Analysis Of Stephen Oates 's ' The Fires Of Jubilee '

The Fires of Jubilee, by Stephen B. Oates, tells an account of Nat Turner’s rebellion. Beginning with Nat’s early life and finally ending with the legacy his execution left the world, Oates paints a historical rending of those fateful days. The Confessions of Nat Turner by Thomas R. Gray and approved by Nat himself is among Oates’ chief sources. Oates is known as a reputable historian through his other works, and has strong credentials however, in the case of The Fires of Jubilee there are some limitations. It is, therefore, worth analyzing Oates’ interpretation for reliability. In doing so one sees that The Fires of Jubilee, because of its weak use of citations, failure to alert the audience of assumed details and the way in which

First of all, both Frederick Douglass and Nat Turner has a lot of similarities. Both were well-educated slaves, and education helped them to be different from other slaves. In fact, while learning to read and write, Douglass understood his real life of being a slave because he could develop his imagination and interpret what was happening around him. For example, at the end of the chapter two of his book “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written by Himself”, Douglass mentioned the slave song that he sang with other slaves when they were going to the Great House Farm which is the Colonel Lloyd’s plantation. When Douglass was a slave, he could not understand the real meaning of the song; however, when he grew up

In a Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave written by himself, the author argues that no one can be enslaved if he or she has the ability to read, write, and think. Douglass supports his claim by first providing details of his attempts to earn an education, and secondly by explaining the conversion of a single slaveholder. The author’s purpose is to reveal the evils of slavery to the wider public in order to gain support for the abolition of his terrifying practice. Based on the purpose of writing the book and the graphic detail of his stories, Douglass is writing to influence people of higher power, such as abolitionists, to abolish the appalling reality of slavery; developing a sympathetic relationship with the

Nat is without a doubt a “freedom fighter” and although his fight ended in blood, it was necessary at the time to help to end the continuance of such a cruel and inhuman practice. Slavery in itself was much more horrifying than every white death that ensued following the rebellion combined. Oates’s assertion that Turner’s rebellion was the first war against slavery is incredibly accurate, except in one sense, one does not need to be African-American to agree with this claim. Though an African-American could view slavery as a much more personal subject, because it affected and enslaved many of their own ancestors, one does not need to be black to understand how terrible slavery actually is. Any single person who can assess slavery with an open mind and completely unbiased will see that the suggestion that one person can own another person solely because of the color of one’s skin is completely inhumane, and it’s absolutely no surprise that those who were being enslaved decided to react. Nat did in fact commit a crime, he started a

Books are filled with stories of colonial resistance such as the Boston Tea Party, the burning of effigies, and the Revolutionary War. There are many stories of Daniel Shay's rebellion against the young federal government. Yet one story that receives little attention is the story of Nat Turner's rebellion. This being one of the first rebellions and acts of abolition of slavery you would think that this amazing story would be in every textbook throughout the world. His story is an excellent example of how some slaves fought back and resisted their oppressors. Overall, I was extremely impressed with this work. I think Stephen Oates was truly interested in what he was researching, as this is reflected in the book. He makes important the inhumane treatment and crude conditions that a slave had to endure under their control. His skill as a writer is excellent, and he does a very good job bringing the reader into the story. Oates believes that Nat Turner's rebellion was a critical turning point in American history, especially Southern history. I was especially impressed with his ability to describe what was happening. The detail fills the mind with a well-drawn picture of the scenery, smells, attitudes, and needs of the blacks and whites of this part of the South. Lastly I would say that this book is not only enjoyable, but also an important historical work that is helpful in understanding race relations of the past and

The Fires of Jubilee by Stephen B. Oates describes a sad and tragic story about a man named Nat Turner who was born into slavery and his fight to be free. Ironically, his willingness to do anything, even kill, to gain his freedom leads to his own demise. From the title of this book, 'The Fires of Jubilee,'; a reader can truly grasp the concept that there is trouble, chaos, and mayhem brewing in the month of August.

