12 Years A Slave Themes

Improved Essays
The film 12 years a slave was one of the most intense films we’ve watched thus far. It was a touching and an emotional film to watch over all. 12 years a slave showed several themes, one of the themes that stood out to me more bravery, bravery because Soloman had to endure 12 years a slave, even though he was born a free man. Throughout it all, he remained hopeful and brave for his family. His character is beyond beautiful and strong, he never changed the way he felt towards his family being away from them for 12 years, and we also see the way he helps the other slaves in one way or another, like Patsy. His morals on staying strong are what kept him sane during the most confusing and terrifying part of his life.
The film shows the disruptive

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northrup is taken place in 1863. Solomon Northrup is a slave who narratives his experience being born free in New York and kidnapped and sold into slavery. He is sold in the south and works on the cotton and sugar plantations of Louisiana. Twelve Years a Slave sweeps broadly across the institution of slavery. Not only did Northup’s ordeal occur in the critical two decades preceding the American Civil War, but few corners of southern slavery escape Northup’s piercing commentary.…

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In recent years the topic of slavery has become a big hit in the film industry. Films like Ben Hur, Spartacus, Gladiator, and D’jango Unchained have all shared the same theme of slavery. These films tell stories of slaves and the terrible hardship of being held captive. Due to its thought-provoking nature films about slavery have become a reoccurring manifestation in the film industry. As a result of their popularity, slavery has been morphed into an almost glamorized notion.…

    • 1319 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    When discussing slavery we mention how badly the slaves were treated but 12 Years A Slave is a movie that bring this atrocities to life through the eyes of Solomon Northup. This movie was adapted from the book written by Solomon Northup himself where he shows what slavery in the south truly looked like. He was a man who had his freedom stolen from him but thankfully he lived to tell the tale. His story shows us how black slaves were bought and sold at the market, what the transition from free to field slave looked like, what a normal day on the plantation was like, and how they were treated on these plantations. The way in which slaves were bought and sold was just as bad at Steven McQueen portrayed it, if not worst.…

    • 1359 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    This location serves the purpose of providing a backdrop that closely resembles the reality of the time period thus enhancing the story's believability. But it also symbolizes the state of the country and the irony in America's moral values. America was founded on the moral ideas of the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all men, and demanded and fought for those rights for mankind. Many of these revolutionary men have hailed of Virginia, " She has been dignified by some the mother of statesmen… Her high position in this respect, has given her a high enviable distinction among her sister states,…"…

    • 2471 Words
    • 10 Pages
    • 3 Works Cited
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The Stories Must Be Told The establishment of slavery in the early years of America is one of the most documented systems of the abuse of human rights in history. The Classic Slave Narratives is a book compiled of four extremely powerful stories of individuals who survived the enslavement in Colonial America. The book written by American educator and scholar, Henry Lewis, Gates, Jr. reminds the reader that while the founders of this country were fighting off the British and writing about their freedoms, there were other men taking care of the upkeep of their farm and cleaning their houses. It also shows that even though different slaves were in different conditions, all slaves wanted the same idea: the desire to be free.…

    • 1001 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In 12 Years a Slave, it is identifiable that Solomon is very skilled with his hands. He has great engineering capabilities which showcase his great skillset. In the film, Solomon is telling Master Ford how it would be easier to use the waterway as mode of transportation rather than walking them all the way around the water. Tibeats does not like this idea because Solomon shows how smart he really is, but, Ford allows Solomon to execute his greatly engineered plan. Once Solomon’s plan is finished and it is shown just how good it is, Ford commends Solomon for his great work with a hand shake and laughter, (12 Years a Slave).…

    • 1727 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Winston Churchill’s “History is written by the victors”, was accepted as truism. Anything that happened in the past, history, can be distorted, changed, and even disappear. This may happen by the writers (in charge) writing what they want to hear, rather than what has actually been said; this can be done for many reasons, including propaganda, or covering up the ugly truth. Howard Zinn, an American historian, for the allegations stated above, wanted to review history from the other side, from the viewpoint of the oppressors. It might be a valid idea, using a slave narrative as a method of gathering information to study history when discussing the Slave Era.…

