Violence In The Life Of John Brown Essay

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Due to his upbringing, it is easy for me to see where his acts of violence came from as an adult. From the text-version of the video provided I read, “Born in Connecticut in 1800, John Brown had a strict religious upbringing. At age 12, he saw a slave brutally beaten.” From those two sentences I can infer that his thoughts were probably suppressed and his innocence was damaged at a young age, obviously scarring him for the rest of his life. I agree with him on his cause for violence, but I disagree on the acts he took part of. John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry didn’t help the cause of abolition. How didn’t he help? From within the article provided I also found, “In 1856, Brown and six of his followers retaliated for the violence in Lawrence by killing five settlers in the pro-slavery camps along the Pottawatomie Creek.” These were the first steps of action he took; I must say I am disappointed. There were so many things that could’ve (and should’ve) taken place before this…show more content…
So which was it? I think he had a cause and he did, it was abolition and freeing slaves from forced labor, but violence wasn’t the answer. It never is. I also don’t think he was a murderous fanatic, though, I think he was confused. He wanted to be a leader in some ways, but should’ve been leaded. His corrupted mind brought him into the evils that will come when you’re fighting for a cause. So, he is a famous abolitionist because of his outrageous acts of violence, not because he had a substantial contribution to the cause of abolition. Killing five people for a cause isn’t that many when put into perspective with how many there still were afterwards. The plan to raid Harpers Ferry was a GREAT plan, but he isn’t a leader. Robert E. Lee IS a true leader. His convictions weren’t too harsh and matched his acts of crime. He died doing what made him happy though, and that’s all that

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