Essay about Enormity of Slavery

Throughout the book, The Origins of Slavery, the author, Betty Woods, depicts how religion and race along with social, economic, and political factors were the key factors in determining the exact timing that the colonist’s labor bases of indentured Europeans would change to involuntary West African servitude. These religion and racial differences along with the economic demand for more labor played the key roles in the formation of slavery in the English colonies. When the Europeans first arrived to the Americas in the late sixteenth century, at the colony of Roanoke, the thought of chattel slavery had neither a clear law nor economic practice with the English. However by the end of that following century, the demand for slaves in the

The brutality that slaves endured form their masters and from the institution of slavery caused slaves to be denied their god given rights. In the "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass," Douglass has the ability to show the psychological battle between the white slave holders and their black slaves, which is shown by Douglass' own intellectual struggles against his white slave holders. I will focus my attention on how education allowed Douglass to understand how slavery was wrong, and how the Americans saw the blacks as not equal, and only suitable for slave work. I will also contrast how Douglass' view was very similar to that of the women in antebellum America, and the role that Christianity played in his life as a slave and then

“It was not color, but crime, not God, but man that afforded the true explanation of the existence of slavery; nor was I long in finding out another important truth, what man can make, man can unmake” (Douglass 59). In My Bondage and My Freedom, Fredrick Douglass explains in detail the harsh and cruel realties of slavery and how slavery was an institution that victimized not only slaves, but slave holders, and non-slave holding whites. Fredrick Douglass could not have been more right with his observation of slavery. In my opinion, slavery is not only an institution, but is a prime example of a corrupt business model that thrives on free labor, ultimate control, and wealth.

Slave as defined by the dictionary means that a slave is a person who is the property of and wholly subject to another; a bond servant. So why is it that every time you go and visit a historical place like the Hampton-Preston mansion in Columbia South Carolina, the Lowell Factory where the mill girls work in Massachusetts or the Old town of Williamsburg Virginia they only talk about the good things that happened at these place, like such things as who owned them, who worked them, how they were financed and what life was like for the owners. They never talk about the background information of the lower level people like the slaves or servants who helped take care and run these places behind the scenes.

Here Douglass shows that slavery was not a constant source of pain and suffering: “I was not old enough to work in the fields, and there being little else than field work to do, I had a great deal of leisure time,” (Douglass 71.) This is effective in proving his point because it allows him to show the true horrors of slavery and not be lopsided in his views.

African Americans are only inferior because they lack the knowledge to support themselves. There is a debate whether Woolman could prove this statement to be reliable or not. Aptheker agrees with Woolman second point that he has a logical concept behind his statement that slavery is harming both the slave owner and the slave. The slave owner suffers because he is not doing any work, which is harmful because humans grow intellectually when they work. The slave is harmed because the excessive work load and the inhumane treatment that is often put upon them. Houston disagree with this statement because he does not believe that the slave owner is being harmed at all because they are not doing any work. In fact slave owners struggled to give up their sense of security, for example, power and wealth. Woolman’s concept holds truth to it because people feel a sense of pride when they accomplish

How did slavery continue to exist despite its inhumane practices? Many of these owners employed the ideas of dehumanizing slaves and religion in order to perpetuate their actions. Dehumanization demoted the societal status of slaves, therefore deeming blacks inferior to their white counterparts. Moreover, although directly opposing religious principles of kindness and avoidance of sin, plantation owners used Christianity as a mechanism to mask their inhumanity and encourage their cruelty toward slaves. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass develops themes of dehumanization and religion, which helps readers understand the techniques slave owners utilized to alleviate their guilt, condone malice toward slaves, and preserve supremacy over colored people in Southern society.

