Question

What was the condition that jacobs's grandmother had to work under in order to bake her nice crackers at midnight?

Answer 1

Answer: She must use the money to buy her own clothing.

In "Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl," Jacobs tells us that her grandmother was a great cook. Her crackers were famous in the neighborhood and she was allowed to bake them at midnight in order to sell them. However, she was only allowed to do it provided she would clothe herself and her children from the profits. She saved a little bit each year, hoping that this would allow her to eventually buy her children.

Answer 2

The thing in this story is that her nice crackers became so famous in the neighborhood that many people were desirous of obtaining them. Because of numerous requests of this kind, she asked permission of her mistress to bake crackers at night, after all the household work was done; and she obtained leave to do it, provided she would clothe herself and her children from the profits. After proposing these terms, after working hard all day for her mistress, she began her midnight bakings, assisted by her two oldest children.