Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Slavery in Colonial America
Read the assigned three articles about slavery in Colonial America. ("Slavery is Justified", "The Conscience of a Slave Trader" and "Stono River Rebellion") Write a blog in response to the following guiding questions: How involved were Africans, themselves, in the slave trade? Describe the point of view of the slave trader. Was their a valid economic basis for slavery in the colonies? What did the behavior of slaves at the Stono Rebellion suggest about the feelings of the slaves and the character of slavery in the colonial south? You must write a minimum of three parargraphs in response to these questions and you must respond to a minimum of two two blogs from your classmates responses. Your blog is due Friday, January, 16 2015.
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ReplyDeleteThe African population from the 1500’s to the 1800’s was treated inhumanly, enslaved and put to work on plantations, forced to grow many goods for trade. The Europeans chose the African people for a few reasons: Their culture, build and being used to hard labor. The African Slave Trade was the largest migration of people in the world. Twelve million moved but only Ten million made it alive. There was a passage that the Europeans used during the African Slave Trade called the Middle Passage for simpler transport. On this middle passage, the treatment of the slaves was horrific and many did not survive the journey. Once in the New World, treatment of the slaves did not get any better. The Slave owner/Slave relationship was not convenient at all. Slaves did contribute to the formation of their own social and religious ways. Many people did believe that slavery was the wrong thing to do to a person and outburst of support opened around the world. This idea of freedom gave the slaves the courage to escape and had ways of doing so. African’s used slavery as a part of their everyday life. When the Europeans arrived overseas in Africa they were intrigued by this idea of slavery.
ReplyDeleteSlavery has been an issue that has chased our history and is still noticeable in present day society. It separated the prejudices developed between races and put forth a basic definition of racism. Slavery has influenced our world in numerous ways including the development of North America, which today is one of the most powerful nations in the world. There are many theories that help explain how the act of slavery could be justified and why it occurred. Slavery was a result of Enlightenment ideals such as the idea of a biologically inferior race, utilitarianism and theories proving the moral justification. Many Slaves did rebel throughout our history, but the Stono Rebellion is probably the largest slave revolt ever staged in the 13 colonies. The end result of the Stono Rebellion was that slave laws became harsher in the Carolinas. The government placed a 10 year moratorium on importing slaves, and banned educational and financial opportunities that had existed for slaves before the uprising.
The Slave traders and Slave owners viewed slavery as an economic necessity. Crops grown in the New World, like sugar, rice, tobacco and cotton were very labor intensive. Rice, actually, was the first crop that used slavery in the US. It was grown in mud along the banks of rivers, and the mud was so soft they couldn't bring horses and other animals on it, so everything had to be done by humans. They also saw it as being good for the blacks, who had a chance to grow up Christian. Work was seen almost as “holy” in those days, so the blacks had a chance to work for the good of their souls. Whites thought that in Africa, they just sat around and ate fruit off trees. The Bible does endorse slavery--both the Old Testament and the New Testament have passages encouraging slaves to be faithful. Slaves represented wealth. You could make a living breeding them! After the Constitution was ratified, they also represented “population” for purposes of congressional district. As a result, Slavers also made the state richer and more powerful.
I thought it was pretty interesting how you displayed your information. You caught my eye by starting off strong with the view of the slave trader. I enjoyed how you used information from all three text in all three of your paragraphs instead of just use one passages info for one paragraph. Though, I you could have added more information about the slaves that were captured in africa and compared it to life in the colonies.
DeleteI like the information you brought and made it relevant towards today view. You did a good job in telling the past history of slavery and showing the real truth. The second paragraph was well written and showed how it has not just affected the US but other countries in the world.
DeleteI was not sure if you agreed or not whether slavery was justified or not. What caught my eye is the point that you made about slavery being in the bible, which a major factor in slavery occurring in colonial America because the colonists were very religious and wanted to follow the word of God. The only problem is the colonists took advantage of the slaves.
DeleteThe new information presented in your post was great and granted more knowledge of slavery. I found it interesting how you traced the results of slavery to the ideas in the Enlightenment. Also, acknowledging the fact slavery is condoned in the Bible is important because in the colonies during the times of slavery, religion and the bible was still a part of everyday life of colonists.
DeleteYou provided a lot of thought-provoking information that I failed to take into account when considering the topic. I like the way you organized your SFI and I really like the SFI that you chose to use. Great job overall!
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ReplyDeleteI thought your post was were informative. The only thing I didn't like was the transition between paragraph two and three, it felt like a surprise to me and didn't really have anything leading to it. You could of said "The slave who survived the trip were eventually sold off to plantations, this lead to numerous rebellions". But thats just my two cents.
DeleteDuring the colonial era slavery was a major issue. Many Africans were treated inhumanly and thousands of deaths occurred. Some of the slave traders saw the pain that the slaves were going through. For example slaves going to a new country and leaving their own. Fear was in their eyes, many jumped overboard and died rather than leaving their homeland. Another point of view was the necessity of slaves for slave traders. To hire a laborer it would cost a lot more than to buy a slave that would last a lifetime. It was an easy way of making a good profit with cheap labor. The fact that the need for labor was so needed in the colonies made it even worse. Many plantations such as rice, sugar cane, tobacco etc. were going on at the time and the planters needed people to work long hours and do hard work. Many whites refused to work and the Indians or identured servants were not an option. So the only option that the colonist had for cheap labor were the Africans. Many people believe that Africans were not involved in slavery as in selling or trading but they are wrong. Africans themselves were involved in the slave trade. According to the text Africans were enslaved in Africa by Africans themselves before they are purchased by the masters of the ships that brought them over to America.
