October 11, 2013
Slavery Essay
During the 19th century in the United States there was a big difference between colored people and white people. Colored people were called negroes or niggers and most of them were slaves, at least in the South. White people didn’t seem to be humane or at least they understand what being humane was, they didn’t have the ability to do what is right. I believe that slavery robs the slaves of their humanity, but it does not of the abolitionists. Slave masters are deprived of their humanity because they are too, unable to do what is right.
Slaves have many points of view to look at. At a certain extent they are able to do what is right because they work the fields to feed people, they work in the house to clean and satisfy people. Although what is not right about this is that they are forced to do this work, they are not given enough food to eat, they are nog given enough clothing for the winters, and they are punished when their work is not satisfactory to their master. In the slave narrative of Henry Bibb at the end of this passage he explains how he was a witness of the mistreating of her family, and why he had left the plantation, “She was left at the house... of an unmerciful old mistress, whom I have known to slap with her hand the face of little Frances..., until her little face was left black and blue”. This is only one example of how slave masters did not care about age nor sex, if they believed a slave was to be punished they would and with joy. In the slave narrative presented by Frederick Douglass, written by himself, in the first page he says this “I have no accurate knowledge of my age, never having seen any authentic record containing it.” Slaves were deprived of having an education, of knowing their age, and specially of reading and writing they thought it would be dangerous if a slave was aware of what was going on. In the passage given, written by Frederick Douglass, a letter written to his