The social differences between the North and South had the largest impact on causing the Civil War. Although political disputes caused conflict, slavery had the greatest factor, so social conflict was the leading cause of the Civil War. This was the leading cause for many reasons, including different opinions on slavery, more of the upper class in the North, and Dred Scott receiving unfair treatment in court because he was an African American.
To begin, different opinions on slavery were one of the leading causes of the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln said in a speech that “A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free” (Document 1). This speech tells about how Lincoln …show more content…
Another strong opinion belonging to the state of North Carolina stated, “The slaveholding States will no longer have the power of self-government, or self-protection, and the Federal Government will have become their enemy” (Document 2). This was in the South Carolina Declaration of Secession that said that if slavery were to be abolished, the South would lose its worth to the North. Varying opinions caused many disputes eventually leading up to the Civil War. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin that showed the hardships of living as a slave on a plantation, “Northerners felt as if their eyes had been opened to the horrors of slavery, while Southerners protested that Stowe’s work was slanderous” (Document 3). This was how divided opinions on slavery are, everyone believed something different about what was right involving slavery, some people published their opinions. They were likely to be attacked …show more content…
The court ruled that slaves were property and therefore couldn’t sue which caused a huge dispute about the court and freed slave’s rights in court. An article said, “The case eventually rose to the level of the Supreme Court, where the justices found that, as a slave, Dred Scott was a piece of property that had none of the legal rights or recognitions afforded to a human being” (Document 3). This ruling shows how socially, any enslaved person is considered property. Even in free states, an enslaved can’t sue for their freedom so there was no reason to have the free or slave states if they wouldn’t let someone gain their freedom in a free state. One might argue that the white Northerners would be antislavery but the table shows that it was only a portion of the Northerners who were against slavery (Document 8). Many influential leaders n the North were for slavery. The textbook quoted Abraham Lincoln and he said, “The idea that African Americans could not be citizens was based on a false view of American history” (495). He meant that African Americans not being citizens should be forgotten. He thinks that anyone legally free in the U.S. is a citizen and cannot be discriminated against. Lastly in the textbook it says that the ruling that Scott wasn’t a citizen went even further and said, “Tawney wrote that congress did not have the power to prohibit territory in any
To begin, different opinions on slavery were one of the leading causes of the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln said in a speech that “A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free” (Document 1). This speech tells about how Lincoln …show more content…
Another strong opinion belonging to the state of North Carolina stated, “The slaveholding States will no longer have the power of self-government, or self-protection, and the Federal Government will have become their enemy” (Document 2). This was in the South Carolina Declaration of Secession that said that if slavery were to be abolished, the South would lose its worth to the North. Varying opinions caused many disputes eventually leading up to the Civil War. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin that showed the hardships of living as a slave on a plantation, “Northerners felt as if their eyes had been opened to the horrors of slavery, while Southerners protested that Stowe’s work was slanderous” (Document 3). This was how divided opinions on slavery are, everyone believed something different about what was right involving slavery, some people published their opinions. They were likely to be attacked …show more content…
The court ruled that slaves were property and therefore couldn’t sue which caused a huge dispute about the court and freed slave’s rights in court. An article said, “The case eventually rose to the level of the Supreme Court, where the justices found that, as a slave, Dred Scott was a piece of property that had none of the legal rights or recognitions afforded to a human being” (Document 3). This ruling shows how socially, any enslaved person is considered property. Even in free states, an enslaved can’t sue for their freedom so there was no reason to have the free or slave states if they wouldn’t let someone gain their freedom in a free state. One might argue that the white Northerners would be antislavery but the table shows that it was only a portion of the Northerners who were against slavery (Document 8). Many influential leaders n the North were for slavery. The textbook quoted Abraham Lincoln and he said, “The idea that African Americans could not be citizens was based on a false view of American history” (495). He meant that African Americans not being citizens should be forgotten. He thinks that anyone legally free in the U.S. is a citizen and cannot be discriminated against. Lastly in the textbook it says that the ruling that Scott wasn’t a citizen went even further and said, “Tawney wrote that congress did not have the power to prohibit territory in any