DeleteMany of the slaves that were sold by Africans were prisoners of war. The kings or tribal leaders would sell/trade these prisoners to the colonist and both sides would make a profit. When the Africans were bought they were marked on their chest with the letter of their masters ship. The trip back to america was horrific, many died. The middle passage is a name given to the route that the ships took to transport the Africans. It took over three months to get to the destination and about 25% of the slaves on board died . The slave who survived the trip were eventually sold off to plantations, this lead to numerous rebellions,
There has been numerous rebellions that have occurred in time. The Stono river rebellion for example happened in 1739. This rebellion showed that slaves were fed up with the treatment they were receiving. About 100 slaves stood up, stole weapons and killed numerous white then tried to escape to Florida(freedom). The slaves that stood up didn't really make it far because they were all found and shot on spot. But the point was that they were tired of the way they were being abused and wanted their freedom. Many rebellions happened but the only outcome was that there were stricter slave laws. Slavery has made a dramatic impact in our history. It set up the structure for future societies and the treatment of African Americans
Aida, I really like your essay because it flowed. I agree when you said that slavery had a dramatic impact on our history. We as Americans constantly refer back to those dark times to try to get a better understanding ourselves and racism.
DeleteThe year was 1693, a slave trading ship named Hannibal set sail for West Africa. The captain, Thomas Phillips recorded what he say there. Freshly bought slaves weren't happy to leave their home country. They were ready to starve themselves or throw themselves out to sea and drown. He was given orders to dismember slaves that tried to run or jump so that could make a bigger profit on the way back home or to the colonies, but he couldn't bare the thought of it. He saw them as equals and they were all a work of God's hands.
ReplyDeleteThough the Africans themselves deal in the slave trade business themselves. They traded captured tribes and enslaved them; it was a regular process that happened during war. But to the English, they say this as a opportunity to have cheap indentured servants for life (or as long as the slave lived). Trading the slaves to the English for resources was a far worse fate than staying in Africa. In Africa they had a chance to actually be adopted into the family that owned them, while in the colonies they had a chance to work long hour in the contact with boiling sun.
To the slave traders and slave owners in the colonies, slaves were not just a valid economic basis, but it was a necessary economic basis. This was a way for people to make tons of money on cheap labor. This also allowed the plantation farmers to avoid doing any of the hard work like planting rice, tobacco, indigo, and more. Even the churches in the colonies thought this was a necessary, Reverend Peter Fontaine said "To live in Virginia without slaves is morally impossible". But because of these, this allowed racism to form in the new colonies and also a bounty of rebellions.
In 1739, Stono Rebellion occurred in South Carolina. This happened because the Spanish would free any slave that was able to make it to Florida. Over 60 slaves escaped and joined in on a 9 day rampage killing any white man, woman, and or child. In the end they lost and weren't able to reach Florida. This lead to new laws that gave slave owners even more power over their slaves then before and lowered their chances to be in a group, get a education, and their movement. This proved how badly slaves were treated in the southern colonies and how the slavers were even scared of them because of their large population.
I liked how you precisely informed us about the point of view of a slave trader. Throughout history hundreds of thousands of people have ventured to depict the black person’s struggle and suffering that has transpired with the development of our world. There is, however, no way to precisely depict the feelings and emotions of these people because the majority has never experienced it or let alone even envision the lives that these people were forced to live. I agree to the point that slavery was one of the most dreadful and in human acts ever instilled on a race of people ever in our world's history. People were stolen from their homelands, broken apart from their families, and were thrust into a lifestyle that inhibited their every move and instilled cruel punishments on them. It is almost impossible for many of us to grasp the mindsets that these slave owners possessed, but history paints a truly dreadful and emotional picture for us all to see.
DeleteI like how you presented the information and gave opinions that were backed up by facts in the writing. You showed how the British brought slaves to America and how it was tried to be justified by how well the economy was doing and how there was an economic benefit for the land owners.
DeleteI like how every piece of information you presented was followed up with some piece of evidence, you explained what happened in Stono's Rebellion. I do agree with Saumil when he says that you can't exactly say how the slaves were feeling, of course we can only imagine how they were feeling but we haven't experienced what they went through so it would be false to speak of their emotions.
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DeleteI agree with Welid and Rahwa when they said that every piece of information you gave you had some form of information backing it up. But as far as us depicting how they truly felt isn't quite possible. Saumil really makes a good point in his response to your blog and I totally agree.
DeleteI agree with your opinion on the economic necessity for slavery in the New World. Many slave owners were very dependent on slaves because without them, the economy would process very slowly. I like how you supported your stance with information from the text.
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ReplyDeleteSlavery
ReplyDeleteSlavery was a tradition of harsh labor that brought slaves from Africa that made its way into the colonies. Slavery was a system used for low cost labor that would be used instead of settlers or indentured servants having to perform difficult types of labors in harsh conditions. The south had such a large slave population because of how white servants refused to work in the harsh conditions. This does not justify slavery because of how it belittled a whole race of people based on their skin color and how these people were equal citizens and were put into forced labor.