Slavery was brought to America in the 1600’s taking millions of Africans from West Africa. But in 1804 the North voted to abolish slavery but the South refused making states escape the union.Slavery in the South had an effect on the economy, but also on the slaves.Frederick Douglass, who was once a slave with his family in Maryland suffered greatly, but still pushed on and finally escaped and became a national leader of the abolition in the south movement.He made a narrative about his life as a slave and stated that the purpose of the narrative is to “throw light” on the American slave system.The goal of this paper is to discuss three aspects his narrative discusses that he “throws light” on, his position against the feelings of defenders of

     The story takes place in Southampton County, Virginia where little Nat Turner is introduced. Nat led a normal childhood for the most part, supervised by his beloved grandmother. They were working as slaves on a plantation owned by Benjamin and Elizabeth Turner. The Turners became Methodists due to the emphasis on free will and salvation. The

In chapter two, Masur talks about the importance of Nat Turner and his Rebellion to end slavery. Turner, an African American slave was convinced throughout his life that god had put him on this earth for a certain reason. Throughout Turners life and search for why god had put him here, he started to get visions from god as he got older. These visions made Turner believe that he had to end slavery by attacking it. Turner went out killing whites the night of the eclipse and would gain more followers as he went on. The rebellion didn’t last long and it wasn't pretty either. Turner and his followers were executed and other slaves were killed because of it. Turners rebellion simply points out the lie that slavery is a benevolent institution. Another important event in chapter two is the development of abolitionism. William Lloyd Garrison was a journalist who wanted immediate emancipation of every slave and started a newspaper called the Liberator. The Liberator is what helped Garrison get his reputation of being an American abolitionist nation wide. At the time, the Liberator was a popular paper and would turn out to become very

"Nat Turner's Southampton Slave Revolt and How it Paved the Way for the Abolitionist and

The Fires of Jubilee: Nat Turner’s Fierce Rebellion written by Stephen B. Oates, is a biography about a slave that lived in America during the 1800’s and the affects the institution of slavery had on him and society. Being a specialist in the nineteenth-century United States history, Oates, was a reputable history professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Oates has composed sixteen books as well as been presented with the Nevins-Freeman Award of the Chicago Civil War Round Table for his historical work on the Civil War.

Nat Turner was an African American slave who was born in Southampton County, Virginia on October 2, 1800. He started working on southern plantations 1831. When he was younger, everyone thought of him as being very smart. They saw that he was smart when he was about 3 or 4 years old. While young Nat Turner was playing with some of his friends, his mother heard him tell the children about something that had happened to him when he was born. She later had asked him about what he told the children. She asked him details about the incident, and it confirmed that he knew about this past event. From that time on, other slaves believed that in addition to his unique view, his physical markings were a sign that he would be a prophet.

What was the importance of Nat Turner and where does he stand in American history? Nat Turner is an American slave, who has been forgotten about in history as well in the hearts of African-Americans. He led and organized one of the bloodiest slave rebellions in American history. This rebellion was "…the rebellion that served to change the course of American history in the three decades before the Civil War" (Goldman 10). Within this paper, it is to analyze on his impact on the nation.

Nat Turner was an African American man born on October 2, 1800 on a plantation in Southampton County, Virginia. Nat Turner, Was a leader of a violent and deadly slave rebellion. In my paper we will be learning about historical leader Nat Turner who led a slave rebellion that terrorized the south.

Sign from god telling him to get ready for the fight and he believed that he had to wait for another sign to tell him to fight.In 1831 he started his rebellon thinking it was time and four other slaves helped him and he hid in the woods for 6 weeks till he was spotted in the woods and got hung with 50 other slaves while the other 200 got beat and after nat turner was hung he got skinned cut and sold to other slave owners for a reward and to scare the other slaves so they wouldent try to escape.In north cariolina ther was to belived the slaves down thare was to start a reblion.when he was a kid the masters son tauhht him to read and write and his mom got shiped to the usa for slave work and whem he was 5 years old he had seend his mother get beat.Then when he got older he went to ther owner house a slit his throut when he was he killed some of his own so they dindnt tell