From the perspective of the hero’s journey, education and the gospel were Nat Turners call to adventure. It is inspiring that from a young age Nat Turner was given the opportunity of education. That should be admired because at the time it was perfectly legal for slaves to be able to read and write, but not all slaves were given the opportunity to get an education, because many slave owners would not allow it. Turner took the education he received and turned his attention to the word of God. The word of God would go onto play a significant role in Tuners life. This allowed for him to travel from plantation to plantation preaching the gospel to other slaves from nearby plantations.
Leading to the second part of the hero’s journey help from
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a supernatural aid. “I surely would be a prophet, as the Lord had shewn me things that had happened before my birth.” This would go onto be a very troubling time for Turner having just switched plantations to a newer and less open-minded owner. This caused turner to run away from the plantation in search for his freedom and the promise of a better life. Turner found shelter in the nearby woods when a spirt came to him with a message “The Spirit appeared to me and I had my wishes directed to the things of the world, and not to the kingdom of heaven, and that I should return to the service of my earthly master.” Turner returned to the plantation where things continued to worsen and while working in the field one day Turner has an experience that allowed him to personally make a connection with God, “I heard a loud noise in the heavens, and the spirt instantly appeared to me and said the serpent was loosened, and Christ had laid down the yoke he had borne for the sins of men, and that I should take it on and fight against the serpent.” Turner would go onto take these words to heart and combined with the actions being committed on him daily, something in side of him snapped. Turner realized that if he was to really be the person responsible for standing up against the men who were repressing him and countless other poor souls, he was going to need help. Which leads into the third part of the hero’s journey the helper or in this case helper’s. Turner went on to communicate with fellow slaves about the plans for a future rebellion. However, the plan never reach fruition until Turner witnessed another sign of from God. Unbeknown to Turner the eruption of Mount St. Helens would send smoke into the sky casting a dark shadow and a solar eclipse filled the sky. Turner took this as a sign to follow through with the rebellion, and on August 21, 1831 the rebellion began. The rebellion began sparking the fourth part of the hero’s journey, revelation. Turner rounded together his followers and proceeded with silent and sharp weapons to their owner’s home and proceeded to kill him, his wife, nine-year-old son, and their new born son. Leaving no stone unturned this large-scale rebellion was dead set on putting an end to slavery. After their first stop Turner lead the rebellion from plantation to plantation killing anyone who got in their way regardless of age or gender, and with each stop more and more slaves joined alongside Nat. The actual rebellion only lasted two days and ended in a total body count of sixty men, women, and children. But the price Turner and his followers faced cost more than any of them anticipated. Following the rebellion, the militia captured and killed around fifty slaves. Few of them stood trail and faced executed. The militia weren’t the only ones who sought revenge on the slaves, the number of slaves killed quickly reached nearly over a hundred slaves. Nat Turner was not among those dead. Turner ran for shelter while the backlash of his actions fell on those who followed his footsteps and those he swore he’d stand up for. Turner remained in hiding for the better part of two months. In pure speculation one can only wonder what Turner was thinking during those two months and once again in pure speculation I believe he was wrong.
Turner was always seen a leader and a beacon of hope to slaves who saw him. Maybe they believed that one day they could all have the knowledge Turner had, the education Turner had, and lastly the determination. And for the first time maybe Turner felt he let them down and he was ashamed. Maybe that was Nat Turner’s revelation, that he was wrong.
The hero’s journey for Nat Turner was left unfinished, because while in hiding he was discovered by a farmer. After he was found Turner made no hesitation in turning himself in. Following that he was arrested and taken to the town of Jerusalem, Virginia where he stood trail. After the trail Nat Turner was hanged on November 11, 1831.
Transformation is the fifth part in the hero’s journey. Turner never reached that step, and no one can really tell what he would have done and how he would have transformed after the rebellion because he was never given the option to. Not that he should have had the option. What Nat Turner did was unforgiveable. However, the transformation that took place after the rebellion left the slaves in heavier shackles then ever before. Slaves were now faced with a new law of not being allowed to read, making it harder for them to obtain any kind of education. Making it the transformation neither Turner or the slaves
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wanted. The final part of the hero’s journey is the return.
