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Essays on the atlantic slave trade
The atlantic slave trade 1450-1750
Critically Analyse the Atlantic slave trade
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In the “Interpretive Essay”, Kenneth Banks discuses the consequences of the Atlantic slave trade. The negative effects on the Africans due to the Atlantic slave trade range from the influence on Africans societies and warfare, inhumane and atrocious living and working conditions, decrease of their population, and the long-term impact of bigotry. During the Atlantic save trade’s peak, the movement to abolish slavery started because it went against certain religious beliefs, several thinkers saw it as inefficient, and was unethical. The question is why did the effort to stop the Atlantic slave trade occur when it was benefiting the European economy the most. The Baptists, Methodists, Anglicans, Quakers, and thinkers were those would mainly
aided these efforts. The idea was to work to stop the slave trade and not slavery because thinkers thought as the slave trade ends slavery will fall after. The treatment towards the slaves and the concept of slavery contradicted with religious beliefs. It embarrassed the Methodists and Baptists. Two major cases that were publicized brought the attention of the masses. The first was the case of James Somerset whom did not want to return to his master. The second was the case where a captain of a ship carrying slaves to the Americas threw around a hundred sick slaves overboard to profit by collecting insurance money. The African populations decreased due to the mortality rates during the voyage that were one to six and deaths and while working in “harsh and deadly” (Banks, 162) conditions. These harsh conditions included fields containing poisonous animals and dangerous working equipment. Cases such as these were published in newspapers to show how inhumane the slave trade was. Thinkers such as Adam Smith thought of the slave trade as inefficient. The abolishment of slavery occurred around four centuries after the start of the Atlantic Slave trade. However, due to the great profits of slavery, slavery continued illegally. Even though the abolishment of slavery was in the nineteenth century, a large number of societies are still faced with discrimination and inequality amongst the black race.
The Tran-Atlantic slave exchange established the framework for present day entrepreneurship, creating riches for business endeavors in American and Europe society. The exchange added to the industrialization of a numerous continents’ surrounding the Atlantic area. Several of the areas where located in northwestern Europe, also the western part of Europe, the North, and South, and the Caribbean Islands. According to assign readings and observing other resources providing, the slave trade revealed deceptive inequity toward the people in America and European. There was other culture considered besides black that was residing within the domains of these state and continents. If an individual was not considering white, it is believed that the
Slavery was a dominant part of the political and social arenas of 1800’s America. However, it was not homogenous as it divided America into two distinct groups: those who supported it and those who did not. Traditionally, the states in the north had been anti-slavery while the states in the south had been pro-slavery. Southern life and economy depended on slavery and therefore staunchly supported the continued legal status of slavery. The northern states on the other hand recognized the inhumane nature of slavery and campaigned to establish equality for all citizens. In order to establish solid reasoning for their stance, both pro-slave and anti-slave groups turned to theological inspiration for their actions. The Bible inspired both pro-slavery advocates and anti-slavery abolitionists alike. Religion was used in order to justify slavery and also to condemn it.
Since the beginning of slavery in the America, Africans have been deemed inferior to the whites whom exploited the Atlantic slave trade. Africans were exported and shipped in droves to the Americas for the sole purpose of enriching the lives of other races with slave labor. These Africans were sold like livestock and forced into a life of servitude once they became the “property” of others. As the United States expanded westward, the desire to cultivate new land increased the need for more slaves. The treatment of slaves was dependent upon the region because different crops required differing needs for cultivation. Slaves in the Cotton South, concluded traveler Frederick Law Olmsted, worked “much harder and more unremittingly” than those in the tobacco regions.1 Since the birth of America and throughout its expansion, African Americans have been fighting an uphill battle to achieve freedom and some semblance of equality. While African Americans were confronted with their inferior status during the domestic slave trade, when performing their tasks, and even after they were set free, they still made great strides in their quest for equality during the nineteenth century.
When the Atlantic slave trade began in the 16th century, a new era of agriculture, trade, economic strength, and discrimination began. It touched lives of many millions of people in both positive and negative ways. Through the slaves, the plantation owners were able to increase their work rate and their income to build stronger economies for their home countries. The slaves themselves were emotionally traumatized when they were separated from their families to work for cruel owners and as many of their own peoples died next to them. Discrimination and the concept of white superiority began and continues on today, along with the understanding that is is fair for humans to be used as commodities. The Triangular Trade involving the buying and selling of slaves not only affected the people living through that time, such as the owners and slaves, but affected the world as a whole as it has to deal with discrimination and slavery even today.
