The Interesting Narrative Of Olaudah Equiano

Slavery was a predominant factor in the South’s way of life. Notably, slaves provided free labor for plantation owners. Many colonists that remained loyal to Britain when the idea of independence first made its round, known as Loyalists, typically were members of the wealthy class in the Deep South. In other words, Loyalists supported Britain, and did not want to become independent from Britain. The British encouraged slaves of rebel masters to escape to British lines, though they were sometimes equivocal on whether the runaways would actually be freed (Frank, 2008).

However, when Tavington is preparing to incinerate the church with the villagers inside, Captain Wilkins, a Tory, is the only one of his men to express any reservations. The portrayal of African Americans and slavery in the movie has also been a subject of much controversy. Benjamin Martin is a prominent planter in South Carolina and thus would have owned slaves. In order not to stigmatize the film's hero, Martin does not own slaves but employs free black workers, probably the only such labor arrangement in colonial South Carolina.

On the eve of the Civil War, the abolitionist movement and the opposition to slavery were very strong and powerful. While many people knew that slavery was a disgusting and degrading institution, there was not much first-hand information available about the inhumane effects that slavery had on both black and white people. In his narrative, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Frederick Douglass demonstrates the dehumanizing effects slavery had, not only on African slaves, but also on the white population. In order to kindle the abolitionist movement and the opposition to slavery, Douglass includes his own personal accounts of life as a slave in America and utilizing elevates diction and vivid imagery

No individual should have to bear the chains of slavery. Because to hold someone physically and mentally captive is not only wrong, it’s a deprivation of our natural born right to freedom. In 1845, a southerner, George Fitzhugh writes a pamphlet called Slavery Justified, portraying slavery as beneficial to all. The article ‘‘Logical Fallacies’’ by Maggie Escalas, Julie Freia, and Carrie Jean Schroeder, destroys the validity of Fitzhugh’s claims. The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is the compelling evidence to why Fitzhugh’s arguments are false, given that Douglass recounts his harsh experience as a slave.

Frederick Douglass in his narrative “Why I learned to Read and Write” demonstrates how he surpassed many obstacles along the way towards getting an education. These obstacles not only shaped Frederick’s outlook on life but also influenced him in his learning to read and write. Frederick’s main challenge was that of not being an owner of his person but rather a slave and a property to someone else. Frederick Douglass lived in the time when slavery was still taking place and slaveholders viewed slavery and education as incompatible. The slave system didn’t allow mental or physical freedom for slaves; slaveholders were to keep the apt appearance and slaves were to remain ignorant.

These laws oppressed black people and restricted their freedom. Because of the poor treating of African Americans and the Black Codes, The Reconstruction period was a failure. Some people were very unhappy when slavery was abolished. Southerners were frustrated that their property would be taken from them and turned into citizens.

Truthfully, it was a complete failure. The nation came to compromises on matters such as education and the economy, but in a bigger picture, racism was still an enormous and unacceptable issue. Since slavery was abolished, African Americans attained a more unfair version of freedom. They needed to make an income, find shelter, and gain experience in the world, so many freed slaves became sharecroppers. Sharecroppers farmed on land they rented from a landlord, in exchange for a share of the crop they produced.

America was no longer a society with slaves, but especially in areas of the deep south, had become a slave society. Paternalistic value embedded in the deep south slave society culture was arguably the cherry on the cake of an unattainable compromise. Americans referred to the abolition of slavery as unconstitutional, necessary to life and permanent. This thought is expanded upon by David Wilmot as he argues, “I ask not that slavery be abolished. I demand that this Government preserve the integrity of free territory against the aggressions of slavery against its wrongful usurpations”

Douglass is a African American that was a slave and did a Narrative about his time being a slave and in his Narrative he “threw light” at the American slave system. African American slave Frederick Douglass lived through a time of racism and how slavery was a natural thing to do but was a very awful thing. And slavery is when families who had colored skin were separated and sold of to a person that can do anything to them, the slave is pretty much like the slaveholder’s property. And in this essay I will talk about how Douglass’s position differs from those who supported slavery and also I will be talking about How Douglass used his Narrative to share his position. How Douglass “throws light” on the American Slave system is by showing

Racism and Slavery are a hand in hand subject, without Slavery, Racism wouldn 't have been a broad topic. Although modern day slavery is nowhere to be found in America, Racism is still an existing matter. Racism against African Americans was a byproduct of permanent and inhumane enslavement of the black population. Although slavery was not only among Afro- Americans, it was also towards white slaves, and indentured servants who all received the same treatment, were punished equally and worked the same hours. The need to solve economic and social problems drove the Colonists to strip Afro-Americans down from their basic rights and such, which rose to naming all blacks, slaves.

Slaves were treated with the lowest of respect, and had no form of justice or rights. The slave system during the time that Frederic Douglass was a slave was corrupted, and he made that very clear within his narrative. In Douglass’ narrative we are shown how little rights the slaves

In the ‘Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass”, Frederick Douglass was a slave that was determined to become free from slavery. And eventually he did accomplish that goal, while ultimately becoming an abolitionist archivist and set off to abolish slavery at the end. Douglass wanted nothing more to be free, but something else was equally important was: literacy. As a slave this fundamental tool was against the rules, unlawful and unsafe.

The emotion of caring was given little to none. They were used until they were seen as useless, as if they had expiring dates stamped on them. Various slave owners saw slavery as not only a beneficial empire, as well as, a religious factor of society. On the contrary, in today’s society slavery is morally wrong

Essentially, no one should defend slavery based on the law when their actions were knowingly wrong and lacking good will. Likewise, for the Methodist, no one who identifies as Christian can condone slavery. Any God-fearing people involved in the slave trade can only expect that God will rightfully judge them according to their actions and will show them no clemency, and will punish them just as they punished their fellow humans. To Wesley, one way of doing right in the eyes of God was to stop financing this trade for it encouraged the Africans to continue partaking in this activity and have complete control over the lives of those traded. Without financing there would be less motivation for slavery to continue.

In this book, it is the professors opinion that the abolitionist themselves were guilty of racial and religious prejudice, an opinion which I do not share. A large portion of antislavery energy was directed toward removing not only slavery but African Americans from the United States. The author of this book did not quite expatiate on the abolitionist and the crusaders he mentioned in the book; which is understandable seeing that the book is not really about the crusaders themselves, but the accomplishment and contributions they made towards the abolition of slavery. The implication of in this book is that in general the abolitionists were sincere, motivated and decent. Garrison 's hatred of slavery, it is suggested by the author, should not be equated with hatred of slaveholders.