The Slave Market In Walter Johnson's Soul By Soul

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In Soul By Soul, Walter Johnson describes the slave market and its importance to the antebellum South. Through personal narratives, the reader is able to grasp the horrific treatment that the slaves endured from slave traders and owners. Slaves were given prices based on their size, color, gender, and talents, but more often than not, it was the business of slave trading that gave the wealthy whites purpose. Slave owners and traders bought and sold as many slaves as possible to either keep a respectable reputation or to climb up the social ladder. Earning enough money to buy just one slave gives a new owner hope for a better future. If a man or woman owned a slave, he or she would be viewed as a responsible person compared to one who did not. Buying the first slave was an act of transformation; one was now ready to fully participate in society. He would have an altered persona. For example, prior to being a slave owner, John M. Tibeats was described as …show more content…

While it was true that the need for people was imperative to keep up with the production of crops, slaves quickly became more than that. Slave owners went to extreme measures to build a stronger reputation; their reputation was based on the quantity and quality of their slaves. During a slave transaction, owners would do whatever necessary to make sure the sale goes smoothly. For example, nicer clothes to better the slaves appearance, more food to make them stronger, and multiple exaggerations to deceive a buyer of a potentially damaging past. If a sale went through and it was found that the slave suffered a life deciding injury while in the previous owners care, it was crucial to take the owner in the wrong to court. Showing dominance and manipulation were prominent characteristics of slave owners. Slave owners and traders treated slaves a certain way to give the perception of control over

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