Throughout the southern states of America, slaves were forced into unfair and inhumane living conditions. They were made to do hard labor in the fields or in the houses of their masters under the threat of abuse or even death. Nonetheless, slaves managed to create their own culture and lives under this oppressive lifestyle. Many bonded together to achieve some semblance of personal freedom even confined by the numerous restrictions of a prejudiced country. Although slaves were forced into a life they did not ask for they still managed to produce their own culture and make their lives better through religion, music, language, family relations, and even freedom movements. After being brought from Africa many slaves were forced to convert to Christianity by their new masters. Through this process, slaves were able to make the religion their own by incorporating their own culture into it. Their form of Christianity involved voodooism and traditions found in their original polytheistic religions. This religion was deeply important to them, and they took great passion in it; it gave them the hope that one day they could be free (Brinkley 268). Music and language were also cornerstones of the slave culture of the south. Since …show more content…
While restrictions were placed under when a husband and wife could visit each other if they were on neighboring plantations, they often met in secret. Even though their connections were strong within families, it was not uncommon for families to split up due to the slave trade leaving many to become single parents. Even in these new communities, new slaves were accepted into unofficial families so they would not be alone. Although it is true families were difficult to maintain, the relationships slaves made in confinement gave brought them happiness in times of great struggle (Brinkley 170). Families were a much needed support system to get through the everyday life of a
Southern states believed that it was their divine right to own slaves. The deep south “daily living” contributed to the expansion of slavery (204). Rothman throughout his book explains this and specifically on pg. 21 he talks about life as a slave. He explains how smuggling of slaves, kidnapping of free people, and slave coffles trekking provided way for growth of slavery and growth of antislavery opinions in the North.
Struggles of slavery in the American south Difficulties of slavery in the American south shows that slave families split up and physical pain was normal life struggles for slaves. ’’In the text Harriet Tubman’’she gets hit by a two pound weight by her overseer because she refused to listen. This shows me that slaves did not get treated well even for their hard work for other people. ‘’
After slavery was abolished in the North, it became a peculiar institution of the South, which meant that it was an institution unique of southern society. Slavery was a system of labor in which the slaves suffered very difficult life conditions, violent punishments, and injustices. Most slaves lived on plantations or farms. Most slaves were field workers, while a small percentage worked on the industry. Usually, the slaves who worked in urban areas had more autonomy than those who worked in rural areas.
People that owned slaves were mostly planters, yeoman, and whites. A slave is a person who is legal property of another and is forced to obey and that 's exactly what slaves did, they obeyed every command. Slaves were used for a lot of things in the 1800s. Slave women were usually used for cooking, cleaning, and helped with planter’s children.
Slavery in the United States was the main form of labor in the late 1700’s. While being thought of as a normal way of life, many whites took in colored people as slaves for field work, house work, and much more. Their mistreatment and injustices began to raise red flags in the ethics of the society. From 1776 to 1852, opposition to slavery was quickly spreading as many forces caused the prolonged debate of slavery to come into question. The increase in the black population, the facts and rights outlined in the Declaration of Independence, and the harsh mistreatment of slaves were all factors in the continuous growth of the idea of abolition until eventual reconstruction after the Civil War in 1867.
Vinayak Shaji Mr. Gambino Dual Enrollment 3 January 2023 Effect of slavery on American society The institution of slavery had a profound and lasting impact on American society during the Antebellum Era. Politically, slavery played a central role in the development of the United States and shaped the country’s early history.
Instead he began to propagate the belief that sharing religion with the slaves would “lay them under stronger obligations to perform the greatest diligence and fidelity”. Though a number of protestant religions moved throughout at the time the Baptist church eventually took ahold of the south to become the most practiced religion. Frey discusses briefly the African culture that made some influence on the lifestyle of the African slaves. Most of the African cultural practices were bogged down or destroyed by the slave owners and American society.
The treatment of slaves between the North and the South was drastically different. Slaves in the North typically lived in the same house as their master and worked by themselves, or in small groups (pg. 94). Slaves in the South tended to live in large plantations in which they were housed in plantation outbuildings (pg. 104). The difference between the North and the South in housing and working environment had a direct effect on the integration of African Americans into their new American society. When they were housed in the North with their masters and had limited exposure to other slaves, they tended to adopt the ways of their masters.
The growth of the enslaved African American population directly led to an increase in domestic slave trade in the early 1800s. As a result, by 1860 a very significant amount of slaves worked on plantations in the Deep South. Hot temperatures, long work days, and harsh treatment made slave life unfathomably difficult. Families were destroyed, in fact, a third of children under the age of fourteen were separated from their parents and about a quarter of marriages were split, due to slave trade. Slavery was dehumanizing, but maintaining and creating culture and traditions was a way for slaves to have an identity, and in many ways was a resistance to the demeaning nature of slavery.
With slaves came the opportunity to work. With more hands that were not paid plantation owners only had more to gain as this went on through several states. Several slaves were sent in abundance to the West Indies to speed up the process of collecting sugar cane. This was extremely hard work for the slaves and only pushed the separation bar further apart. Along with Native Americans and slave women had no say over what went on in their lives a majority of the time.
Have you ever wondered how life was for the slaves in the South? Slaves in the South suffered through many consequences. For example, they suffered through many whippings with cow skin if they didn't obey their master, they also got separated from their family mostly the fathers, so, they can be sold to a very mean slave owner. Even if they were living a miserable life on the farms, they had their own culture and they managed to even get married in the farmland or where they worked. Not only did the slaves live on the farm.
Detaching from slavery through their diverse cultural foundations allowed for them to be able to connect with other slaves and hold onto their humanity. The assembly among slaves kept the diversity between slave and master. After a long day of being beaten and working under extreme conditions slaves found a way to disconnect from their danger. They used songs to get through a tough work day out in the fields. By singing they would connect with other slaves and find a way to make a terrible situation better.
Africans who were already enslaved saw conversion to Christianity as a road to freedom, and many others who were not already enslaved believed conversion would protect them from becoming
The struggles of slavery in the American South Slaves in the American South endured difficult lives. A couple struggles that slaves had was that their families were split up and they had hard working conditions. During slavery, slaves families got split up .Harriet Tubman 's sisters were sold to plantations far away. This proves that families were split up.
From the moment, they received the title, “slave”, each person was dehumanized, and stripped of their identity. Many slaves who were born into slavery, have no recollection of who they are. From babies, they are taken away from their mother and never told where, when or to who the mother was. They separated them from birth to avoid the connection from mother to baby, so they would not grieve the person that carried them for 9 months. This also was an effective way of dehumanization.