Slave Resistance & Slavery & Freedom in American History in Tennessee History 251 Final Paper Paula Burton Resistance to slavery was formed due to the extreme brutality which the slaves were forced to endure at the hands of their masters. Early African Americans found ways to escape following their master’s orders. Many slaves would pretend to be ill, do their jobs poorly, refuse to work, destroy equipment, steal food, and set fires to buildings. These revolts were not part of an organized plan, but rather individual acts. The objective was to upset the plantations normal routine in any way possible.
Much violence and abuse was seen during this time of uncertainty. Slave owners treated slaves even worse than before due to the way they had “misbehaved” during the time the Yankees were present to oversee that the slaves were actually being freed. After a long period of confusion and denial, the slave-owning families finally surrendered their human property, although they did not surrender their ideas of superiority, thus creating a racism barrier between themselves and the community of blacks that was once their property. When the news of the abolition of slavery came to the slaves, they celebrated like they never celebrated anything before. Their prayers had been answered and they were now free men.
Men were taken from their families and sold to slave masters. Women were constantly violated physically as well as sexually. This story played a major role in exposing the heartaches and pains, and just inhumane treatment that slaves received at the hands of their owners. Jacobs was a slave girl who suffered many traumatic experiences in the hands of her slave master. She eventually fled from her master, but remained on the plantation in hiding to watch after her children.
Most masters had to learn how to become a slave owner, they had to learn the system, which most of the time meant that one must become a person of evil doing. Being a slave owners turned a good person into a bad person. A master was not allowed to be kind to his/her slave. They were not allowed to tech the slave anything or let them do as they pleased. “Master Hugh was amazed at the simplicity of his spouse, and, probably for the first time, he unfolded to her the true philosophy of slavery, and the peculiar rules necessary to be observed by masters and mistresses, in the management of their human chattels.” (Douglass, 95).
SLAVERY The historical diaries on slaves and how they were treated are not right. You can learn so many things from these diaries not just about slaves but the headmasters and abolitionists and what they went through with the slaves. You also learn that masters were abusing slaves and slaves did whatever their masters told them to do and the abolitionists where there to help them as much as they could such as freedom. Most slaves were probably more passive than active because they did not want to die all they wanted was freedom so why would they do something that has more consequences than from just slowing down on their work and getting whipped. The slave girl was really suffering in her story about what happened to her.
Frederick Douglass’ autobiography, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, is Douglass’ intricate retelling of the cruel and tragic abuse he witness during his time as a slave. Throughout the narrative, Douglass writes about some of the moments in his life that changed his beliefs, views and ambitions forever. Some of these moments include the moment his mistress taught him his ABC’s, the moment his master forbade his mistress from educating Douglass, and the moment he realized the reality of slavery. In Chapter VI of Narrative, Mrs. Sophia Auld, wife to one of Douglass’ masters, Mr. Hugh Auld, is, according to Douglass, “a woman of the kindest heart and finest feelings”. In the chapter, Mrs. Auld teaches Douglass his ABC’s and how to write a few letters.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas, an American Slave, Written by Himself: Analysis of the History of Slaves Jennylyn Hilario History B17A Doctor Rosales November 13, 2014 Slavery has always been a controversial topic. The question being asked is the following: Is enslaving people to work for a person morally justified? Demands for indentured servants decreased because they started to live longer and began to have ownership. Farm owners resorted to slaves and the demand for slaves skyrockets. Long-term, owning a slave would save a lot more money because slaves were like property.
Many people died in this vicious cycle of imprisonment and tyranny, without any justification as to why they were being treated this way. This was how most slaves at this time believed life was, that there was no escape from the evils of slavery. In his piece, “The Narrative”, Frederick Douglass describes to us these evils and
Harriet Tubman was born in 1819 in Dorchester County, Maryland. She was born into slavery. Harriet’s birth name was originally Araminta Ross, given to her by her parents who were also African and slaves. Araminta didn’t have the normal childhood, being brought up in slavery was one of the harshest things a child could go through. She was regularly beaten and whipped by her owners, froze every night, she would even stick her feet in the fire just to keep warm and not get frost bite.
Uncle Tom’s Cabin shined a light onto their cruel, abusive lives. Although this book made people feel sympathetic towards slave, it also made working-class whites aggressive towards slaves because they now felt that African Americans were competition in the working world. Because of this book people thought she fuelled this war. Even President Lincoln said, “Is this the little woman who made this great