This was the period of post-slavery, early twentieth century, in southern United States where blacks were still treated by whites inhumanly and cruelly, even after the abolition laws of slavery of 1863. They were still named as ‘color’. Nothing much changed in African-American’s lives, though the laws of abolition of slavery were made, because now the slavery system became a way of life. The system was accepted as destiny. So the whites also got license to take disadvantages and started exploiting them sexually, racially, physically, and economically. During slavery, they were sold in the slave markets to different owners of plantation and were bound to be separated from each other. Thus they lost their nation, their dignity, and were dehumanized and exploited by whites.

George Fitzhugh in “Slavery Justified” explains how slavery leads to increased equality and social cohesion. He also suggests that there are racial differences which make certain groups more suitable for certain types of jobs. Slavery also lead to increased production, with crop yields growing even as the population remained stagnant. He suggested that in Europe there was an attempt to become socialistic even though it was not possible while maintaining the important of paid labor. Fitzhugh demonstrated that the poor were better under a system of slavery rather than market labor. Whether in the North or in Europe, the working

When it came to defending slavery in the South, many Southerners followed the ideas of a well-known George Fitzhugh. He was the most popular, influential, most respected man defending slavery. Fitzhugh’s argument defending slavery, according to the document “Blessings of Slavery”, was that “slavery changed from being a necessary evil, to being a positive good”. In his argument he explains not only that slavery is ‘good’ but also that economic freedom was bad. According to the document “Blessings of slavery”, “The Negro slaves of the South are the happiest, and in some sense, the freest people in the world”.

The argument with the obsessive question of whether or not slave labor was profitable as well as free. The question remains could a southern farmer who made money have made more money if he had employed free workers? The question remains with deep speculation as the comparisons between free labor and slave labor in the south slave plantations were valued with low expectations considering the varying climate conditions, the nature of the crops and many other reasons.

The United States of America is known for its claims of democracy, equality, and freedom for all of it’s citizens. These claims are the foundation of America’s independence and essentially its entire history. But “claims” are simply all they were in history. While many achieved equal democracy and freedom, the African-American population of the US was exempt from these “inalienable rights” and heavily oppressed by society. The cruelty of slavery and oppression as a whole reached its peak in the 19th century bringing upon the abolitionist movement, which eventually aided in the historic removal of slavery and the continued fight for equal right of citizenship for African-Americans. Of the many abolitionists who fought for

My voyage was five days away and hidden from everyone, from neighbors, friends, friends of friends and of course family members. My parents told me to keep it as a secret, mostly because it’s a thing that most African parents says , but also to avoid confrontations from other members of the family who do not want anyone exceed them. Therefore, here I was creating an ultimatum to myself for the most anxious day of my life with only my conscience as company.

The violence slaves endured was the most vivid representation in Douglass’ portrayal of slavery in the South. No emotion or rage was held back by slaveholders and no pity or sympathy was put forth either. Cruelty and abuse were the only means of control the slaveholders believed would keep order. The pain inflicted upon these individuals, even to the point of death in some cases, fueled the typical master’s obsession with domination and power. However, throughout Douglass’s turmoil, his religious faith remained exceptionally strong. At times he found himself questioning how might his God allow him to endure such grueling circumstances, but he never let his curiosity hinder his faith. He also questioned how a man could call himself a Christian and yet treat another human being in such a humane manner. Douglass could never comprehend how the slaveholders were able to justify slavery through their faith and church as some of his “owners” did.

The ideology of the time clearly demonstrates the belief in racial superiority in which intelligence prevails in whites. Whites therefore feel that it is their duty to help those not as fortunate as they. The paternalistic relationship that was established between whites and blacks can be described in that “the supposedly more intelligent whites would take care of the supposedly less intelligent blacks. In return, the blacks offered their labor and their unswerving loyalty”(Gosset 349). This relationship is depicted in the same way in which children are protected by and loyal to their parents. The paternalistic view supports Stowe’s argument that slave owners believed that they were superior to their slaves. Despite the “poetic legend of a patriarchal institution” it is “impossible to make anything beautiful or desirable in the best-regulated administration of slavery”(Stowe 8). Stowe states that “there is, actually nothing to protect the slave’s life, but the character of