On the fourth day of International week, Dr. Jay Coughtry delivered a lecture termed, “Reflections on the Atlantic Slave Trade”. Dr. Coughtry emphasized on how the Atlantic slave trade started, who controlled it at different times, and how it made European nations wealthy. For example, he states that the Atlantic Slave Trade was a byproduct of Western Europe’s search for the West Indies. In addition, the Dutch made the first universally accepted currency from the gold found in the mines of the west coast of Africa. He also highlighted how Portugal continued to import slaves to Brazil illegally. Coughtry’s lecture demonstrated how the slave trade affected economies on a global
The changes in African life during the slave trade era form an important element in the economic and technological development of Africa. Although the Atlantic slave trade had a negative effect on both the economy and technology, it is important to understand that slavery was not a new concept to Africa. In fact, internal slavery existed in Africa for many years. Slaves included war captives, the kidnapped, adulterers, and other criminals and outcasts. However, the number of persons held in slavery in Africa, was very small, since no economic or social system had developed for exploiting them (Manning 97). The new system-Atlantic slave trade-became quite different from the early African slavery. The influence of the Atlantic slave trade brought radical changes to the economy of Africa.
This paper will give an analysis of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade explaining the challenges and painful afflictions African peoples had to endure. Revealing the constant struggles of the African during the trade and how it correlates with people in present day society. Additionally, the system also established the World economy by utilizing Africans for stock and exchange.
This class was filled with riveting topics that all had positive and negative impacts on Africa. As in most of the world, slavery, or involuntary human servitude, was practiced across Africa from prehistoric times to the modern era (Wright, 2000). The transatlantic slave trade was beneficial for the Elite Africans that sold the slaves to the Western Europeans because their economy predominantly depended on it. However, this trade left a mark on Africans that no one will ever be able to erase. For many Africans, just remembering that their ancestors were once slaves to another human, is something humiliating and shameful.
The Atlantic Slave Trade that for three centuries caused pain and desolation to the African American people who traveled to the Americas against their own will. Were brought to a land where they would be seen, as slaves. The Atlantic Slave Trade origins and growth were a main part in the building of chattel slavery that was beginning in the United States. Due to Chattel slavery, the American ideologies of white domination and economy were shaped to be one of discrimination and injustice. Ignoring this the Europeans saw this as an expansion of power and meeting the needs of workforce demanded.
In Africa, the place of progeneration for those who traveled the Middle Passage, many of the original non-Christian indigenous beliefs and traditions exist still today. These quasi religions exist in the form of spoken word, handed down through oration often seeing embellishment or modification to fit the unique geographical demand. These beliefs are “spoken through tongue and written in hearts”.
When thinking of slavery, especially through an American perspective, plantations, harsh beatings, and runaway slaves are often what comes to the forefront of thought. What is often overlooked when looking at the history of slavery are the slave ships, which transported the enslaved people away from their homes and their freedom. The slave ship was a hell-like environment that was intended to turn the fighting human spirit, which had only known freedom, to a broken and subdued spirit, not even recognized as human. Human beings were turned into a commodity, justified by the idea that they were being done a favor, further justified by the idea that Europe and North America’s economic prosperity were of more importance than human lives. The slave
During the middle of the 15th century to the end of the 19th century, the transatlantic slave trade initiated which, consisted of the forced migration of millions of people from Africa to the Western Hemisphere. The transatlantic slave is also known as the, Triangular Trade, because it was 3 sided. The voyages that were involved within this triangular trade were, Europe to Africa, Africa to the Americas, and from the Americas back to Europe. Majority of the slaves that were involved in the trade, were often free people who were kidnapped in order to labor for European powers, so they could build their colonies in America. John Bugg, writes a narrative based on the life of Olaudah Equiana, whom was a freeman before being kidnapped into the
Some historians have argued that the abundance of land, a shortage of labor, and demand for colonial good in Europe explains the development of the American slave trade. I agree with this statement because the colonies were expanding, which led to more fields/land/farms needing more laborers. The need for slaves were to aid in the production of crops such as tobacco, also because the people wanted to be able to have workers and not have to pay them. This way they could make more money to either buy more slaves or more land.
Innocent Africans went from free civilians to slaves in a matter of seconds when they got kidnapped by other countries. The slave trade started in the 1500’s. The people from Portuguese were exploring Africa and they kidnapped innocent Africans. As time went on they would keep acquiring people which is why they kept building plantations and getting free labor. The slave trade was one of the biggest deportations in history. The Atlantic Slave Trade was a turning point in history because of the mass European exploitation of Africans. Slaves experienced death and had PTSD due to the very harsh ways they were sent over to where they would perform rigorous labor. Due to this, the labor force completely changed, for example, the encomienda system in South America.
The British had already left slave trade in their Caribbean colonies by 1833 while the French stopped the act in 1848. However, USA, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Brazil still supported slave trade” (Foner, 2011, p. 213). The continuous slave trade meant more blacks were to remain under control of their white masters. Perhaps a countrywide crusade would be the only way for getting the slaves out of such situations. The working conditions were harsh, no pay, and treated like they were lesser beings. The continuous system of coercion and forcing slaves to be submissive involved punitive measures for slaves who were seen as rebellious. The fact that there was no constitution to protect the slaves from such acts worsened the situation.