Solomon Northup's Life As A Slave

During the 1800’s, slavery was vastly increasing in the South. Many plantation owners were growing mass quantities of cotton which had a huge effect on how many slaves they needed. Because of this, most African Americans experienced hardships and misery. Solomon Northup through “Twelve years a Slave” helps the reader understand the life of an enslaved African American. I have learned that Solomon Northup was captured as he was feeling under the weather and a man gave him an unknown pill on day. After taking the pill Northup woke up and he was chained to a wall. After this he was bought and sold for 12 years as a slave until his friend came to help. Solomon Northup had wrote about the hardships he faced as a slave in Twelve Years a Slave.

The book starts with Solomon Northup explaining the story of his father as a slave and the story of his youth. Solomon’s father, Mintus Northup, was born into slavery and was a slave for a long time, until his master died. He was then free from slavery and moved on with his life. Mintus kept the last name “Northup”, to honor the people who freed him from slavery.

As well it can also be said that he told the story to show that not all people from the south during that time period were inhumane monsters as most not from there would have conceived them to be. Another thing that can be taken from his novel is not to take our liberties for granted, because many men and women fought long and hard to obtain them for us and though unlikely could be taken away. Solomon Northup was an amazing for enduring everything he went through and sill being able to write a true and honest account of it all. As well doing so in such a calm and level headed manner towards the people he encountered down south. This is what I feel lead him to writing such a well respected and believable novel of his time as a slave.

I do not believe that Solomon’s intentions for writing this memoir was to persuade a person into changing their beliefs about anything. Truly the author’s purpose was simple to educate the people about his circumstances and, it is possible that writing down his experiences and sharing it with others was a way for him to cope with what had happened to him. Although overall, Solomon really just wanted to give people more information about slavery so they could properly decide on their own what they believed.

In 1841, criminals seduced a free black New Yorker named Solomon Northup into slave territory by the promise of a job. There, they illegally sold him as a slave. When he protested to the slave dealer that he was free, the dealer beat him. He would learn no to assert his freedom, but over the next twelve years he attempted to free himself on several occasions, all of which failed until the last, successful effort.

The fact that Solomon was a free man that is unjustly put in chains makes his story a lot more touching, and made me emotionally attached to his character. This movie did not romanticize slavery, or try to make it age appropriate and illustrated it as it was (which explains why it’s R-rated). It told the story of Solomon from his perspective and experiences, and didn’t try to create empathy for the white men that ruined his life. Even the Canadian abolitionist that helped Solomon wasn’t painted as a hero, which showed the extent to which the producers went to avoid creating white sympathy and heroism, as films throughout much of American history have. Overall, this film helped me visualize what slavery must have been like for the millions that were held in bondage, and I would watch it again (and tell other to watch it

Solomon Northup’s ‘Twelve Years a Slave”, provides readers with a different outlook on slavery. Northup discusses his days as a slave and the different obstacles he went through. Among the three owners he had, all of them had a different way of treating their slaves. Religion is one of the main factors contributing to how Northup is treated. This book portrays how the adoption of religion played a major role in the treatment of the slaves.

The movie 12 Years A Slave is about an African American Freedman named Solomon Northup that lived in New York City during the time the South still owned slaves. He was a violinist and all the white people seemed to respect him. He was offered a job playing music at a circus for a couple of white men that he accepted since his wife and kids were off working for a few weeks. The white men were not friends, they kidnapped him and sold him into slavery. He was beaten, forced to work, and not feed well. He was moved around a two times where the conditions of each place seemed to get worse than the last one. The first slave owner didn’t whip his slaves and if he did it wasn’t shown. The first slave owner kind of showed some respect to his slaves

The movie 12 Years A Slave, directed by Steve McQueen, portrays the cruelties and trauma that a slave had lived through for part of or all of his/her life. The main character Solomon Northup expresses his sorrow and grief of the misdemeanors he faced, however at the same time receives unexpected kindness. Solomon, a free man, was kidnapped and sold into slavery against his will and against his rights. He was forced into a group which he believed he was far from; a group of slaves that accepted the idea that they would continue to live as slaves and that freedom could only be found in a dream or in death. Living through twelve years under various masters as Platt, Solomon experiences three main emotional traumas as did many others of the enslaved.

Imagine one day being a free man or woman then one day that freedom is taken from you.Well that is exactly what Solomon Northup went through for 12 years of his life, and not knowing if your wife and children are ok also if you’ll ever see them again.This is some of the things that Solomon Northup went through in 12 Years A Slave.Solomon Northup was a free man for a long time,but then two men offered him a job playing the violin in their band he accepted.Those men double crossed them they got Solomon drunk, and when he fell asleep they took him to a white man which he then sold Solomon to a plantation owner. He was then a slave for 12 years and he did not know what happened to his wife and kids.If you would like to find out more than you’ll want to read this paper. This paper is about the most troubling and surprising things in 12 Years A Slave. The most troubling and surprising things in this movie is the severity of the beating of the whippings, the masters not allowing them to clean themselves with soap, and how the masters called the slaves Nigirs.For my first paragraph I will be talking about how severe the whipping of the slaves were.

In the story 12 Years a Slave by Solomon Northup, the author was shown as a multi- dimensional man. It has been said “what doesn’t kill a person, makes that person stronger.” Solomon Northup had to become stronger to survive being a slave. Solomon was a man who was loving, caring, sensitive, strong in character, and committed.

Through lessons and opportunities, Solomon Northup’s Twelve Years a Slave demonstrates to the reader that no matter how well versed an individual may be on the subject of slavery, none can grasp its true meaning without being in the position themselves. Northup’s experiences as a free man were the main factors necessary for him to acquire a greater understanding of the system of slavery as a whole.

In the beginning of his memoir, Solomon clearly states that he only wished to “give a candid and truthful statement of facts: to repeat the story of [his] life, without exaggeration” (Northup 1), however, the film based upon the novel does not appear to stay true to Solomons wishes. In fact, the film appears to have completely looked over crucial events which served to lay the foundation of Northup

Solomon Northup’s Twelve Years a Slave is a true account of the life of a free man from Saratoga Springs who was drugged and conducted to slavery in 1841, in which he spent 12 years as a slave from one plantation to another and from a slaveowner to another. He gained his freedom again and got back to his family which is not the case for almost all the free persons who were kidnapped and enslaved.

Solomon was living in New York with his family i.e his wife and children and was enjoying his life and freedom with a good lifestyle.He was then captured and kidnapped for slavery by two of the men from Washington and he was sold to Louisiana for cutting sugarcane. The movie starts with the scene where Solomon was cutting sugar cane on Plantation. The movie includes the events from the past when Solomon was with his wife and children. The two men (Brown and Hamilton) from Washington offers Solomon a job to play violin in a circus. The three were enjoying the night but what Solomon discovers at next morning that he has been kidnapped and sold into slavery.