In September of 1653, a thirty six gun ship sent from England to West Africa. It was lead by Thomas Phillips and he himself felt that slavery was a wrongful act. Thomas Phillips included in his recollection that many officers cut off legs and arms off of wilful slaves to terrify the rest. When he was advised to do the same as the other officers Thomas Phillips himself wrote, “I could not be perswaded to entertain the least thought of it, much less put in practice such barbarity and cruelty to poor creatures…. I can’t think there is any intrinsic value in one colour more than another.” This account shows the reality from even a slave trader and how wrong slavery was. The act of terrifying a people and belittling them because of their skin color isn’t even understandable to even a slave trader.
To justify slavery, there was a latter written from Reverend Peter Fontaine. Reverent peter included in his letter that slavery was necessary for economic reasons and that the slaves were already slaves in Africa so their social status did not change. The argument that the Reverend try to hold was that it was necessary to have a slave so that the settlers themselves don’t have to get exhausted for labor that they can hire a slave for. Reverend Peter also included that the slaves were also slaves in Africa and that they were sold as slaves to be slaves in the colonies. That argument is invalid because of how the slaves were equal citizens in Africa, being able to posses land and being able to marry. The African slave in Africa is equivalent to peasants in Europe, being low in economic status but still having rights as others. For that, the Africans did play a role into the slave trade in the colonies, but the Africans did not know what the Europeans were doing to the slaves in the colonies.
I really like how described Thomas Phillips. I actually thought it was very interesting when Phillips wrote he how could not bring himself to cut off the Africans arms and legs to cause fear. Also how he said that God created Africans so he had to see something valuable about them.
DeleteI agree with your opinion that Reverend Peter's argument was invalid. You supported your opinion well and used SFI strategically to strengthen your position. You summarized well and I enjoyed your descriptions of the events.
DeleteAfrican Americans have been treated horribly during the 1500's. The migration of Africans into the new world was one of the largest. The Middle Passage was the pathway they took into the New World, many did not survive on this voyage. The slaves were brought over because of their skills in farming and other things. Many people knew slavery was wrong and would protest and show other ways of their dislike towards it, this gave slaves the incentive to run away in hope to find better living conditions.
ReplyDeleteGoing deeper than slavery, racism has always been an issue and still is in today' society. Slaves were treated horribly and worked with little to no pay or benefits. They were separated from their family and had horrible living conditions. In 1793 slaves had enough, this date marked Stono's Rebellion. Nearly 60 whites were killed and this was arguably the largest slavery uprise to occur. This only made slavery laws more harsh and privileges such as education were taken away from the slaves.
Some do believe that slavery is/was justifiable. The defenders of slavery included economics, history, religion, legality, social good, and even humanitarianism, all reasons why slavery was humane and necessary. Defenders also argued that once slavery was abolished that the economy had fallen due to the new law. They also argued that the cotton economy would drop and that the tobacco crop would dry in the fields because it wasn't properly being treated. It was also said that slavery had existed throughout history and was the natural state of mankind, meaning it was normal to have someone work for you with little to no pay for hours and if not obeyed beat them to death, that was all normal.
I liked how you informed us about the issues going on today. I also thought that you going deeper into slavery was also very a very creative way of displaying your information.
DeleteI really enjoyed how you went in depth when you were talking about slavery. I agree with you a hundred percent we you mentioned how slaves were treated horribly.
Deleteby the way Stono's Rebellion was on 1739 not 1793
DeleteI disagree with you on the slave's incentive to run away. Slaves simply want what they had before: Freedom. So the incentive to run away would be a chance at freedom. Stono's Rebellion proves this.
DeleteI liked the background information on the African-Americans and the Middle passage, but you could have explained more in detail about the defenders of slavery on economics, history, religion, legality, social good, and humanitarianism. I would have also liked to know who were the people that protested against the establishment of slavery in colonial America.
DeleteDictionary.com defines a slave as “a person who is the property of and wholly subject to another”. This means that a slave is someone who has all their natural rights stripped from them, degraded to that of a domestic animal or utensil, and is another part of another person’s assets. A slave can easily be compared to a computer. When you click something on your computer, but it doesn’t open, do you not click it again and again? When you do this it doesn’t stop the previous command, it simply adds another one. So the computer ends up doing the same action over and over again which could damage it. So in a sense, this hurts the computer. You don’t really care about that. You bought the computer because you needed its services. Why wouldn’t you be angry and try to make it comply if it’s not complying? This is much how the colonists felt toward slaves. They felt that if they didn’t punish the slaves then no work would get done, thus ruining their farm (plantation). Maybe, just maybe, the colonists felt they were forced to do this (ironic, isn’t it).
ReplyDelete弱肉強食 (Jaku Niku Kyou Shoku) is a Japanese phrase meaning that the weak become food for the strong to eat. This phrase best explains what was happening in Africa on a daily basis. Those who lost in battle were seized and put into slavery. A slave in Africa wasn’t really a slave, but more so an indentured servant (since they were given a chance to become a part of the family). The treatment of a slave was changed drastically when Europeans began trading with African kings.
The kings would sell their slaves for European products. The Europeans saw these slaves as a better version of their indentured servants (without the indentured part). They could get the same services as an indentured servants temporary services, but forever. If they were to succeed in making money from their farm, they believed that slaves were needed (especially after Bacon’s Rebellion). In a European’s eyes, the slave was a bargain on a very important asset. In a slave trader’s eyes, a living. For some slave traders, like Thomas Phillips, the slave trade was psychologically painful. Phillips, speaks of being told to cut off the arms and legs of slaves trying to do suicide (mostly by jumping off the ship and drowning themselves), but he says he couldn’t do it because he thought it was too “cruel”. He didn’t understand why they were looked down upon because of their skin color (since this was caused by climate). It seems slaves did not understand this either.
