Essay On Slavery And Family

Imagine living a normal life, when suddenly a group of peculiar figures jump out of nowhere and kidnap you; the next thing you know is that you’re on a plantation thousands of miles away from your family. The pure torture that the slaves were faced with every single day made life almost unbearable, while their owners drilled the ideology of slaves being equal to property into society. However, being away from your family and friends was easily the worst part of slavery. Children were often separated from their parents and families were torn apart all over the United States. Despite all of the inhuman torment, the worthless mindset, and of course the depressing anguish felt by the victims, slavery was still thought of as an acceptable way of

work at the time.
The treatment of some slaves were often brutal and unnecessary. “Slaveholders punished slaves through whipping, shackling, hanging, beating, burning, mutilation, branding, and imprisonment” (Boundless). Because the punishments were so harsh, most would believe that these beatings were only reserved for the extremely misbehaved and almost criminal slaves. Yet most of the abuse was handed out for trivial mistakes, such as simply taking a small break from the demanding toil on the fields. Even beneficial work was rewarded with discipline. Alex Haley, the author of Roots, a book that tells the tale of many generation of an African family, shows that no matter what you do, punishments will be waiting: “Is this how you repay my goodness--with badness?” cried the boy. “Of course,” said the crocodile out of the corner of his mouth. “That is the way of the world.” (Haley 429). Women were often raped and children were born into slavery, effectively securing their place in a life of misery and misfortune (Boundless). Those that would try to escape their living nightmare would immediately be punished to an extreme extent. A plantation owner can be quoted from his diary, recording “1-22-11: A slave “pretends to be sick.” I put a branding iron on the place he claimed of and put the bit on him” (Byrd). Those that tried to run away had portions of their foot and legs caught off to prevent them from trying again. All in all, over 10 million slaves were brought over to the United States and millions more were born and raised (History). By persevering through hard labor and evil treatment, the slaves were able to survive.
Aside from the physical pains of being a slave, most faced mental blocks as well. Because of the increasing number of slaves in the South, many became thrown aside like trash. Human beings were sold on auction blocks, branded like animals, and even killed just because they became too weak to work. Slaves were often expected to be cheerful, yet after years of both physical and mental abuse, nobody can have a positive outlook on life. They were looked down upon as depressed, uncontrolled, and incompetent. Slaves were also vulnerable to post-traumatic stress syndrome after all the agony that they were forced to go through; as the slaves carried the weight of fear and pain on their shoulders, plantation owners would laugh and enjoy every second of the torturing that they ordered out (Painter). Some owners even played a long-term cruelty game with their slaves. Pretending to be nice at first, and then tormenting them, essentially breaking their will and leaving them unable to trust anybody. In Roots, an example of this tactic is showed when Kunta, talks to one of the older slaves: “He meant you no harm?" said Omoro. "He acted very friendly," said the old man, "but the cat always eats the mouse it plays with” (Haley 278). However, despite all the mental pain from abuse and trauma, perhaps the most painful factor of being a slave is the fact that a child may never see his mother ever again, or an older brother being separated from a younger sister.
Family is the most important aspect to life as a human being.

It a major key in the success of cultures and often shows the roots of everybody’s beginnings. As they sprout and begin to grow into an individual, people are always grounded by their family. In the beginning of Roots, family can be seen everywhere, and is regarded as the one thing point that keeps everything in the village together, “Through this flesh, which is us, we are you, and you are us!” (Haley 56). Slavery then took the idea of family, and then butchered it in front of society. Families were disregarded when slaves were divided or sold onto plantation; some owners would purposely try to separate them because they didn’t want their slaves to be distracted when working, “Family separation through sale was a constant threat” (Williams). By removing the basis of family, slavery dehumanized millions of people. For some slaves, the only thing that kept them going was the hope that they may one day be reunited with their families. Unfortunately, this was not a common result as fathers and mothers were often sold and never see their children again. The fear of separation haunted families who were together and terrorized those that were faced with the split. In the end, even though the physical and mental pain of being a slave ravaged their spirits, the fact that they might never see their loved one again was the cruelest part of being a

slave.
Although slavery was used all across the United States, it remains as one of the worst things to happen to mankind. As owners abused their property, the physical pain and the mental suffering felt by the slaves are unimaginable. The loss of family drove the sadness into the lives of millions as they struggled to survive in the fight with slavery. Slavery in the United States and the rest of the new world tarnished the reputation of all humanity.