The Passage Of Manufactured Pilgrims Rhetorical Analysis

1036 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Indentured servitude in colonial america

Benjamin Garcia
Professor Moore
HIST 1301.
13 February 2018
Primary Document Analysis
Gottlieb Mittelberger, The Passage of Indentured Servants (1750)
Colonial life in America was very difficult for the hopeful settlers who came to escape poverty, persecution, and to gain religious freedom. Later came the adventurous explorers and those sent by European Nations to begin business ventures in this uncharted new land.
They eventually settled into the original 13 colonies now known at the States of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, New Hampshire, Maryland, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, and Georgia. This passage by Mittelberger “The Passage of Indentured Servants (1750)” describes …show more content…

Children from ages 1 to 7 rarely survived the voyage. Mittelberger witnessed misery in no less than 32 children in his ship, all of whom were thrown into the sea. The parents grieved all the more since their children found no resting-place in the earth, but were devoured by the monsters of the sea. Most of the people got sick, which was not surprising, because, in addition to to all other trials and hardships, warm food was only served three times a week, the rations being very poor and very little. The meals were difficult to eat, and often unclean. The water was served in such a horrific manner: was very black, thick, and full of worms, which meant one could not drink it without loathing, even if they were incredibly …show more content…

The features of indentured servitude in Pennsylvania, like other colonies, underwent a series of transformations. For example, indentured servitude initially possessed a patriarchal character. Under the "head right" system, prospective proprietors could receive 50 acres (20 ha) for each "head" (servant/laborer) they brought over, with 50 acres (20 ha) being given to the servant once his/her indenture had expired. Most of the indentured servants that migrated to Pennsylvania at this time had some form of acquaintanceship with their masters. In turn, many of the contracts established between the masters and servants were oral and based upon certain "customs" of the home country. In addition, "immigrants in bondage" were "criminals" in England. This could mean a great many things. Many were non-conformists, had problems with the church, or had committed an offense as small as stealing a loaf of bread. In colonial and early-republican Pennsylvania, statutes governing the institution established both protections for and restrictions upon indentured servants. While masters could not wield unlimited authority over their servants, the latter was nevertheless subject to various constraints upon their freedom. In fact, indentured servants essentially bore the status of property. However, while these

Show More
Related

  • Slavery and Servants in 1800s Pennsylvania

    574 Words  | 2 Pages

    By the 18th century, Pennsylvania was becoming home for American Development. Many people that were drawn to Pennsylvania were servants whether, for sometimes 4 years or however long, it took to pay off debt for their travel across the Atlantic. If they weren’t servant, they were slaves who almost had no chance of freedom. Servants had a chance to become free after paying off their debts with work, but not the same for slaves.

    Read More

  • Chesapeake And New England Colony Dbq

    1129 Words  | 3 Pages

    While the Protestant Revolution raged in Europe, Catholics and other radicals were fleeing to the New World to find religious freedom and to escape prosecution. Because of this, the northern colonies became more family and religiously orientated as the families of the pilgrims settled there. From the Ship’s List of Emigrants Bound for New England we see that six families on board made up sixty nine of the ships passengers (B). Not only did families tend to move to New England, but whole congregations made the journey to find a place where they could set up “a city upon a hill”, and become an example to all who follow to live by as John Winthrop put it to his Puritan followers (A). Contrastingly, the Chesapeake colonies only had profit in their mind, which pushed them to become agriculturally advanced. Since Virginia, one of the Chesapeake colonies, was first settled with the intention of becoming an economic power house, it was mainly inhabited by working-class, single men. The average age of a man leaving for the Americas was only twenty two and a half years old according to the Ship’s List of Emigrants bound for Virginia (C). The harsh conditions of the colony did not appeal to those who wished to settle with a family. Added on to that was the fact that the average lifespan in the Chesapeake colonies was a full ten years or more shorter than that in other more desirable living quarters to the north.

    Read More

  • Why Thomas Hellier Was An Indentured Servant

    540 Words  | 2 Pages

    Even if the ill-treatments did not manifest into physical or verbal abuse, the servants were exposed to crude surroundings. Among many factors included being malnourished, sleep deprivation, and/or overburden with hard manual labor. The indentured servants were treated like property instead of hard-working human beings. They could be bought and sold at any time.

    Read More

  • Three Old Worlds 1492

    1228 Words  | 3 Pages

    This chapter, “Three Old Worlds Create a New, 1492 – 1600,” covers the social, political and economic events that occurred in the worlds that made up America between 1492 and 1600. This chapter explores the history of the small societies that became the United States in broad contest of European exploration and exploitation. There existed conflicts between European kingdoms and this led to interest in colonies that strengthened the emerging nations. The curiosity of Europeans helped introduce them to African and American societies that had evolved over the centuries. The social and cultural collisions of these worlds changed and profoundly influenced Western history.

    Read More

  • A Comparison Of The New England And The Chesapeake Bay Colonies

    980 Words  | 2 Pages

    During the 1700's, people in the American colonies lived in very distinctive societies. While some colonists led hard lives, others were healthy and prosperous. The two groups who showed these differences were the colonists of the New England and Chesapeake Bay areas. The differentiating characteristics among the Chesapeake and New England colonies developed due to economy, religion, and motives for colonial expansion. The colonists of the New England area possessed a very happy and healthy life. This high way of living was due in part to better farming, a healthier environment, and a high rate of production because of more factories. The colonists of the Chesapeake Bay region, on the other hand, led harder lives compared to that of the colonists of New England. The Chesapeake Bay had an unhealthy environment, bad eating diets, and intolerable labor.

