ipl-logo

Who Is Benjamin Banneker Letter To Thomas Jefferson

768 Words4 Pages

In the year 1791 Benjamin Banneker had already made a name for himself in the newly established country of America. He was a very educated man (i.e. was a farmer, astronomer, mathematician, surveyor, and author) for only being a first generation free man. His was filled to the brim with passion on the matters of slavery and wasn’t afraid to take his stand on the issue. He saw no problem in directly addressing the man who wrote the start to our country. In his letter to Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Banneker offers a series of arguments against the institution of slavery. Being the educated man that he is, Banneker had no problem portraying his argument through pure logic in order to invoke guilt on Jefferson for the way he has been treating …show more content…

To a time in the young country’s history that was so bad that not even “hope and fortitude” could make matters better. Banneker wanted him to realize that they had just successfully completed the first colonial uprising in history, laid their lives on the line in order to benefit people they have never met before, saw the blood shed of loved ones, watched families be destroyed, in order to achieve the “freedom and tranquility” that is a “percular blessing of Heaven” only to deny that freedom to the black part of the population. Even though Jefferson “clearly saw…the injustice…of slavery” and that his “abhorrence” was so strong that he believed it was “worthy to be recorded” in a document that would be “remembered in all succeeding ages;” yet he still saw it fit to continue this practice of enslavement. Banneker went on to actually quote the Declaration of Independence and …show more content…

The inhabitants of early America did everything based upon their faith. They were taught how to read using Bible stories like Job, who Banneker used to compare his “brethren.” He even told Jefferson that the “freedom” they had just “mercifully received” was a “blessing of Heaven.” He wanted it to be made known that enslaving human beings for the sole purpose of labor was by no means godly and Thomas Jefferson was in a sense disobeying God by participating in the

Show More
Related

  • Benjamin Banneker's Argument Against Slavery

    229 Words  | 1 Pages

    The quote also appeals to Jefferson’s emotions because Banneker makes him feel guilty about slavery. Jefferson

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Benjamin Banneker's Letter

    391 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the letter written by Benjamin Banneker to George Washington and Thomas Jefferson in 1791 uses many rhetorical strategies like metaphor and an allusion to the bible from the Declaration of Independence to convey his thoughts that slavery is the root against ideas that all men are created equal. Banneker uses a respectful tone throughout his letter to get to his point in a educated manner. Banneker uses human aid metaphorically when he says “...which every human aid appeared unavailable,...” . He compares help to human aid when he says that human aid is not available as saying help is not found in any surroundings. He purposely gives us that metaphor so we as a reader will understand what was happening in the 18th century with the issue

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Benjamin Banneker's Letter

    301 Words  | 2 Pages

    Benjamin Banneker uses many rhetorical strategies in his letter to Thomas Jefferson and George Washington to argue against slavery. Banneker employs repetition to create polite diction, ethos, logos, and an allusion to the Bible and passages from the Declaration of Independence to convey his ideas that slavery is at its roots against the idea that all men are created equal, opposing the ideas in the Declaration of Independence. Banneker uses repetition to keep a respectful tone throughout his letter. In repeating “sir” before each addition to his argument, Banneker has a formal and polite tone. This helps argue against slavery because he is not blaming the reader, but respectfully presenting the facts.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Letter By Benjamin Banneker

    351 Words  | 2 Pages

    Son of former slaves, Benjamin Banneker, writes a letter in between the revolution and civil war about the unjust act of slavery. Banneker tries to identify that slavery is unjust. He uses his confident harsh tone towards Thomas Jefferson to elaborate that slavery is wrong and Jefferson knows it in a confident but insulting way. Banneker, in his first paragraph of his letter, compares how slaves feel is similar to how americans felt under the cruel british control. He shows this similarity by stating, “reflect on a time when every human aid seemed unavailable.”

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Benjamin Banneker

    753 Words  | 4 Pages

    The initial use of “sir” is seen as a sign of respect towards Jefferson. Banneker hopes to appear as a selfless, humble man when writing to the secretary of state. However, once Banneker shifts the argument and begins to criticize Jefferson of his wrongdoings, “sir” can be interpreted differently. Essentially, it is the words being said after “sir” that give us the impression Banneker is developing an aggressive tone. For example, Banneker states, “Sir, I suppose that your knowledge of the situation of my brethren is too extensive to need a recital here.”

    Read More

  • Benjamin Banneker Letter Figurative Language

    418 Words  | 2 Pages

    Farmer, astronomer and author Benjamin Banneker in his untitled letter strongly argues against slavery. Banneker's purpose is to argue and persuade against slavery and explain how it's unjustified at a time after the American Revolution and during a time when the House of Burgesses took away African's rights and made them forever bound to slavery brought by the slave codes. He adopts a serene tone in order to calmly and professionally expound on the ideas that he's going to explain to show why slavery is unjustified in his letter to a man of higher authority. Banneker achieves his purpose/tone through the use of diction and figurative language.

