Way too often, people in control abuse their force. It is human nature to always want more of what is already there, but for selfish people this issue could turn into a massive issue. Gary Paulsen’s dreadful novel, Nightjohn, goes along with the story of slaves on a plantation who are abused by their master in power. This all changes when a man named John comes to teach a young slave how to read and write. Similarly, another piece of writing that connects to Nightjohn is a piece called “The Monster of Monticello,” by Paul Finkelman, describes the truth of Thomas Jefferson. Finkelman describes how he had slaves, and took advantage of his slaves. He also explains how Jefferson was a hypocrite, and so much more. It is clear that a central theme …show more content…
Gary Paulsen conveys this theme through the use of Clel Waller. Clel Waller is a master of slaves. He has power, and he uses it to abuse his slaves. One of the slaves he abuses is Sarny. In the novel, Sarny states, “Waller he loves to carry the whip and carry the gun and so he rides in the wagon his own self” (Paulsen 26). In other words, Paulsen presents how Clel Waller abuses the power he has to torture helpless slaves. Paulsen wants the readers to know that a person in power should never take advantage of their control or others. Paulsen does this by describing how the abuse is affecting the slaves and causing trauma. Furthermore, not only do people abuse power, but the people affected have to work around the abuse to get what they want. Gary Paulsen presents this theme through John. John is another one of Waller’s slaves, but unlike everyone else he is not afraid of Waller. John has a goal, to teach young slaves to read and write, so they can write about their experience …show more content…
Finkelman explains how Jefferson owned and abused slaves even though he declared that all men are created equal. In “The Monster of Monticello,” Paul Finkelman states, “He sometimes punished slaves by selling them away from their families and friends, a relation that was incomprehensibly cruel even at the time” (Finkelman 8). In other words, Jefferson treated his slaves extremely cruelly, even for the environment and the time. Jefferson had the power to have slaves and mistreat them, and he took that opportunity. Finkelman wants the readers to learn about Jefferson, who he truly was, and his behavior towards his slaves. To add on, Thomas Jefferson did not use his power when he needed to. For example, he had plenty of chances to change the mistakes he made, but instead he ignored them. In “The Monster of Monticello,” Paul Finkelman explains, “As a state legislator he blocked consideration of a law that might have eventually ended slavery in the state” (Finkelman 9). In other words, Jefferson dodged opportunities to end slavery. Jefferson, being the state legislature he could have ended slavery in the state, but instead he stopped the law from going through. Not only could he have ended slavery in the state, but he also could have encouraged equality of all races. The reason he didn’t pass the law is because of his selfishness, and because he
Just Versus Unjust Violence: A Rhetorical Analysis of Violence in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass and Uncle Tom’s Cabin Frederick Douglass and Harriet Beecher Stowe present slavery in vastly distinct ways. In Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, author Frederick Douglass dives into a grisly world filled with bloodshed and in the middle of it a man willing to do what it takes to be educated and in control of his own person, narrated with the voice of reason. In Uncle Tom’s Cabin, author Harriet Beecher Stowe depicts a variety of characters, their struggle with slavery and religion, their personal relationships, and their deep inner feelings, with no small degree of emotion and sentimentality. Douglass and Stowe’s use of
The speaker, Benjamin Banneker, in his letter, describes the situation of the slaves and argues why he opposes it. Banneker’s purpose is to argue that slaves need their natural rights and liberties just like any other human because they are equal. During that time in the 1790’s there were many rural and urban slaves working in plantations and farms as field labors, maids, etc. They didn’t have any fair treatment or were paid, instead they were treated like animals without liberties. He adopts a disturbed tone in order to describe the horrendous treatment the slaves received to prove and discuss that to Jefferson.
Benjamin Banneker hopes to bring the horrors of slavery to Thomas Jefferson’s attention and potentially end slavery. He accomplishes this with his logical organization of his essay, appeals to pathos and ethos, comparisons, flattery, positive and negative diction, allusions, examples, parallelism, and a call-to-action. Banneker respectfully reminds Thomas Jefferson of how horrible it was under Great Britain’s “tyranny” and compares this to slavery. By comparing the suffering in slavery to the suffering the U.S. endured under Great Britain. Banneker addresses Thomas Jefferson as “sir” and compliments him, building him up.
Thomas Jefferson was a major player in the formation of the early republic as both an author and political figure. In the few years following the revolution Jefferson served as the governor to his home state of Virginia. During this time he began to write his book Notes on the State of Virginia which would be published several years later. Jefferson covers a quite a few topics related to the state of Virginia in the late eighteenth century and actively voices his opinion fully understanding that many of the readers may not agree with him. One topic that he discusses at length is slavery and race, In an excerpt from featured in Major Problems he compares and contrasts Native Americans, slaves, and blacks.
