Slaves were not allowed to read or write or learn about the alphabet. The slaves were only allowed to work and that was it. The slave owners valued literacy, but didn’t let the slaves learn it. They would have slaves deliver letters and knew that they wouldn’t read them because they didn’t know how to read. Some slaves would secretly learn how to read or write. If they were ever caught, the punishment would be chopping off a ligament or being whipped.
Sarny might be looked at as a leader because she was independent