On September 9, 1739, as many as one hundred African and African American slaves were living within twenty miles of Charleston, South Carolina. This rebellious group of slaves joined forces to strike down white plantation and business owners in an attempt to march in numbers towards St. Augustine, Florida where the Spanish could hopefully grant their freedom. During the violent march toward Florida, the Stono Rebellion took the lives of more than sixty whites and thirty slaves. Ranking as South Carolina’s largest slave revolt in colonial America, Peter Charles Hoffer, a historian at the University of Georgia and author of Cry Liberty: The Great Stono River Slave Rebellion of 1739 tries to reinterpret the Stono Rebellion and challenges the reader to visualize what really went on to be a bloody uprising story in American History. Reconstructing the Stono Rebellion is not an easy task, but through meticulous recreation and hard work, Hoffer enables the reader to see through the eyes of whites and slaves. Hoffer grabs ahold of the reader and brings them back to 1739, to visualize how slaves fought to great depths against the British colonies of North America and white plantation owners in hope of reaching freedom in Spanish Florida. Hoffer’s book exists by means of beliefs and values in history as it is a modification of Stono through what he has gathered, and it vividly draws together historian works of art. Cry Liberty is different, however, as Hoffer’s argument in the novel is not the same as historians and South Carolinian officials who have written this story before him. Previous writers have told the basic story of Stono, where they believe this story is true but the slaves had the whole rebellion planned out and ready to exe... ... middle of paper ... ...r’s book, Cry Liberty may not be the most effective for teaching undergraduates in an introductory course. Hoffer shows the way that history is contested and constructed as an argument-based discipline. This book is also meaty enough to provide good grist for courses focused on historical methods or on historical memory. Hoffer did a nice job fitting so much history into 126 pages. As a result of Cry Liberty and the daring rebellion from so many brave slaves this book paints a visual art in the minds of those who pick this book up. Not only does Hoffer bring us back to the year 1739, he brought me back in time and I felt as if I was one of the slaves marching down Pon Pon street in hopes to make it to Spanish Florida to be set free. I enjoyed the historical adventure and the significant events that lead to what we know now as The Great Stono River Slave Rebellion.
Could the majority become the minority? Peter Wood’s Black Majority is a historical book about the rising African population to colonial South Carolina between 1670 and the Stono Rebellion of 1739. He examines how this majority affected the still maturing Colony and how the rise of slavery boosted the economy. Wood argues that Negroes were the majority of the population in South Carolina and the backbone to the economy despite what other historical works say about slavery. The novel illustrates the South Carolina colony being shaped more by the numerical majority rather than the minority, the Englishmen, who had a greater power in the social structure of the colony. Wood’s emphases three main ideas throughout the book to describe how the population
A black slave had entered the State of South Carolina earlier and had incited a small but effective rebellion ...
There are many contradictions pertaining to slavery, which lasted for approximately 245 years. In Woody Holton’s “Black Americans in the Revolutionary Era”, Holton points out the multiple instances where one would find discrepancies that lie in the interests of slaveowners, noble figures, and slaves that lived throughout the United States. Holton exemplifies this hostility in forms of documents that further specify and support his claim.
At first glance, the book “my bondage and my freedom by Frederick Douglass appeared to be extremely dull and frustrating to read. After rereading the book for a second time and paying closer attention to the little details I have realized this is one of the most impressive autobiographies I have read recently. This book possesses one of the most touching stories that I have ever read, and what astonishes me the most about the whole subject is that it's a true story of Douglass' life. “ Douglass does a masterful job of using his own experience to expose the injustice of slavery to the world. As the protagonist he is able to keep the reader interested in himself, and tell the true story of his life. As a narrator he is able to link those experiences to the wider experiences of the nation and all society, exposing the corrupting nature of slavery to the entire nation.”[1] Although this book contributes a great amount of information on the subject of slavery and it is an extremely valuable book, its strengths are overpowered by its flaws. The book is loaded with unnecessary details, flowery metaphors and intense introductory information but this is what makes “My Bondage and My Freedom” unique.
The compelling accounts of Boston King and David George certainly allow the reader to attain a higher degree of respect and sorrow for the slaves of the south during the time of the American Revolution. There is no question that these two slaves, in addition to countless others, suffered much more than any man should ever have to. The daily fear that amounted to chaos in their minds day in and day out are enough to send shivers down ones spine. The risks these men took for their family to acquire freedom certainly should not go unnoticed. One can read and immediately see many distinct similarities in these two accounts of dangerous decisions made by these men to overcome their slavery, but these similarities are, as mentioned, easily spotted.
middle of paper ... ... Although Nat’s expectations were not met, the rebellion injected some sense of slavery and more need for freeing the slaves. In conclusion, this book shows us that slavery is against mankind and all people are equal concerned with the race. Racism has become wide-ranging in many of the countries, mostly in northern Europe and Russia.