In 1739, the Stono Rebellion occurred in South Carolina. This happened because the slaves wanted freedom and Spanish Florida offered it. Dozens of slaves got their hands on weapons and tried to escape to Florida and they were willing to kill anyone who tried to get in their way. They were eventually stopped. This rebellion led to stricter slave laws which made it harder for slaves to rebel.
Most people believe that slavery is cruel and unjustifiable. They say that no human should have to be treated in the way slaves were treated. Do you not realize that we raise animals, just to eat them? This is simply how nature works. Nature puts the weak under the control of the strong. The colonists were more powerful than the slaves and Stono Rebellion proved that. So, was the colonists justified in how they treated slaves? Let’s ask nature that question.
Since a lot of people took up the same opinion on the matter, I decided to look at it another way. This is a discussion, not an essay review. Instead of commenting on how I posted, you should comment on what I posted and whether or not you agree with my view and why.
DeleteI agree to your view on how the people of the seventeen hundreds developed a theory that if all they worry about is the survival of the fittest, then the selection of a common enemy is a very easy, cheap and effective way of solidifying society.
DeleteThe only choice left to make was deciding which people were inferior to them. It is clear the people of the seventeen hundreds were convinced of their superiority as influenced by these theories ("natural selection, survival of the fittest, social Darwinism"). They believed that the African people’s duty was to serve them because they were biologically inferior race. Because of this perspective the people looked to the theory of utilitarianism to incorporate their ideas into providing for the economy.
I really like your comparison of the slaves to computers. I feel that the simile was used perfectly. I can not say that I agree with your point of view, however I do see where you are coming from.
DeleteYou really sparked a discussion here and wrote from your view and not just facts. It was nice how you were able to incorporate your interests (computers) into the introduction. The comparison of computers and slaves was very true and easy to follow. At the end you made a great point, how many see slavery as inhumane and cruel... Although if you've seen how livestock in mass production today is treated, there's not much a difference. Does "inhumane" only apply to humans and if so are people justified in cruel treatment of any other species, other than humans?
DeleteGreat Question Ci Ci! This is the reason why I like this Japanese phrase so much (弱肉強食). The weak become food for the strong to it. This can also be described as the strong are given the power over the weak. What is "inhumane" is determined by the strong. The weak have no say in this. No matter how morally unjustified an action might seem to the weak, if the strong says it is ok then it is ok. In truth, I do not like the word "inhumane" since the definition is "not human like". Humans are animals. Thats all there is to it. The way the colonists treated the slaves is no different from how a lion treats its prey. So as I said before: Leave the justification part to Nature.
DeleteI wrote "it" but I meant "eat"
DeleteThe comparison of slaves and computers is a great example of how the slaves were treated during the slave trade. I also like how you used other resources to describe your point of view.
DeleteYour post was very intriguing, it made me think. It was interesting how you related the topic to stuff you knew about. (computers, the Japanese phrase.) I also like how you asked questions
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ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteSlavery was a major issue in colonial America during the sixteen hundreds. Africans were usually captured from their homes and dragged on to ships, where they would have to be laying down on the ground due to the amount of space they had. There was not enough room for moving around, so they would take care of their business right there. Due to the conditions, many Africans got sick from the spread of diseases. Some could not handle the fact that they would be working day to night, and jumped overboard taking their own lives. Africans started to fight the horrible slave trade as soon as it began.
During that time, The European demand for New World cash crops had increased. They needed Africans to work for them and fast to produce these crops. Although indentured servitude and Indian enslavement had already been there, the new world came to favor the Africans because they were not only well-suited to tropical climates, but also brought special skills and husbandry knowledge for crops such as rice, which Europeans found useful. They were also forced to grow sugar, tobacco, rice, and cotton. The African slaves were treated very bad and were working in horrible conditions. They were barely paid, fed or clothed. They soon decided that they have had enough.
In 1739, the British colony of South Carolina was startled by the rebellion of a couple African men. The men went and robbed a store, and were now armed. They killed about sixty slave owners. Soon after this happened, the African men reached the Edisto River where white colonists descended upon them, killing most of the rebels. The men who survived were sold off to the West Indies. The rebellion was later known as Stono’s Rebellion. This rebellion only caused the slavery laws to become more harsh and severe. They also had many privileges taken away from them such as education.
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DeleteEvents in history like the Stono Rebellion are very tragic because when you consider how bad these men wanted to be freed and they didn't mind putting everything on the line; you see the passion and desperation slaves had to be free people. Yet, in the end they lost their lives, still had lack of representation, and laws were passed to do the complete opposite of what the rebellion we fighting for.
DeleteYour summary was great. I think that trying to justify slavery is hard to do because it was forced. I think that if people willingly came to work and had some sort of agreement everything would have been much easier and different. Even though the Stono rebellion was aimed to help the Africans it only made their situation worse.
DeleteAfricans were involved in slavery, more than what we want to admit. Africans who were in charge and or kings, captured other Africans who were convicted of crimes. As the punishment to their crime, Africans were forced to become slaves for Western America. Africans did not trade convicted Africans to the Americas for the thrill. The traders traded the Africans in return for gun power and materials not common in their home country. As tobacco became more prevalent in the Americas, the demand for slaves also grew. Africans in substantial numbers were taken from their homelands, and forced into slavery. The African traders were so lost in what they received in return for the slaves, they didn't realize the substantial effects it left on the African homeland. Many of the great teachings and culture in Africa was lost due to slavery.
