Dana, the modern black women, is summoned to save and work for Rufus, a white son of a plantation owner, out of his misery. ... Slaves are considered property because they were black and labeled as subhuman. To enforce the status of blacks being property, white owners would use inhumane violence as a form of punishment. In Kindred, Dana disobeys Tom Weylin, Rufus father, when he clearly warned her not to read anymore and suddenly one day Dana gets discovered, Weylin says, "Didn't I tell you I didn't want you reading' 'I treated you good' said Weylin 'he sna...

• Word Count: 1077
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Even though Lincoln knew slavery was wrong and the blacks should be free he still wanted to send them back to Africa or unoccupied lands, again does that sound like someone who deserves the name "The Great Emancipator". Because to me I thought if he truly wanted and respected the ending of slavery he would keep the black slaves apart of the Union where they were free to do what they wanted "in a nation where men were created equal" . To me it seems as if Lincoln was uncomfortable with the idea of having blacks live in the United States and wanted them out. ... As quoted b...

• Word Count: 1118
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

As long as people remained ignorant about the realities of slavery, they were not motivated to action, but stories like Jacobs' showed the need for reform. "Pity me, and pardon me, O virtuous reader! ... She wanted her readers to understand the perils of enslavement, and try to relate to what it feels like to be owned by another human being. ... "The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity, and independence bequeathed by your fathers is shared by you, not by me....This Fourth of July is yours not mine.... He used the Biblical reference of the enslaved Israelites and com...

• Word Count: 1369
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

He mentions that "[a] want of information concerning my own was a source of unhappiness to me"(Douglass 310). ... Jacobs would have liked to believe that the bond of gender was stronger than the racial differences, so she tried to evoke agency among the white women of the South by asserting that while they remain inactive, they participate in the enslavement of themselves. ... It rekindled the few expiring embers of freedom, and revived within me a sense of my own manhood. It recalled the departed self-confidence, and inspired me again with a determination to be free"(Douglass 343). In the fi...

• Word Count: 1523
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Examining the role that religion played in the African-American community, primarily pre-civil war, can be a difficult task due to the limited amount of evidence available.1 While it is a common notion that slavery life was embedded with Christian ideals, a Christian-like ideology is likely more accurate.2 Syncretism occurred with the combining of African tradition and Christian principles to create an African-American spirituality specific to its people. ... Relying mainly on emotion and charisma, black preachers could speak confidently to their peers even with their limited knowledge of t...

• Word Count: 1954
• Approx Pages: 8
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Like most slaves of the day, Frederick Douglass did not have close ties to his family. ... In 1838 Douglass tried again and successfully escaped to New York City posing as a black sailor, he explained, "A new world had opened upon me"1. Fredrick could then continue to fight for black freedom and civil rights. ... This newspaper finally gave the black people of America a voice. Douglass acted as an interpreter for the entire black community and necessitated black civil rights through his newspaper. ...

• Word Count: 1350
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Frederick Douglass was the most important black American leader of the 19th century. ... However, the prefaces also implicitly place black narratives under the control of white editors. ... It is like Douglass is saying "I exist" this is my name this is how I look like and here you have a document which proves it. ... Douglas described his early self to live like a pig, a property having no right to his own person. ... At that specific moment Douglas undergoes a kind of epiphany, when he said I quote "I now understood what had been to me a most perplexing difficulty - to wit, the w...

• Word Count: 2277
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

If each slave was counted as a full person the south would have benefitted greatly, but instead they were stuck on the evil idea that African-Americans could not be considered a person like a white man. ... After researching this it is clear to me that the evil lies in a persons hesitance to speak out against the majority unless they stand to benefit. ... After being brainwashed into believing African-Americans were property, many whites were not ready to allow blacks to be completely equal. ... Gordon-Reed is trying to get at the idea that whites are considered to be more trustful than blacks...

• Word Count: 1706
• Approx Pages: 7
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

"The experience of more than half a century, I informed Pakenham, convinced me that it would be neither humane nor wise to abolish slavery. ... Although popular sovereignty seemed like a feasible plan, it had weaknesses. ... That horrible, hell-black enactment embodied the Virginia principle that every person of color was a slave until proved otherwise. ...

• Word Count: 1150
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

On the other hand, like most puritans of her time, Mary Rowlandson wrote to discover God's purpose in her life. The Narrative of the Captivity is a personal account written by Rowlandson of what life in captivity was like. ... During his journey, Equiano's is exposure to Western customs initially frightened him, writing "and I was now persuaded that I had gotten into a world of bad spirits, and that they were go to kill me" (Equiano) and eventually seeing Europeans as "men superior to us" (Equiano). ... For example, Rowlandson, in her first encounter with the Natives she is quick to...

• Word Count: 1490
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate