Clotelle, written by William Wells Brown and first published in 1853 as Clotel, is celebrated as the first published novel by an African American author. The story follows Clotelle, the fictional daughter of President Thomas Jefferson and his enslaved mistress Currer. After Jefferson's death, Clotelle and her family are torn apart at a slave auction. She suffers betrayal by her white lover Horatio Green, endures separation from her daughter Mary, and drowns tragically while escaping across the Potomac River. Blending fiction with historical events, the novel powerfully exposes the hypocrisy of a nation preaching liberty while practicing slavery, ending with hope as Mary escapes to freedom in Europe.