ReplyDeleteNot only were the African traders in fault for selling slaves for profit, Westerners who purchased the slaves were also in great wrong. Many of the slave owners saw slavery as an economic necessity. As agriculture for tobacco, rice, sugar , and cotton became demanding, many farmers felt as if it would be impossible for them to tend the farms alone. In the beginning, indentured servants were common, but the demand became to much to handle, many indentured servants refused to tend to the fields. This led to conflicts like Bacon's Rebellion to occur, changing the way America viewed indentured servants and caused them to turn to the Atlantic Slave Trade. Since there was no one to tend the fields, the traders had to go against their beliefs and force work on slaves to save face. Rather than going out in the fields to try to do it themselves, they forced slaves to do it for them.
Slaves were thought to be dumb and worthless but those assumptions did not stop some from rebelling. A lot of slaves shared the same feeling of exhaustion and confusion to why they were treated that way. If God loved them so much, why would he allow them to live in such hell every day of their lies? Slaves were furious with their masters and tired of living the life they were living. Some slaves even felt that they had to do something to end the madness. On September 6, 1739, twenty African American slaves felt it was their time to escape. Their intended destination was Florida, where there they would be free. On their way to freedom, the African slaves murdered every white person they could find including slave owners, women, and children. The slaves were soon caught and either killed or sold off to other countries that needed slaves at the time. The aftermath of the rebellion included an act called the Negro Act, that limited the privileges of slaves even more. They were now unable to grow their own foods, assemble in groups, earn their own money, or even learn to read.
From your word choice, it was obvious that you believed that slavery was wrong, yet you contradicted yourself by giving examples of slavery being justified. So I guess I disagree with you when you say slavery is wrong because of the information you provided me.
DeleteAlso, I would like to point out that (saumil said this earlier to Jonathon's post) you can't speak from the slaves point of view and talk about what they felt because you don't know what they felt. Also the colonists didn't see the slaves as worthless. You said it yourself: "Many of the slave owners saw slavery as an economic necessity". The colonists believed that slaves were needed and anything but worthless (since slaves brought a lot of money to the slave owner).
Isn't it a sad reality what some do for wealthy and power? You did a great job explaining the role of African kings and tribal leaders in the Atlantic Slave Trade.
DeleteSlavery is unjustified as they were treated inhumanely and without the respect that they deserved. The slave traders treated the slaves as though they were items. This was shown as the slave traders would mark slaves in the breast, or shoulder with a hot iron as if they were labels. These actions would make slaves consider whether it was worth living or not. They choose the latter by jumping off ships and drowning themselves during the voyage to the Americas. The slaves were stuffed together in tight spaces with barely any room to breathe. This caused slaves to vomit on each other and kill each other as well for survival, resulting in 20% death rate for the slaves. There was racial inferiority between whites and blacks as whites had perceived them as useless and uneducated. Slaves did not want to go to a country that was foreign, but rather stay in their home country.
ReplyDeleteThe treatment of the slaves would come back to bite the colonists in the butt. The slaves had a plan of rebellion, which would go on to become known as the Stono Rebellion. This rebellion was the epitome of the slaves attitude toward their masters. Stono's Rebellion started on the September 9 as the slaves were allowed to work alone that day catching the master by surprise by killing him. Then they took arms and powder and abandoned town killing any white people that they saw in their way in hope of freedom. This was significant as the perspective of the slaves was that all whites are similar to our masters so they must be evil as well.
Before the Stono rebellion there was previous cases of people revolting against their masters whether it was working to slow, faking illnesses, or running away from plantations. These actions showed how much the slaves despised their masters. The relationship between the slaves and the masters was hostile.
Slavery in America was basically a want and not a need. The colonists could have completed the plantation work on their own, but the problem was that they were too lazy. This a problem that Americans continue to struggle with today as they try to find shortcuts to maneuver around obstacles and this is exactly what the colonists did. The colonists made the slaves work for long hours and the work was arduous in the West Indies and Southern colonies. Slaves were not provided with conditions that were not comfortable for them.
I agree with you when you stated slavery was a want not a need. I like how you related it to today's American society and how we tend to look for shortcuts.
DeleteI disagree with you when you say that slavery was a want and not a need. Imagine you are a colonist with 3 acres of land. You are basically saying you can plant, feed, and harvest 3 acres of plants by yourself (that is amazing, I wish i had your work efficiency). The colonists needed slaves because they couldn't do all the work by themselves (they would have used indentured servants but Bacon's Rebellion ruined that).
DeleteIt is interesting that you see similarities between Colonial America and the present day land of the free. I also agree that we are lazy and always looking for shortcuts to maneuver around obstacles.
DeleteI said 3 acres but meant 30 acres
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ReplyDeleteSlaves were not valued, given representation, nor rights during the 1600’s – 1700’s. In the articles, slavery was being presented in three different accounts, although none could justify slavery. There is no justification in stripping your own people from their families and homes to be English colonist’s laborers (reference to the African King) just for European goods, forcing people to provide cheap labor for men whom have no mercy or respect, denying a select group of people representation, and stripping people of their rights. The New Americas were following in the footsteps of the Motherland and must have forgot how it felt to be prisoners in a free land.