    Read More

  • How Did Benjamin Banneker Support The Abolition Of Slavery

    925 Words  | 4 Pages

    Though slavery persisted in the colonies, there were a number of free Black men, such as Benjamin Banneker. Born to a mixed mother and African father, Banneker was allotted the gift of freedom from infancy and allowed an education from his parents. He became one of the first well-known intellectual Black men of the colonies, and took advantage of his intellect and station in order to speak out against the injustices of slavery in a letter to Thomas Jefferson. Written in 1791, his letter is several pages long and urges Jefferson to fight for the emancipation of the slaves in America.

    Read More

  • Benjamin Banneker's Arguments Against Slavery

    697 Words  | 3 Pages

    Banneker appeals to ethos to help his arguments. He uses great vocabulary and makes no mistakes in his letter. Furthermore, Banneker says the words, “Tranquility, benevolence, and entreat.” Banneker is using high vocabulary to make Thomas Jefferson acknowledge his argument no full of foul

    Read More

  • Banneker Writes To Thomas Jefferson About The Wrongs Of Slavery

    605 Words  | 3 Pages

    Banneker Writes to thomas jefferson about the wrongs of slavery. HIs purpose is to argue against slavery. Banneker does this by using an appeal to logic to prove how slavery is illogical, diction to show the cruelty of slavery, and parallelism to show that they are like the white men who wanted their freedom as well. Banneker shows how illogical slavery is to help create an argument against it. He pulls in the Declaration of INdependence, which Thomas Jefferson wrote, it says “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal…” (lines 21-25).

    Read More

  • Summary Of Benjamin Banneker's Letter To Jefferson

    616 Words  | 3 Pages

    Banneker know his place in terms that he is black, so he is not treated as equal. Banneker brings up the fact that Jefferson knows how he feels, as Jefferson has gone through having his freedom stripped from him. Banneker tells Jefferson to recall the time when “the arms and tyranny” of the king were applied with a stern effort to reduce him to a “State of Servitude.”

    Read More

  • Thomas Jefferson Research Paper

    834 Words  | 4 Pages

    Thomas Jefferson desired a democracy where governmental decisions would not be affected by religious beliefs and biased views of the situation. Thomas Jefferson viewed separation of church and state here is some of his insight on the topic, “...legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, ' thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. Adhering to this expression of the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties” (Thomas Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptists). Jefferson became the sole author for the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, which became the the most important religious separationist papers of the 1700’s. Jefferson’s ideas and writings for separation of church and state helped to form the American Enlightenment period, and to further his ideals based upon his

    Read More

  • Questions And Answers Of Benjamin Banneker's Letter To Jefferson

    780 Words  | 4 Pages

    Benjamin Banneker included a copy of his almanac to prove that he is an educated black man. This not only demonstrations he has credibility but that he

    Read More

  • What Is The Tone Of Benjamin Banneker Letter To Slavery

    515 Words  | 3 Pages

    The tone overall tone of the letter is satirical. Throughout the letter, Banneker subtly reprimands Jefferson. For example, in the second paragraph of his essay, Banneker directly quotes Jefferson’s input to the Declaration of independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, and that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” By directly quoting Jefferson, Banneker essentially say it is ironic that Jefferson preaches equality, yet denies African Americans this “equality”. In a sense, Banneker is labeling Jefferson a hypocrite for not enforcing something he feels so strongly

    Read More

  • Benjamin Banneker Letter To Thomas Jefferson Analysis

    651 Words  | 3 Pages

    The letter was understandably harsh and severe, but Banneker does this in such a humble manner, that his opinion on slavery can not be argued by Jefferson. Jefferson absolutely has to accept what Banneker is saying because of how he portrayed, and wrote his letter. Banneker starts the letter off with referring to Jefferson as ‘Sir’, and does this in every paragraph to solidify and ensure that he is being polite while still getting his point across. This was to make Jefferson believe what Banneker was saying, to show Jefferson that he does have respect towards him and that he is taking this letter seriously so Jefferson should too. Banneker does this to help Jefferson believe that Banneker knows what he is talking about, that he is credible, so he can fix his moral dilemma, and help him make the choice toward ending

    Read More

  • Benjamin Banneker Rhetorical Analysis

    470 Words  | 2 Pages

    By doing so, Banneker aligns with Jefferson’s own struggles to be free. Banneker also alludes to the Declaration of Independence. “…That all men are created equal…among

    Read More

More about Who Is Benjamin Banneker Letter To Thomas Jefferson

Open Document