This story was set in the deep south were ownership of African Americans was no different than owning a mule. Demonstrates of how the Thirteenth Amendment was intended to free slaves and describes the abolitionist’s efforts. The freedom of African Americans was less a humanitarian act than an economic one. There was a battle between the North and South freed slaves from bondage but at a certain cost. While a few good men prophesied the African Americans were created equal by God’s hands, the movement to free African Americans gained momentum spirited by economic and technological innovations such as the export, import, railroad, finance, and the North’s desire for more caucasian immigrants to join America’s workforce to improve our evolving nation. The inspiration for world power that freed slaves and gave them initial victory of a vote with passage of the Fifteenth Amendment. A huge part of this story follows the evolution of the passage of the Fourteenth Amendment more acts for civil rights.
To understand the desperation of wanting to obtain freedom at any cost, it is necessary to take a look into what the conditions and lives were like of slaves. It is no secret that African-American slaves received cruel and inhumane treatment. Although she wrote of the horrific afflictions experienced by slaves, Linda Brent said, “No pen can give adequate description of the all-pervading corruption produced by slavery." The life of a slave was never a satisfactory one, but it all depended on the plantation that one lived on and the mast...
After reading Frederick Douglass’s narrative of slavery, I couldn’t help but stop and try to gather my thoughts in any way possible. It was not the first time I had read the narrative, but this time around Douglass’s words hit me much harder. Perhaps, it was that I read the narrative in a more critical lens, or possibly it was just that I am older and more mature now from the last time I read it, but whatever the reason, I can confidently say reading the narrative has changed my heart and opened my eyes in many ways. I have always been aware of the injustices that slavery encompassed and of course like many other people, I have been taught about slavery in a historical narrative my entire life. But, Frederick Douglass’s narrative does more than just provide a historical perspective in seeing the injustices in slavery. His narrative asks the reader to look directly into the eyes of actual slaves and realize their very heart beat and existence as humans. Douglass humanizes the people of whom the terrible acts we acted upon that we learn about as early as elementary school. It is because of this that I decided to write this poem. Reading the narrative made me really think about Douglass’s journey and the story he tells on his road to freedom. I felt as if he was really speaking to me and, and in turn I wanted to give Douglass a voice in my own writing.
Frederick Douglas’s 1852 short story, “The Heroic Slave”, was loosely based the true story of a slave rebellion that occurred on the American ship named Creole. Divided into four parts, the plot of this story follows a slave named Madison Washington, who would eventually be the leader of the story. At the start of the short story, a “northern traveller” named Mr. Listwell saw and overheard Washington in a field. As Mr. Listwell observes him, Washington is performing a soliloquy, in which he verbalizes his wishes of gaining freedom (Douglass 174-182). In part two, Washington acts upon his grievances and finally escapes from bondage. Coincidentally, he arrives at the home of the same traveller who eavesdropped
On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass, an African-American ex-slave and abolitionist, delivered a speech in Rochester, New York at the city’s annual Fourth of July Celebration, to the citizens of Rochester. Allowing the people of Rochester only a day to immerse in the “patriotic” festivities of the Fourth of July, Douglass’ “What to the Slave is the 4th of July?” challenges American ideals such as liberty, equality and justice, by providing arguments that examine the religious, moral and constitutional principles that the American people claim to abide by and glorify. Through rhetorical strategies such as repetition, pathos and logos, Douglass exposes the paradoxical nature of the Fourth of July.
In Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, a slave narrative published in 1845, Frederick Douglass divulged his past as a slave and presented a multifaceted argument against slavery in the United States. Douglass built his argument with endless anecdotes and colorful figurative language. He attempted to familiarize the naïve Northerners with the hardships of slavery and negate any misconstrued ideas that would prolong slavery’s existence in American homes. Particularly in chapter seven, Douglass both narrated his personal experience of learning to write and identified the benefits and consequences of being an educated slave.
In, “The Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass”, readers get a first person perspective on slavery in the South before the Civil War. The author, Frederick Douglass, taught himself how to read and write, and was able to share his story to show the evils of slavery, not only in regard to the slaves, but with regard to masters, as well. Throughout Douglass’ autobiography, he shares his disgust with how slavery would corrupt people and change their whole entire persona. He uses ethos, logos, and pathos to help establish his credibility, and enlighten his readers about what changes needed to be made.
Despite each individual having different circumstances in which they experienced regarding the institution of slavery, both were inspired to take part in the abolitionist movement due to the injustices they witnessed. The result is two very compelling and diverse works that attack the institution of slavery and argue against the reasons the pro-slavery individuals use to justify the slavery
The Stono Rebellion of 1739 in many ways can be classified as a mini American Revolution. Instead of Royalists versus Patriots, we have rebellious slaves versus just about everyone else. It’s hard to pinpoint the exact causes but through different accounts and documents we can deduce what or who may have caused the revolt. Based on my previous analysis, I suspected that Spanish influence was at fault but after discovering more accounts I believe it was a combination of outside influence along with lenient regulations that helped raise awareness from slaves. The incident at Stono holds a significant place in American history, just like the American Revolution, there were victims being oppressed, obstacles in obtaining equality and triumph that led to a contemporary way of handling the situation.