ReplyDeletePeople are people; if you were to cut a plantation owner and his slave in the arm they would both bleed blood. If you cut open the plantation owner and slave, you’d see all the same organs. Very discussing scene I painted there, although the point is each man is the same on the inside (biologically), so how can one man decide his worth and power over another. In the article, The Conscience of a Slave Trader, Thomas Phillips came to this realization. He states in the text, “I can’t think there is any intrinsick value in one. colour more than another, nor that white is better than black, only we think so because we are so, and are prone to judge favourably in our own case.” If one man was capable of believing this, I’m sure there was many others. Regardless, these men did not stand for what they believed was right and left the slaves to fend for themselves.
Courageous men in 1739, began the Stono Rebellion in South Carolina. If the men who believed slaves were equal couldn't fight for their rights, it was the slaves who had to. Men had come together to escape to Spanish Florida which gave slaves freedom. They took weapons with them and threatened to kill anyone to who got in their way. They were not successful in making it to Florida and were ultimately killed or sent to be slaves in the West Indies; and laws were passed to buckle down on the slaves and deny their right to education and life outside the plantation out of fear more rebellions will start.
The answer to your question (How can one man decide his worth and power over another?) is that the Strong always (and I mean always) makes the rules. Even in today's society.
DeleteNo matter how many times you say that slavery is wrong and cruel, if the strong says otherwise then you are wrong. Most of the colonists obviously believed that their treatment of the slaves was for the better good, therefore; your opinion would have meant absolutely nothing to them.
DeleteI agree with you 100% slaves may have been garbage compared to the colonists. The colonists wanted to find a way to prove their superiority and they did so by mistreating slaves.
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ReplyDeleteAlthough Europeans were highly involved with the slave trade, Africans were also involved. Africans captured other Africans as war prisoner and sold them to the Europeans to sell as slaves.Regardless of the long term effects of the New World and Africa, they still went ahead and gave Europeans many war prisoners. All they ever cared about was the goods that they received from the Europeans. Overall, Africans were involved with the slave trade just as much as the Europeans and colonists were.
ReplyDeleteMost slave traders were cruel towards the slaves but there was a slave who felt differently about them. Thomas Philips, commander of the Hannibal, saw the slaves as another creation of God himself. He felt that slaves should not be despised or discriminated against just by the color of their skin. Phillips was advised to cut the arms and legs of the slaves to terrify the rest with the belief that if they did not have their arms and legs, they could not be able to return back home. However, Phillips did not take the advice because he believed that it was cruel to harm defenseless people. As a result, Thomas Phillips was more generous to the slaves compared to other slave traders.
In terms of the economy, colonists had a valid basis for using slaves. Slave owners were able to produce cash crops at a sufficiently fast rate with the help of slaves. They traded these cash crops with Europeans(during the 1700's, there was a high demand for these cash crops) to make a lot of profit. Slaves were more valuable than indentured servants because slaves were bought by slave owners to work for the rest of their lives compared to indentured servants who worked for only a certain amount of time. In the end, slaves were needed to enhance the economy in the colonies.
An event known as the Stono River Rebellion took place in the 1730's. Many slaves wanted freedom and Florida offered freedom to the slaves. Knowing this information, slaves gathered together and robbed weaponry and began to move down south. While moving south, slaves killed many families of slave owners and burnt down houses. The slaves did not succeed with this rebellion as they were all either killed or captured by the colonists. Afterwards, stricter laws were created for slaves. You can depict the type of cruelty slaves faced from working lifelong in plantations.
I understand that you took into account the Africans involvement in the slave trade but Ii disagree with the statement that they were involved just as much as the Europeans. The Africans did not and could not have know the extent to which their members would soon be abused and tortured. Besides that your version of the three stories was on point.
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ReplyDeleteTo the plantation owners, slavery was seen as a valid economic basis. Slavery abled planters to increase their plantation size. As the demand for crops increased. Plantation owners started to switch to slaves to work for them. They wouldn't have to pay for the the slaves in return for their labor. Africans were very involved in the slave trade process. Africans would enslave other Africans during war. Tribal leaders would sell their prisoners of war. They would sell them to slave traders, who would then transport and sale them in the American Colonies.
ReplyDeleteThomas Phillips was a slave trader who bought slaves from the island of Barbados in 1693. He wrote about his experience on the Hannibal and what he witnessed. He describes how they would mark the slaves with a hot iron, that noted what ship the slaves were carried on. He recalls how the slaves did not want to leave their country. Slaves would willingly jump of the ship and drown themselves. Some would also starve themselves. He told of how commanders would amputate arms and legs of slaves, just to terrify other slaves. When suggested that he should partake in such activity, he wouldn't dare think of it nor would he partake in it. Thomas Phillips did not understand why slaves were inferior to whites, due to the difference in skin color.
During 1739, the Spanish issued a proclamation saying that slaves who were able to escape to St. Augustine would be granted freedom and be given sanctuary. This was a major cause of why the Stono Rebellion occurred. On September 9 in South Carolina a group of slaves assembled together. They marched south along the road that went through Georgia to St. Augustine, burning down homes and killing white men, women, and children. However, the slaves were not successful in making it to Spanish Florida. As a result of the rebellion, stricter slave laws were enforced.
