12 Years A Slave Sparknotes

Twelve Years a Slave is a narrative of Solomon Northup, born a free man but kidnapped into slavery, he tells his story as a slave. The narrative starts with him as a freeman but later being captured and forced into slavery. Throughout the narrative, Solomon made a distinction between himself and the slaves with whom he lived and worked with. The differences between Solomon and the other slaves was he was born a free man and he was educated. "Soon after he purchased me, Epps asked me if I could write and read, and on being informed that I had received some instruction in those branches of education, he assured me, with emphasis, if he ever caught me with a book, or with a pen and ink, he would give me a hundred lashes"(175). One of the main
The slaves expectations, hopes and aspirations about their lives were different then Solomon's because the slaves could only dream about being free, but Solomon actually knew what it meant
A slaves work was manual labor which included, "Ploughing, planting, picking cotton, gathering the corn, and pulling and burning stalks, occupies the whole of the four seasons of the year. Drawing and cutting wood, pressing cotton, fattening and killing hogs, are but incidental labors"(130). Slaves worked throughout all four seasons of the year doing manual labor. Slaves rarely had leisure time but when they did they spent that time praying and reading scripture, "Whatever leisure time was allowed him, he spent in pursuing it, though it was only with great difficulty that he could master any part of it"(69). This quote is talking about Sam pursuing the Bible in his leisure time. During Solomon's leisure time he played his violin. "On holy Sabbath days, when an hour or two of leisure was allowed, it would accompany me to some quiet place on the bayou bank, and, lifting up its voice, discourse kindly and pleasantly indeed"(166). Solomon played his violin in his leisure time on the bank of the bayou. The slaves families were always being torn apart by the slave masters. A good example of families being torn apart is when Randall is taken away from Eliza, "She besought the man not to buy him, unless he also bought herself and Emily"(53). The slave families were constantly being torn apart by the slave masters. Social relationships were seen in this narrative when Rose and