Nat Turner can never return to earth; however, his story lives on in classrooms, novels, and cinema. It is easy to analyze what the man did wrong and it is easy to see the things he did right. Which is what makes him such a controversial topic in US history. People can relate to somebody who is constantly trying to do right in the world and finding ways to live with the same rights and liberties as everybody else. The rebellion in Turner’s eyes was his answer, it may have not been the right answer but it made sense to him. Would Turner go on to regret his decision to follow through with the rebellion? Maybe, maybe not. But it is an explanation the world will never get, and it really doesn’t need it. This was a time when literally almost everyone was making mistakes, it felt right to them. They had reasons to do what they did. For slave owners it was a way of life, and it is all they knew, it doesn’t make it right. But it happened. And we live in a time now when past historical figures who once had a sparkling reputation are being torn down because they were slave owners, and to many people those historical figures are no longer viewed as heroes. And neither should Nat
Turner. Nat Turner was an educated man who lived by the word of God. He shared that word everywhere he went and became something of a role model to fellow slaves. Turner was a man who knew what he believed in and he stood by it right or wrong. He inspired hope and when his followers needed him most he disappeared and left them to their own devices. Turner tried to save himself when he could no longer look after the lives of others. He was a victim of circumstance who meant well but ended up causing more harm. Nat Turner should not be considered a hero like he is commended for being, instead, he should be seen as another troubled victim in the cast of characters that surrounded such a dark time in America’s history.
Born into slavery, Nat Turner was perhaps one exception to the rule; he was a master's worst nightmare come true. Nat Turner was not only an intelligent man, he knew how to read and write; but he was also determined, willing to go to tremendous measures to gain his freedom, even if it meant killing. He was liked by both the whites and fellow slaves, some of whom came to think of him as a prophet, a savior of slaves.
...y afraid at first but finds out that there are many ex-slaves willing to take a stand and risk their lives to help their own. Douglass realizes that with the help from the ex-slaves he could also help his fellow slaves.
Douglass and Thoreau both felt as though the government as well as society turned a blind eye to the mistreatment of human beings, especially during slavery. He saw freedom being celebrated, but it just reminded him of how so many were willing to continue on not dealing with all of the wrong that had taken place. Regardless of what he saw before him, he refused to forget. Douglass felt that “to forget them, to pass lightly over their wrongs, and to chime in with the popular theme, would be treason most scandalous and shocking,”. Instead, he chose to deal with the subject of American Slavery, in which he brought out the idea of individuals supporting what was wrong rather than what was
It was a remarkable articulation of the Black people voice living in the United States of America at that point of time because Black people were going through too much humiliation on physical and moral levels (Andrews, 1991, p.46). In order to get to the gist of the speech and reveal the emotional resonance it creates, a historical background timeline needs to be sketched. The period of the 1850s in the USA was especially tough for slaves due to several significant events that happened within this period of time. First of all, there was the Nashville Convention held on June 3, 1850, the goal of which was to protect the rights of slaveholders and extend the dividing line northwards. September 18 of the same year brought the Fugitive Slave Act, according to which the slave who managed to escape from his owner to the free state was to be caught and later returned back with all the consequences to follow.... ...
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.
Education is a privilege. The knowledge gained through education enables an individual’s potential to be optimally utilized owing to training of the human mind, and enlarge their view over the world. Both “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” by Frederick Douglass himself and “Old Times on the Mississippi” by Mark Twain explore the idea of education. The two autobiographies are extremely different; one was written by a former slave, while the other was written by a white man. Hence, it is to be expected that both men had had different motivations to get an education, and different processes of acquiring education. Their results of education, however, were fairly similar.