Benjamin Bannecker in this excerpt eloquently uses a fine-tuned balance of Pathos, Logos and Ethos to mould a thought-provoking argument to Thomas Jefferson against slavery. Banneker uses Pathos and emotional appeal consistently throughout his writing by attempting to draw parallels between the subjugation of Jefferson under the British Crown (lines 1-5) and the oppression of slaves by their masters (lines 45-47) to communicate the feelings of his persecuted brothers which Jefferson might sympathize with having experienced oppression by an outsider himself. Moreover, he strives to establish a sentiment of love and empathy towards one another and for Jefferson’s heart to be “enlarged with kindness and benevolence towards them”, referring to
The variety of dangers during the colonies time under Britain including men without aid corresponds to the current live of slavery. Since Jefferson is not of color, he cannot imagine but acknowledge the slaves’ current circumstances. Banneker’s view of freedom is the “peculiar blessing of Heaven” with freedom and tranquility. However, Banneker wishes this freedom to everyone, including his brethren under slavery, therefore, he asks Jefferson to give his kindness and benevolence to these brethren in hopes of freedom.
Author, Benjamin Banneker, in his letter to Thomas Jefferson in 1791, attempts to make his point of the oppressive and outrageous nature of slavery. Banneker’s purpose is to persuade Jefferson to continue his efforts to fight for the emancipation of African Americans and to fight the prejudices that have grown around this race. He adopts a very sophisticated and sympathetic tone in order to convey Jefferson’s feelings toward the subject. Banneker opens his letter with a plea to Jefferson to help relieve the sufferings of those African Americans living under slavery. He appeals to ethos when he reminds Jefferson of by stating, “even hope and fortitude wore an aspect of inability to the conflict that he couldn’t be led to a serious and grateful sense of his miraculous and providential preservation” in trying to acquire freedom, at the same time also relating to his own struggle for the emancipation of slaves.
Subject: Benjamin shows Jefferson that the slavery his parents and many others have suffered through can be compared to the time when Jefferson
Jefferson is known for his crucial role in the birth of the Declaration of Independence, and Banneker uses his own words against him. Jefferson is accused of “clearly seeing the injustices of a state of slavery” and having “apprehensions of the horrors of its condition.” A man of such values and a “valuable doctrine, which is worthy to be recorded and remembered in all succeeding ages,” could surely not be such a hypocrite to his own words,
Since Jefferson had previously thought slavery was an act of “horrors,” but then he didn't put an end to it, but then he wrote in the most important document in American history that “all men” are “equal” but didn't go through with the act of abolish slavery is hypocrisy at its finest. The fact Jefferson wrote that men have “certain unalienable rights” but bluntly ignores the fact that an entire race of men's “unalienable rights” are being taken away is a clear and fantastic use of irony by Banneker to exclaim his point of freedom not being equal within American society. In conclusion, Banneker particularly criticizes Jefferson's earlier opinions in an effort to convince him to prohibit American slavery by stressing the contradiction of American
Harrison Rayner Mrs. Bergeron-Kloc Thomas Jefferson: Hero or Hypocrite Essay 3/6/23 Thomas Jefferson claimed that all colored men had natural rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; however in reality, Jefferson was a renowned hypocrite and owner of more than six hundred slaves in his lifetime. Throughout his life, Jefferson was a semi-typical slave owner who took advantage of colored men for their labor. Furthermore, when Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence, he attempted to use the British as a scapegoat for their transgressions. In addition, Jefferson may have opposed the notion of slavery, however, ultimately, he was a hypocrite for his beliefs as he owned hundreds of slaves in his lifetime.
Hypocrisy is one of the worst moral crimes someone can commit. Benjamin Banneker's letter to Thomas Jefferson explains that he has committed this crime. He has gone back on his morale of everyone having unalienable rights by letting slavery continue to happen, and Banneker believes he is the prime contender in allowing this crime to happen and that he should be the start and make the move to stop slavery. Banneker explains this to Jefferson in such a way that the letter is both respectful and thoughtful while also being rude due to the use of how he phrases his sentences, that his argument can not be questioned because of his use of ‘Sir’ to show his respect, and his ardent choice of words which are all collectively used to explain how Jefferson is being hypocritical and show him why he should fix this.
Benjamin Banneker, the son of former slaves, wrote a letter to Thomas Jefferson to argue against slavery. Banneker was an educated man, he was an astronomer, mathematician, surveyor, author, and farmer, yet, Jefferson had not known this information. Banneker makes his argument through the use of allusion, diction, and repetition, which causes Banneker to seem reliable and have intelligence. To remind Jefferson of his own subjugation, Banneker alludes to the British Crown. “..British Crown were exerted with every powerful effort in order to reduce you to a State of Servitude.”
Similarly to Wilson, Finkelman thinks along the same lines. In the first paragraph of Finkelman’s excerpt of his novel, Jefferson and Slavery, he bluntly states Jefferson fails at being “the leader of the best” and having the ability to “transcend his economic interests and his sectional background to implement the ideals he articulated” (256). Finkelman continues to explain Jefferson’s dependency on slaves and indirectly states he fails to meet the ethical standards once again in the second
“The Constitution and Slavery” pointed this out by stating that “Yet at the time these words were written, more than 500,000 black Americans were slaves. Jefferson himself owned more than 100.” This shows that even though Jefferson insisted on the idea of “all men are created equal,” some can say that he is a hypocrite. “How could somebody make such a statement while they are doing the same devilish act?” must have gone through the minds of those questioning Jefferson’s sincerity. Indeed, he did commit those acts.