Posted: December 3rd, 2022

SIGNATURE ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS – Slavery Essay

SIGNATURE ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONS

Using primary texts supplied IN THE FOLDERS ABOVE, choose two pro-slavery and two anti-slavery documents and write a 750-word essay that demonstrates how the proponents and opponents of slavery used the themes that frame this course when making their arguments (Mobility, Democracy, Capitalism, and Difference). You should identify the authors’ main point, and utilizing two of the four themes, examine how they defended their position. Your paper should conclude by explaining why some contemporaries of slavery may have found certain arguments compelling, while others found them offensive (to conclude effectively, you will need to explain the historical context in which these texts were written, based on what you have read in the text and learned in class discussion). NB: you are not expected to incorporate all of the sources listed, just those relevant to your approach to the paper prompt. Your paper must be submitted as a MS Word document, which can be attached and uploaded by clicking the red text, above.

Please note that the proslavery texts reflect the racism found in many quarters of nineteenth-century America. As historians, it is only right that we reject these views as we analyze how these writers constructed their defense of slavery. Other researchers have noted that the proslavery appeal to racism was intended to undermine the Abolitionist efforts to put forth “all men are created equal” as the core American value (see the antislavery texts). Please beware that the level of racism seen in these documents can be shocking and disturbing to modern readers.

No secondary sources, other than the text, should be integrated into this paper’s analysis.

Your paper should briefly introduce your paper’s topic or question and provide a thesis statement. In a paper of this size, your introduction and thesis statement should appear on the first page, in the paper’s first paragraph.
Your paper should show that you reasoned through the evidence in a fair-minded way. In other words, you should state (paraphrase) what your evidence says and not what you wish it said or think it should say. You need to state the evidence fairly, even if you think it wrong or offensive.
Your paper should use evidence to answer the historical question. You need to explain how the evidence answers the question. The easiest way to figure this is to think through your evidence and argument using one or more of the key concepts for this course.
Your paper should briefly explain an implication or limitation of your analysis. For an implication, you might consider how your analysis sheds light on one of the course’s key terms. For a limitation, you might note which key concepts your analysis does not (or cannot) address.
Your paper should develop and organize your thoughts clearly and logically. Outlining is a necessary, but not required, step in writing a well-organized paper.
Your paper should draw a conclusion that addresses the paper’s chief topic or question and that states your answer to the question or your contribution to the topic.

How to cite the sources using MLA:

Below you will see examples of the formatting for citing your sources. Note that there is an “in text” format, which appears after you directly cite or paraphrase a passage from one of the sources. The “cited reference page” format is for listing only the sources you use, at the very end of the paper.

CRP= Cited Reference Page Style

ITR= In-Text Reference Style

Textbook
CRP: Corbett, P. Scott, et al. U.S History. Houston: OpenStax. 2019.

ITR: (Corbett et. al. )

Antislavery Primary Sources
CRP: “Declaration of Sentiments of the American Anti-Slavery Convention [1833]” in Proceedings of the American Anti-Slavery Society at the Third Decade. New York: American Anti-Slavery Society, 1864.

ITR: (“Declaration, ” 17-21)

CPR: Douglass, Frederick. “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July.” July 5, 1852. Web. Teaching American History.org.

ITR:(Douglass)

CRP: Lincoln, Abraham. “Annual Address Before the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, September 30, 1859.” The Complete Works of Abraham Lincoln, vol. 5. Eds. John G. Nicolay and John Hay. New York: Francis D. Tandy Company, 1894.

ITR: (Lincoln, 248-50)

CRP: Brent, Linda (AKA Harriet Jacobs). Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Boston, 1861. Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org/files/11030/11030-h/11030-h.htm.

ITR: (Brent)

CRP: Walker, David. Appeal, in Four Articles. Electronic Edition. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, 2001 [1829]. Web.

ITR: (Walker)

Proslavery Texts
CRP: Christy, David. Cotton is King: Slavery in the Light of Political Economy. Fully reprinted in E.N. Elliot, ed., Cotton is King and Proslavery Arguments. Augusta: Pritchard, Abbott, and Loomis. 1860.

ITR: (Christy, 55-6)

CRP: Fitzhugh, George. Sociology for the South: or, The Failure of Free Society. UNC Electronic Edition: 1998 [1854]. Web.

ITR: (Fitzhugh, “Sociology” 176-188)

CRP: Hammond, James H. Selections from the Letters and Speeches of the Hon. James H. Hammond of South Carolina. New York: John F. Trow and Co. 1866.

ITR: (Hammond, 318-20)

CRP: Stephens, Alexander. “The Cornerstone Speech.” March 1861. Web. Teaching History.

