusetts press, 2008.