Virginian Luxuries Summary

There are three main aspects of this painting, each representing a different aspect of society. The first and lower part of the painting shows the working class, gathered in desperate and impoverished lines. This shows the lack of compassion available in the American economy.

Each part of the United States had their different standpoints towards blacks and the leaders of the Harlem Renaissance were devoted to crushing the negative attitudes placed upon the Afro-Americans. During this time race was a social construct. Everyday lives were affected by skin color whether people were aware or not. For years African Americans were shunned into a classification that viewed their society as less than human. Toomer’s novel shows the ability race has to affect and intersect different aspects and domains of society and life, as well as dismantle it. Jean Toomer created this piece of art for a reason. Cane suggests that the social construct created upon race should be avoided, for people of all different social classes have equal potential for success.

What relationships of power are featured in “Virginian Luxuries” (Document 1)? How are unequal power relationships reflected in Toqueville’s distinctions between the three races (Document 2)? What future does Toqueville predict for these groups of people and why? Based upon your own knowledge, how accurate do you believe Toqueville’s observations and predictions were?

With the colonization of the New World came financial, religious, and strategic opportunities. England answered this call in various ways as British colonies began with certain interests in mind. Massachusetts and Virginia, besides being started with royal charters, were planted in separate locations, with unique resources, and by Englishmen with entirely different intentions.

Even though they are mixed, they do not united as one, each of them have their owned destiny that they wanted to fulfill. Among the three races the two most misfortunate were the Negro and the Indian, these two races have nothing alike, except that they were both treated by the whites or European like a lower animals, who view themselves as a superiors in intelligence, and in power. And those who are inferior rank in the country have to obey and suffer from their tyranny. Negro have been brought from African by the European as slaves to help their master in plantation and agriculture, but he makes them subservient to his use, if they cannot subdue, they will get server punishment or even put to death. Even though they are descendants of the Africans, Negro of the United States had lost their connection with their own country, losing their custom and languages that their forefathers once speak. Losing themselves to the European, they are stuck between the two communities’ one who sold them, and the other who repulsed them. Without a place for them to be, or a place to them to call home, except a place that they know which is their master home. Once the Negro became slaves his lost all his right as a human, he is now a property

In 1606 the Virginia Company was created also known as the New Virginia. The food was supposed to come from two places: occasional supply ships and trade with the local Native Americans. There were a couple issues with this one the lag time from back and forth of each location, and the amount of men that they started off with came back less than they started with because of death. John Smith forced on people a strict control on the colonists "Work or starve." Each colonist was needed/demanded to spend hours per day farming. The winter from 1609-10, was known as the "starving time," was the worst time of all. A large amount of the English colonists, who moved in from another country to Virginia, died of starvation as well as sicknesses destroyed

“It is obvious that there are three naturally distinct, one might almost say hostile, races” (Tocqueville). In the early years of America, the country was a product of racism, slavery, and social instability. This unstable society was directly related to the settling of the Europeans and the establishment of the North and South territories. In Chapter 10 of “Democracy in America”, Alexis de Tocqueville addresses America’s communal unsteadiness regarding “the three races” as well as the North and South by establishing a loss of identity.

The most influential artist to me in this exemplary in this pursuit for the appropriated traditions is Kehinde Wiley. In his opening speech for the New Republic gallery show he expressed that things such as his work was evolved around the working of chance . In his case, he manipulates the chance of the representation of the black demographic in traditional work. Modifying the figurative works to create the chance for relating a body that is familiar. I see contemporary painter, Kehinde Wiley as a comparable to my work in regards to the topic as well as the manipulation of the human figure. The admirable features I see in Kehinde Wiley’s work in addition to these is the fantasy elements that are incorporated. These features are best exhibited in his piece, “Bound”. The work is a bronze sculpture that stands approximately four feet tall and two-and half feet wide. The composition is inviting as it includes busts of three identical women that have African descent features that are placed on a rounded triangle base. The expressions on all of the faces are of a staring and wondering nature that have a nature of regality as their faces are turned to the right at an approximate forty five degree angle as their all have their back facing each other to form a guard of the leaves the a laid on their base. The bodies are cut organically as it rounds off from shoulder to shoulder, just enough to form the upper torso to see the corset like dress that encompass the figure. Expanding

2) What relationships of power are featured in “The Discord” (Document 4)? How does the Declaration of Sentiments (Document

Virginia colony was the largest state of the population, including Afro-American slaves of any state in the Confederacy. After indentured servitude was no longer the primary form of labor in the United States because of its expensive accommodating costs, many southern planters in the 18th Colonial Virginia relied on the enslaved Afro-American labor. Owners had to balance the cost of labor value of slaves against the profit that he could gain from planting farm products like tobacco. In reading sections, William’s diary portraits the two contrary lives between a Southern Plantation owner and his Afro-American slaves in the 18th Century with a specific point

When Virginia Company brought and settled the English men into Virginia colony, it took more than a decade for it to reach to the conclusion that the colony is now ready for self-supporting. By stablishing the House of Burgesses and General Assembly of the Virginia Colony, colonists literally organized a legislative body in the colony which enabled them to choose their own leaders, adopt laws and setup regulations based on their needs. It was July 30, 1619 when the twenty two burgesses, Governor Yeardley and the Council gathered at Jamestown Church to setup rules, adopt laws and govern the colony themselves. The result of this meeting was the significant birth of the first government in the history of America which not only protected the Virginia

The main subject in this portrait are the slaves that are in chains.The facial expressions of the slaves are subdued and defeated. The only lookers of the slaves have very nice clothes and the slaves are in rags. This portrait takes place in an outdoor setting and the slaves appear to be walking through a field in order to be sold. One of the onlookers are laughing and another one of the onlookers is clutching a baby in her arms. Jacob Lawrence is showing the

The seventeenth century marked the start of great colonization and immigration to the New World that was North America. Mainly in on the eastern coast of what is now the United States, England established colonies on this new land to thrive socially and economically. The English government readily sent its citizens to America to exploit its abundant source of raw materials and the English people exponentially came to the colonies to start a new life for themselves and to thrive socially. In Virginia during the seventeenth century, the geographical attributes in this region allowed the establishment of the cash crop tobacco to rapidly transform the colony socially and economically. Particularly in the Chesapeake Bay, the goal of social and

The Blackamoors, representing black Africans, with their “lowly” status was a comforting juxtaposition to the white wealthy aristocrat’s fickle status position (pg.40-41). Additionally, the Blackamoors worked to silently justify the slave trade in the minds of the white French aristocrat's psyche (pg.54-55, 97-98). Whether being carved into furniture meant to hold the white Europeans body or the Blackamoors faces designed with an inanimate benevolent expression towards their white owners, agency and humanity were removed (pg.55). Indeed, the Blackamoors ever present, "docile" expression, communicated to the white owner that the black African not only consented to his enslavement, but enjoyed his servitude and was pleased to serve the white

The painting illustrates the artist’s rendering of what happened to Chief Wi-jún-jon when integrated into the white culture following a trip to Washington, DC in 1832. On this returning side you see no Indian heritage, it has been destroyed by civilization. The painting is a great view through the artist’s eyes and mind as to how he felt about the change which occurred with the Chief during his time. George Catlin truly honored and respected the Indians that he captured so elegantly in his paintings and I believe he felt saddened when Chief Wi-jún-jon returned to his native people looking and acting liking a white person.