ABSTRACT
Where Trent represents the modernizing academy, two Christians worried about Ben-Hur eschatologically. In 1893, Frances E.W. Harper appreciated Wallace’s art. But in 1899, the Rev. Sutton Griggs was wholly “con.” However, neither could share their views outright without risking the wrath of the crowd. Both were in an especially tricky position because they were African Americans. The 1890s has been called a “nadir” of US race relations. This is why Harper and Griggs chose to offer their input on Ben-Hur in romances that offer a form of duo-messaging. A literary historian, P. Gabrielle Foreman, calls this form simultextuality.
