Slavery Argumentative Analysis
Throughout the nineteenth century, a major cause of conflict amongst Northern and southern states was slavery. Northern states debated many logical reasons to abolish slavery. However southern states made a great rebuttal as to why slavery was not inhumane. John Calhoun’s defense of slavery, Frederick Law Olmstead’s travelogue of the South, George Fitzhugh’s The Blessing of Slavery, and Thomas R. Dew’s Speech to Virginia Legislative are all great examples as to why slavery can be considered as a positive good. However I in my opinion there is no reason as to why slavery should ever be considered as a positive thing.
In his 1837 speech The “Positive Good” of Slavery, John C. Calhoun claimed that slavery wasn’t necessary evil, but a positive …show more content…
Calhoun thought that because slavery has been a part of society for so long suddenly putting and it too it would cause chaos within the society. “Too maintain the existing relations between the two races, inhabiting that section of the Union, is indispensable to the peace and happiness of both. It cannot be subverted without drenching the county in blood, and extirpating one or the other of the races. Be it good or bad, it has grown up with our society and institutions, and is so interwoven with them, that to destroy it would be to destroy us as a people (Calhoun)”. Calhoun thought that by keeping the institution of slavery around it would continue to keep the balance in …show more content…
Fitzhugh believed that slavery profited not only whites but slaves as well. “We do not know whether free laborers ever sleep. They are fools to do so; for, whilst they sleep, the wily and watchful capitalist is devising means to ensnare and exploit them. The free laborer must work or starve. He is more of a slave than the Negro, because he works longer and harder for less allowance than the slave, and has no holiday, because the cares of life with him begin when its labors end. He has no liberty and not a single right (Fitzhugh)”. According to Fitzhugh slaves were better off then labor workers and in need of the protection and guidance slavery
In his 1837 speech The “Positive Good” of Slavery, John C. Calhoun claimed that slavery wasn’t necessary evil, but a positive …show more content…
Calhoun thought that because slavery has been a part of society for so long suddenly putting and it too it would cause chaos within the society. “Too maintain the existing relations between the two races, inhabiting that section of the Union, is indispensable to the peace and happiness of both. It cannot be subverted without drenching the county in blood, and extirpating one or the other of the races. Be it good or bad, it has grown up with our society and institutions, and is so interwoven with them, that to destroy it would be to destroy us as a people (Calhoun)”. Calhoun thought that by keeping the institution of slavery around it would continue to keep the balance in …show more content…
Fitzhugh believed that slavery profited not only whites but slaves as well. “We do not know whether free laborers ever sleep. They are fools to do so; for, whilst they sleep, the wily and watchful capitalist is devising means to ensnare and exploit them. The free laborer must work or starve. He is more of a slave than the Negro, because he works longer and harder for less allowance than the slave, and has no holiday, because the cares of life with him begin when its labors end. He has no liberty and not a single right (Fitzhugh)”. According to Fitzhugh slaves were better off then labor workers and in need of the protection and guidance slavery