    • 1267 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The subject matter needed to be covered over the course of the essay draws from the book The Classic Slave Narratives edited by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. The narratives contained in the book discuss in detail the lives and trials of the particular author who wrote each individual section. We were asked to cover the experiences in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass and Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. With both of these true life stories we are able to have a glimpse into the hardships men and women faced in the slavery circle. White males during this time period enjoyed a better quality of life than their female counterparts, so was this fact one that carried over into the lives of men and women who were slaves?…

    • 1806 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Throughout the book, The Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, and the movie, 12 Years a Slave, we see many ways in which masters, overseers, and owners inhumanely manipulate their slaves, and how Solomon and Frederick resist. Within the centuries of slavery in the United States from 1619 to 1865 dehumanization took a huge toll on American slave’s lives, “For the African Americans, slavery reduced them into poverty and products by dehumanizing them from their ability to be considered actual people” (Capstick 1). Throughout slavery slaves were so low in social class that they were thought of as property, not humans. Over time we see Frederick and Solomon adapt to their surroundings by finding and creating ways to resist…

    • 1066 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    He reacts to said raging internal conflict in spite of prior notions, and appeals to the mature and moralistic decision in a point of crisis. By providing flashbacks throughout…

    • 1158 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    A true and historical movie about a free black man, Solomon Northup, tricked into slavery called “12 Years A Slave” hit movie theaters on October 18, 2013 and was directed by Steve McQueen. The book the movie was based on was written by Northrup himself (played by Chiwetel Ejiofor) and the screenplay was written by John Ridley. The movie was a success and received an Academy Award for Best Picture. The story takes place during the times of abolition and after the civil war, but if you were a slaver from the south, negroes could still be bought and sold. Northrup was from the north and man in his 30’s and a well-known Saratoga, New York fiddler who had a wife and two children.…

    • 1047 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Slave Narratives had a tremendous impact on U.S. literature and culture. The jaw-dropping incidents and cruelty portrayed by slave masters within these works were able to garner significant amounts of sympathy from readers. Slave Narratives helped persuade some people to support the abolitionist movement, which was crucial in the fight to end slavery. Independent from the historical and societal effects, these works gave slaves a voice and created a whole new genre of literature. Slave Narratives are important to America because of the history behind them, their influence on American literature, and the impact they had on society.…

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In “My Family’s Slave,” Tizon uses repetition of events and moments to display his love and care to Lola, unlike his mother and father to reduce the guilt he feels towards Lola’s treatment in his house. The first time in his life that Tizon stands up for Lola was when he was 13 years old. His father was angry at Lola because Tizon’s younger sister, Ling, did not eat dinner. His father thought that it was Lola’s fault that Ling did not eat and he ended up punching her on her face. He describes, “‘Ling said she wasn’t hungry,” I said again, almost in a whisper.…

    • 969 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Humor In Forrest Gump

    • 700 Words
    • 3 Pages

    He is guided by goodness as well as the desire to do the right thing, and this is what makes him a truly unique and unexpectedly complex character. Though at times the film can be overly sentimental, while lacking true sentiment, it is well worth watching. I would recommend it to anyone who has yet to watch this incredible…

    • 700 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Vinoth Loganathan Mark 3.9 Frank Darabont – Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile Anne Bradstreet once said “Authority without wisdom is like a heavy axe without an edge, fitter to bruise than polish.” Frank Darabont effectuates this simple principal in his work. He successfully illustrates and imparts this comprehension into the mind of his viewers making his impact in the world. It can be drawn that this principle is close to his heart as it is craftily presented in most of his works. Frank Darabont born January 28, 1959 is a filmmaker of Hungarian descent.…

    • 3565 Words
    • 15 Pages
    Superior Essays