Based on the behavior of the slaves during the rebellion it can be implied that slaves were treated unjust. That slaves had built up anger so much anger towards whites. They saw an opportunity to rid themselves of the life they were living and tried to flee to Florida.
I really enjoyed reading your summation because it very accurately included all 3 stories and their main points. I felt like I learned new information while reading this and it was very scholarly to include names and dates as our S.F.I..
DeleteIf you put the topic of who is to blame for the enslavement of Africans and the slave trade aside, we can all agree that the treatment of them was wrong no matter their placement on the social rank of America. The conditions in which they had to live while being transported for a long periollolacly time, were filthy and some were so resistant to their enslavement that they took their own lives in numerous ways. While mentioning the topic of the African slave trade, the fault relies on two parties. As said in Slavery Is Justified, "Negroes are enslaved by the Negroes themselves". In that sense, Africans partook heavily in the slave trade but the slave trade did not continue to be that way. Later on down the path, Africans were taken by force instead of sold to slave traders. Some slave traders stated that is was their choice whether to purchase the Africans or not and that is where their fault lies but either way those same Africans that were bought would have been enslaved if they were not bought.
ReplyDeleteI suppose that in the eyes of the colonists, there was a valid economical basis for slavery. There was work that needed to be done and they did not want to be the ones to have to do it. Also if they were to purchase a common laborer, it would have cost them an arm and a leg. A part of this that caught my attention was that the slave traders kind of thought they were doing the Africans a favor.
The Stono Rebellion creates a very accurate description of the feelings of all slaves including those that were not involved. In my opinion the Stono Rebellion was a way for slaves to show to their masters that they are not powerless animals but instead powerful and capable humans that also have feelings. In response to Ms.Bates question referring to the Stono rebellion, the slaves feeling were not suggested at all but blatantly portrayed. They went on a killing spree seeking revenge and freedom at the same time. Murder in a sense can not be justified but when taking the treatment of the slaves and their families into account you can see how the flame of anger and hatred ignited within them.
Cows, pigs, and chickens are treated horribly and brutally killed to satisfy the American appetite. Amercan companies do this to keep up with demand. In order to get their slaves to work and make a profit, colonists needed to give them some motivation. The colonists are no different than American food companies. That's why I must disagree with you when you say that we can all agree that the treatment of the slaves was wrong. In order for something to be gained something of equal value must be given away. This is another natural law. There is nothing wrong with nature. In order for something "good" to happen something "bad" must happen and vice versa (I put good and bad in quotes because their definition changes with everyone). There is no life without death. There is no happiness without suffering. In order to keep up with America's gluttonous appetite, American food companies efficiently (though brutally) slaughter and package several billion animals every year. In order to make a profit, colonists motivated slaves to work using discipline.
DeleteI don't understand why you don't think that the treatment of the slaves could not be unanimously agreed upon as being wrong. I can't argue you with you when you say that "In order for something to be gained something of equal value must be given away." However, you further argument by saying that "In order for something "good" to happen something "bad" must happen and vice versa...", so wouldn't the "bad" in this case be the treatment of the slaves? Just because the brutality towards the slaves was the cause of great monetary gain and the progression of the economy of the southern colonies, that does not make it right. Profit gains do not justify cruelty.
DeleteI think where richard was coming from was a type of karma. While the of the slaves were very wrong you have to agree that they did basically make america the home we know today. so if the justification for the treatment might be "if something is not broken why fix it?"
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ReplyDeleteThere are often two large misconceptions regarding the slave trade, [1] Africans had no part in it and [2] all Whites were cruel and believed their treatment towards slaves was justified. From the article “The conscience of a Slave Trader” we learn that African rulers were very much involved in the slave trade. These rulers would sell their prisoners of war to the highest paying White man and in exchange for a human life, would receive rum, guns, ammunition, and other material goods. For clarification on the misconception of White attitudes towards slaves, we should look at the character of Thomas Phillips. He was advised by many to cut the hands and feet of slaves off to prevent them from running away or jumping off the ship, however he could never get himself to do so.
ReplyDeleteThe need for slaves dramatically increased after Bacon’s rebellion. The rebellion took place in Virginia and was led by Nathaniel Bacon and several post-indentured servants demanding land, much of which was owned or settled by Native Americans. After the Rebellion, the demand for African slaves increased, wealthy Virginia farmers needed cheap labor that would and could not rebel. In the article “Slavery is justified”, Reverend Peter Fontaine argues that the slaves brought to the Americas held the same status in their homelands, and that they led better and more useful lives in the Colonies because of the economic necessity of their labor on Virginia plantations.
The Stono Rebellion shed light on the horrific treatment of slaves in the colonial south. The Rebellion was the effect of Spanish Florida promising any slave freedom, a dream all slaves yearned for. Slaves from colonial South Carolina rose up and rebelled, burning the homes of their slave masters, killing any white man, women, or child that they saw. This was the result if many hours of treacherous labor in inhuman conditions, the beating and degradation that they had endured for too long. Once the colonist became aware of the situation, they began to pursue the rebel slaves, killing many on the spot. Those who managed to escape the colonist were then sought after by planters on horseback until caught and killed. As a result of this action, the South placed harsher rules and regulations on slavery.
It was said that living in Virginia without slaves is morally impossible. This could be due to the fact that Virginia's economy is based off of their tobacco production. Apparently slavery in America was justified because Africans had slaves too, however the circumstances were most likely different. Yes whites did work for the colonists. They were called indentured servants and after a few years of working they were able to become free people. But with African slaves they were treated differently from indentured servants, the rules were different for them.