Literacy plays an important part in helping Douglass achieve his freedom. Learning to read and write enlightened his mind to the injustice of slavery; it kindled in his heart longings for liberty. Douglass’s skills proved instrumental in his attempts of escape and afterwards in his mission as a spokesman against slavery.
..., and continued to fight for what he wanted in life; which was his freedom. As the narrator of the story, he presents himself as a very reasonable man. He allows himself to see both sides to any issue throughout his story, and he was always able to share his thoughts and deep feeling. I believe that with the more hardships that Douglass was faced with, the stronger he became as a man. Douglass stated, “Sincerely and earnestly hoping that this little book may do something toward throwing light on the American slave system, and hastening the glad day of deliverance to the millions of my brethren in bonds- faithfully relying upon the power of truth, love, and justice, for success in my humble efforts- and solemnly pledging my self anew to the sacred cause, - I subscribe myself” (Douglass). There was no better person to tell his story, then Frederick Douglass himself.
When the Nat Turner rebellion occurred, Gray had to have realized how big this story was. Not only had one of the biggest slave rebellions in American history just occurred, but also the authorities had the main instigator alive in a prison cell. Gray probably realized controversy would erupt over what Turner had to say, and so he left for Jerusalem, Virginia right away to interview Turn... ... middle of paper ... ... acts of the number dead are hard to change.
Nat Turner's belief that he was a mystic, born for some great purpose; a spiritual savior, chosen to lead Black slaves to freedom, justified his bloody rebellion against slave owners in Virginia. His actions did not so much spring from the fact that members of his family had been beaten, separated or sold, but rather from his own deep sense of freedom spoken in the Bible. From the time Nat Turner was four-years-old, he had been recognized as intelligent, able to understand beyond his years. He continued to search for religious truth and began to have visions or signs of being called by God. By the time Nat Turner reached manhood, the path his life would take was clear; his destiny would be to bring his fellow slaves out of bondage.
When first introduced to Douglass and his story, we find him to be a young slave boy filled with information about those around him. Not only does he speak from the view point of an observer, but he speaks of many typical stereotypes in the slave life. At this point in his life, Frederick is inexperienced and knows nothing of the pleasures of things such as reading, writing, or even the rights everyone should be entitled to. Douglass knowing hardly anything of his family, their whereabouts, or his background, seems to be equivalent to the many other slaves at the time. As a child Frederick Douglass sees the injustices around him and observes them, yet as the story continues we begin to see a change.
...would encounter numerous trails and tribulations that would affect their ancestors for years to come. As some stories show these jobs as slaves proposed to be very difficult. Some miracles occurred for individuals like Frederick Douglass who gained their freedom and evolved into an incredibly powerful individual that could read, write, and speak about all of the troubles as a slave. The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass shows us that there are many stories to be told behind slavery that played a drastic role in the lives of slaves, the culture of slavery as well as the psychological struggles.
In conclusion, Frederick used these key points in his narrative to attack the institution of slavery. The speeches he made using these points to white abolitionist astonished them because they did not imagine a slave had the mind capacity to speak this well. By doing so, Frederick Douglass became the outspoken leader for slaves in the abolitionist movement.
...ue to his talents as an orator and a writer. All this overwhelming attention put him at high risk. Douglass went to England where he continued to fight for the cause; because he was afraid his old master would reclaim him and return him to enslavement. He was eventually allowed to return to the United States because some fellow abolitionist bought his freedom. He started writing an anti-slavery newspaper known as the North Star. It got this name because whenever slaves would escape they would follow the North Star, which they knew if they followed it would lead them to freedom. Douglass served as an example to all who doubted the ability of African Americans to function as free citizens.
The text is a poem called “Remembering Nat Turner”, written by Sterling Allen Brown. The poem is about an African American who walks the route of the slave rebellion of 1831, where he is given impressions about the rebellion from black and white people. The poem is a part of his first collection called Southern Road, which was first published in 1932. The original reader of Sterling Brown’s Southern Road.