    Read More

  • Social Differences Between North And South Colonies

    627 Words  | 2 Pages

    It was not until the 1700s that the thirteen colonies finally started to flourish on their own. The east coast of North America was soon booming with success. But the Northern and Southern colonies’ did not take exactly the same routes in order to reach success. The Southern and Northern colonies began to show similarities in immigration and social structure and began to show differences in their economy.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast The Thirteen Colonies

    1142 Words  | 3 Pages

    The thirteen colonies are extremely important to America’s history. Many of the colonists came for similar reasons such as new opportunities, wealth, and religious freedom. Despite these similarities, there are a few distinct differences between each colony. These differences are the factors that make it or break it when deciding which colony I would have chosen to live in back then.

    Read More

  • The Decline of Indentures Servitude

    775 Words  | 2 Pages

    The decline of indentured servitude and the rise of chattel slavery were caused by economic factors of the English settlers in the late 17th century. Colonists continually tried to allure laborers to the colony. The head right system was to give the indentured servant a method of becoming independent after a number of years of service. Colonists chiefly relied on Indentured Servitude, in order to facilitate their need for labor. The decreasing population combined with a need for a labor force, led colonists to believe that African slaves were the most efficient way to acquire a labor force that would satisfy their needs.

    Read More

  • The Plagues of Colonial Life

    1018 Words  | 3 Pages

    Colonial living in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in the New World was both diverse and, in many cases, proved deadly through such avenues as disease, Native American attacks, a lack of proper medical treatment, and disastrous weather conditions. Even through all of these hardships, the first colonists persevered, doing their best to see the blessings in their lives and create a better life for their children through all of the uncertainties. Nothing, it seems, in the original colonies was set in stone except for the fact that they never knew what the next day would hold in store. Everything, even small mishaps, had dramatic impacts on the social, economic, and political aspects of their lives. These circumstances, however, were more strongly influenced by geography than class position, unlike what many were used to in England. How population, economics, disease, and climate played into the social conditions of early colonists is truly a story for the ages. Whether people were seeking land, religious freedom, or money and profits, everyone worked to a certain extent just to survive, let alone thrive, in the wilderness that was North America at that time.

    Read More

  • The Role Of Indentured Servants In The 1700s

    1519 Words  | 4 Pages

    The role of an indentured servant in the 1700s was not a glamorous one. They came to the New World knowing that, for a time, they would be slaves for someone they did not know and the risk of disease and death was high, but the opportunity that laid ahead of them after their time of servitude was worth everything to these settlers of the New World. They came to America for the same reasons as all of the other settlers. Religious freedom, land, wealth, and a new start were motives for both settlers and indentured servants but the one thing separating most settlers from the indentured servants was that they could afford their voyage across the Atlantic Ocean. Indentured servants couldn’t buy their ticket to the New World, but that didn’t stop

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast William Bradford And John Winthrop

    1118 Words  | 3 Pages

    Often when looking at American history, people tend to lump all the characters and actors involved as similar. This is especially the case in regards to Early American Colonial history. Because the Puritan communities that grew rapidly after John Winthrop’s arrival in 1630 often overshadow the earlier colony at Plymouth, many are lead to assume that all settlers acted in similar ways with regard to land use, religion, and law. By analyzing the writings of William Bradford and John Winthrop, one begins to see differing pictures of colonization in New England.

    Read More

  • the development of slavery in America

    1202 Words  | 3 Pages

    Indentured Servants helped the colonies progress their population. England at the time was over populated, and jobs were hard to find. So many people that could not afford the boat trip over to America offered themselves as to be an indentured servant for a period of time. This contractual term can last from between four to seven years. Many colonists preferred having indentured servants over slaves, cause they also helped ward off Native Americans from attacking settlers. The one big draw back of indentured servant was that they usually did not make it pass the first year of their contract.

    Read More

  • How The 1700s Changed North American Society

    919 Words  | 2 Pages

    In bucolic areas, almost every person produced crops. Budgetary status was resolved by how much land was owned and how good that land was. Workers were at the bottom of the social class, aiding at the docks by unloading shipments usually filled with wheat or corn. Most of these workers were African Americans who were either free or coerced. England’s lower class was attracted to the thought of work because it would provide them with home and food. These workers in the lower class were called indentured servants. Since farmers and merchants often needed aid to meet the demands of the region, many people decided to be involved in a contract that would make them work for those farmers and merchants. Once the contract was fulfilled, the servants were “free” and most eventually become merchants and farmers themselves. In the middle class were the farmers. Families of the middle class often increased production by trading goods or labor with each other. Government officials provided blotches of land for white men who were not indentured servants to support themselves and their families. Located in the high class of New England colonies were the politicians and merchants. The politicians were known for handing out land to the men who weren’t immorally confined in order to become self-sufficient. Numerous New Englanders participated in an advanced arrangement of exchange which

    Read More

  • Indentured Servants In America

    214 Words  | 1 Pages

    misery in no less than 32 children in our ship, all of whom were thrown into the sea.” (Gottlieb Mittelberger, Journey to Pennsylvania in the Year 1750). Once the indentured servants arrived to their destination, they would sign a contract in agreement to serve their designated master. There was no relationship between a master and a servant. It was in agreement that the servant would work

    Read More

  • Life in the 1700's

    1019 Words  | 3 Pages

    Everyday life in the United States is very different today than it was in the 1700's. Life was harder and the settlers did not have nearly as many luxuries as society has today. Some aspects of the colonial times that were different then are today include family, employment, and social activities. Life in the United States in the 1700's was filled with hard work, cooperation, and dedication to one’s land and family.

    Read More

More about The Passage Of Manufactured Pilgrims Rhetorical Analysis

Open Document