ITR: (Stephens)

CRP: Taney, Roger. Opinion on Dred Scott Case. fully reprinted in E.N. Elliot, ed., Cotton is King and Proslavery Arguments. Augusta: Pritchard, Abbott, and Loomis. 1860.

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Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

Slavery Essay
Introduction
During the 19th century, slavery was a rampant activity that imposed forced labor on the individuals that were treated as property and forbidden to quit offering their services. In the course of history, slavery was considered a feature of civilization, while the abolitionists waged a biracial assault against the practice, thus proceeding to form anti-slavery societies. The proponents of slavery were influenced by racial values. These pro-slavery individuals, such as the Ku Klux Klan, proceeded to found their approach towards incorporating racism and slavery based on Christianity. Conversely, the anti-slavery or abolitionist individuals were influenced by the ideology that ‘all men are created equal’. In this regard, the paper focuses on the Assessment of the approaches, ideologies, and perceptions used by the proponents and opponents of slavery to defend their positions based on the themes of difference and democracy.
Anti-Slavery
The anti-slavery activists promoted the idea of equal treatment and fairness across all human races. In her article titled, ‘Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl’ one of the opponents of slavery is Linda Brent, who expounds on the context of slavery that goes beyond perpetual bondage to incorporate the intensity of the degradation associated with the malpractice. Brent depicts her story as a slave and the struggles he faced while serving her masters that extended across the psychological, emotional, physical, social, and financial limits. She portrays the theme of difference by detailing how she was treated differently compared to other young girls her age just because she was from a different race that was considered inferior. Slavery is based on a lifestyle that is dawned by the darkness of sorrow and sin (Brent). Despite her soul revolting against the mean tyranny, Brent was not in a position to exercise any freedom, considering that democracy far from being practiced. Not only does this author lament on the silence of people despite seeing the cruelty and inhumane activities associated with slavery, but she also commends and appreciates the individuals that plead for slaves and strive to help those that are not in a position to help themselves.
Another opponent of slavery is David Walker, who provided a pamphlet that influenced the anti-slavery movement to demand an immediate abolition of slavery. According to (Walker), the brutality of slavery was one of the most severe forms of inhumanity and bondage in the world’s history. Based on his opinion on slavery and his prediction that slavery would only be substantially abolished through an armed revolt, he argued in line with the basis of the declaration of independence that promotes the idea that people will assume the power to promote and achieve the equality promoted by God’s nature as they are entitled to. In this case, Walker’s ideologies are structured around the theme of democracy that requires equality and justice for all the citizens despite the aspect of diversity among them.
Pro-Slavery
On the other hand, the proponents of slavery based their arguments based on the confines of racial measures. While developing his opinions on Dred Scott case, Roger B. Taney developed a pro-slavery jurisprudence. According to (Taney 757), the African Americans were not obligated to the rights that were enjoyed by white people. Such an ideology and its manifestation through a Supreme Court decision created heated debates, especially since the Republicans were now in a position to make a substantial and plausible case against the democrats. Taney’s approach infringed the right to a democratic form of governance at the top-most authoritative office. As a result, the integrity and credibility of the government were left questionable and to be challenged.
The other proponent of slavery is James Henry Hammond. In his approach towards the ‘Mudsill Theory, Hammond establishes a sophisticated approach towards promoting slavery by justifying the institution using various societal-based grounds. Slavery would be considered as an institution that provides a superior social system that is necessary for the modern world (Hammond 319). Moreover, Hammond also argued that it is through slavery that a foundation would be established for the social stability that the North lacked. The mudsill theory that he developed brought to light the different political rights and the socioeconomic class of the lower classes across the two regions; the North and the South. Such an approach is founded on the theme of difference in which people are categorized based on their social status to determine their position within the society while also exposing them to different rights and opportunities.
Conclusion
The history of slavery is characterized by heated debates between the opponents and proponents, with each party arguing in their favor based on the primary factors that influence their ideologies. For the proponents, they are influenced by racial measures while the opponents are influenced by equality and fairness for all humans.
Works Cited
Brent, Linda (AKA Harriet Jacobs). Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Boston, 1861. Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org/files/11030/11030-h/11030-h.htm.
Hammond, James H. Selections from the Letters and Speeches of the Hon. James H. Hammond of South Carolina. New York: John F. Trow and Co. 1866.
Taney, Roger. Opinion on Dred Scott Case. fully reprinted in E.N. Elliot, ed., Cotton is King and Proslavery Arguments. Augusta: Pritchard, Abbott, and Loomis. 1860
Walker, David. Appeal, in Four Articles. Electronic Edition. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, 2001 [1829]. Web.

ITR: (Taney, 756-758)

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