ReplyDeleteIndentured servants willingly came to work while slaves were forced. Africans were taken away from their families, treated as prisoners, and abused by the colonists. If having slaves was such a necessity they could have handled it differently. Slavery was so bad that many Africans committed suicide on the voyage to America. Most drowned themselves while others starved. Bringing people who willingly want to work in America is acceptable, while branding forced workers to show superiority has not effect in trying to justify slavery.
Stono's rebellion show how terrible slavery was. If Africans had to kill others to express how angry they were for being treated that way obviously there was something wrong. The rebellion caused forty Africans and twenty whites to be killed. The result of the slavery laws was that they became more strict, the Africans had no improvement on their side. Running away, breaking tools, and slow performance was the Africans way of rebellion when they couldn't do anything else.
I completely agree with you, there is no way to justify the treatment that the African slaves faced. The slavery that took place in Africa was no where near as brutal as the conditions of American slavery. In the years of early slavery the trading with the leaders of African nations of goods for humans seems acceptable compared to the later years of kidnapping women, men, and children from their homes and forcing them onto crowded, disease ridden boats. However, the reality of it is that none of it was okay, there may be reasons for why people felt they needed slaves, but they do not serve as justifications.
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ReplyDeleteSlave trade was a major factor in the development of early America. Slaves were the engines that powered the vehicles of Tabaco, sugar, and cotton production that moved America long to the times of the Industrial Revolution. Not only did the use of slaves occur in America, but it also happened in the motherland of Africa itself. Prisoners of war and rivaling tribes were kept and forced to serve as slaves. So, at the start of Euro slave trade religious ideals and morals were thrown out of the window on the stance: “If the Africans can enslave their own people, then why can’t we?” So, as long as the colonies possessed the funds, slaves were bought and traded.
ReplyDeleteOnce indentured servants came towards the end of their working slaves became more popular. Hiring actual workers was much too expensive and was almost more of a burden than it was help, and doing the work themselves was absolutely out of the question. For a slave you paid the about same amount that you paid for a servant for a year of service, except you were able to keep the slave for a lifetime. Not only were the slaves much cheaper in the long run but they were also the producers of major monetary gains. Without the slaves America’s economy would not have become as robust as it did in the south, but by no means were the slaves an absolute necessity. The north did just fine without slaves in their production of boats and sale of timber. Although America could have prospered without the slaves, there was no logical reason for the colonists to pass up the opportunity for progression that came with the slaves.
The Stono Rebellion was a slave rebellion that ran from South Carolina to Florida in 1739. A group of slaves killed many white men, women, and children before being shot in a field after being caught. The behavior of the slaves stemmed from pure anger. The slaves in America were so brutally treated that many would rather die than be a slave. Evidence of this was seen on the slave trade boats when slaves would jump into the water and drown themselves or allow themselves to die by not eating. Slaves were abused mentally, physically, and verbally, on a daily basis and the freedom that could be found in Florida resembled a heaven on Earth. As the South Carolinian slaves set out for Florida they were joined by others that were just as fed up with the way they were being treated, however the trigger happiness that overcame them on their trip blinded them from the glow of freedom that they were so close to. There was no way that the murders that they committed would be overlooked, so as soon as they were caught they were killed on site. Soon after, strict laws were put in place in order to suppress future uprisings. In a way the laws stripped the slaves of the rights they already didn’t have and furthered the extremity of the animal-like treatment that they received.
kyla this is a very in depth and awesome response. I completely agree with you key points
DeleteThe West African kingdoms fueled the slave trade by trading their prisoners of war for European goods. The kings of those kingdoms would order raids on neighboring villages and then deliver the captured Africans to a waiting slave ship on the coast. They were the true slave traders. The point of view of the English slave trader was to purchase the most physically-capable Africans and keep as many of them alive. Many of the slaves rather kill themselves, by either drowning or starving, than be taken into captivity. Others would try to avoid captivity by escaping.
ReplyDeleteAn English slave trader named Thomas Phillips, a commander of the thirty six gun ship Hannibal, was aware of their reality, but also surprisingly sympathetic of the slaves. He said: “I can’t think...that white is better than black.” He also acknowledges that the Africans were not purposely trying to be the enemy. They were not without a religion, just without a religion that the whites would recognize, Christianity.
There was a valid economic basis for slavery in the colonies. They were needed for labor that the whites were unable to provide consistently. It was also a business unto itself. Slave trading was properly one of the earliest forms of American importation. It empowered the Triangle Trade system. If the Africans were no longer willing to trade their captives for goods, the merchants would have to find someone else to trade with.
The behavior of slaves at the Stono Rebellion suggested that slaves were actual human beings and they had feelings and opinions. It suggested that the character of slavery in the colonial south was built off the assumption that slaves were ignorant or savage. But the slaves were willing to play the role if they believed it would gain them freedom. There was an underlying energy and spirit within all enslaved Africans in the colonies. In some, it was just more potent and urgent than others.
The slave trade in colonial america was not only fueled by the african kingdom but i feel as if it was supported despite the morally wrong factors of it. While wrong the use of slaves were needed during that time period. Being that the english colonists were stranded with virtually no help and abandoned by the helpful natives they needed someone who was familiaer with the land to provide for their families. Now i am not saying they are justified but i am saying that slavery was most likely not initially based upon race just on knowledge.
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