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. In chapter 11 of Eric Foner's Give me Liberty! is divided into four major sections which are "The Old South, Life Under Slavery, Slave Culture, and Resistance to Slavery. "Twelve Years a Slave relates to the time period under Eric Foner's chapter 11.
Under the section, "The Old South", Foner talks about the "peculiar institution." The peculiar institution was a phrase that was used by whites in the antebellum South to refer to slavery without using the word "slavery." After the abolition in the north, slavery had become the "peculiar institution" of the south. The Mason-Dixon Line became the line between Maryland and Pennslyvania diving …show more content…
Men may write fictions portraying lowly life as it is, or as it is not—may expatiate with owlish gravity upon the bliss of ignorance—discourse."(Northup 207). Although some slave masters treated their slaves well some did not. In Foner's subheading, "Conditions of a Slave Life", talks about how some southern state enacted laws to prevent the mistreatment of slaves. This also would include their material living conditions improved as well. American slaves enjoyed better diets and longer life expectancies as
Under the section, "The Old South", Foner talks about the "peculiar institution." The peculiar institution was a phrase that was used by whites in the antebellum South to refer to slavery without using the word "slavery." After the abolition in the north, slavery had become the "peculiar institution" of the south. The Mason-Dixon Line became the line between Maryland and Pennslyvania diving …show more content…
Men may write fictions portraying lowly life as it is, or as it is not—may expatiate with owlish gravity upon the bliss of ignorance—discourse."(Northup 207). Although some slave masters treated their slaves well some did not. In Foner's subheading, "Conditions of a Slave Life", talks about how some southern state enacted laws to prevent the mistreatment of slaves. This also would include their material living conditions improved as well. American slaves enjoyed better diets and longer life expectancies as