Slavery restricted enslaved men and women from exercising their liberties as any other citizen would. Enslaved people were not the only ones that weren't 100% free. During postbellum times, white women suffered a limited liberty as well. White women were oppressed by a patriarchal society, but their participation in the abolitionist movement made them realize that they could start a suffrage movement and have a legal freedom. Enslaved men found their way to freedom by overcoming mental slavery, which included the rebellion against their slaveholders and learning how to read and write. Enslaved women used their bodies as a form of resistance and becoming free by attending to illegal parties and choosing their sexual partners. At the time,
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One of the most notable and "popular" forms was the rebellious attacks against their owners. An example of this is the actual physical aggression against their slaveholders. A famous fight was the encounter between Frederick Douglass and Mr. Covey (his slaveholder). Douglass decided to fight back his master whenever Covey was trying to seek revenge against Douglass because of his disobedience and resistance (Douglass, 77). The battle with Mr. Covey represented a vision of enlightenment for Douglass. At that moment, Douglass says that "It rekindled the few expiring embers of freedom, and revived within me a sense of my own manhood" (Douglass, 78). This was crucial point that helped Douglass to find his way to freedom. When Douglass' hopes to become free were fading away, this fight served as a resurrection for his ambition to find liberty. It reminded Douglass that the fight against slavery wasn't over and that he could continue to look for his total emancipation and liberty. Covey symbolized one of the many obstacles in Douglass' journey to escape slavery, but this victory defeated that evil that had been following Douglass. Another way that enslaved men used to become free was their liberation from mental slavery through learning. Frederick Douglass became aware of this when he overheard his master Mr. Auld saying: "Learning would spoil the best nigger in the world... if you teach that nigger how to read, there would be no …show more content…
Freedom was demonstrated by their preferences on sexual partners. A notable case is Linda and Mr. Sands from the slave narrative: Incidents of in the Life of a Slave Girl. Harriet Jacobs says that: "I knew nothing would enrage Dr. Flint so much as to know that I favored another; and it was something to triumph over my tyrant even in that small way" (Jacobs, 192). Linda (Harriet Jacobs) engaged in this sexual "relationship" with Mr. Sands as a way to express her liberty by "freely" choosing her sexual partner for the first time in her life. It was also a way to defeat this complete power that Dr. Flint has imposed over her. Linda went against the will of her owner. It was her own decision to break the rules established by the subjection of her master. This action acted as a rejection of the master's authority. Linda took this action as a way to become free from slavery. It enhanced her humanity that had been taken away by the restrictions of slavery. This is proven when she states that: "I thought he would revenge himself by selling me, and I was sure my friend, Mr. Sands, would buy me" (Jacobs, 192-193). She was sexually unfaithful to her master in order to obtain her freedom. Dr. Flint thought that he had total control over Linda, but she was determined to gain her liberty by choosing to have a sexual
One of the most notable and "popular" forms was the rebellious attacks against their owners. An example of this is the actual physical aggression against their slaveholders. A famous fight was the encounter between Frederick Douglass and Mr. Covey (his slaveholder). Douglass decided to fight back his master whenever Covey was trying to seek revenge against Douglass because of his disobedience and resistance (Douglass, 77). The battle with Mr. Covey represented a vision of enlightenment for Douglass. At that moment, Douglass says that "It rekindled the few expiring embers of freedom, and revived within me a sense of my own manhood" (Douglass, 78). This was crucial point that helped Douglass to find his way to freedom. When Douglass' hopes to become free were fading away, this fight served as a resurrection for his ambition to find liberty. It reminded Douglass that the fight against slavery wasn't over and that he could continue to look for his total emancipation and liberty. Covey symbolized one of the many obstacles in Douglass' journey to escape slavery, but this victory defeated that evil that had been following Douglass. Another way that enslaved men used to become free was their liberation from mental slavery through learning. Frederick Douglass became aware of this when he overheard his master Mr. Auld saying: "Learning would spoil the best nigger in the world... if you teach that nigger how to read, there would be no …show more content…
Freedom was demonstrated by their preferences on sexual partners. A notable case is Linda and Mr. Sands from the slave narrative: Incidents of in the Life of a Slave Girl. Harriet Jacobs says that: "I knew nothing would enrage Dr. Flint so much as to know that I favored another; and it was something to triumph over my tyrant even in that small way" (Jacobs, 192). Linda (Harriet Jacobs) engaged in this sexual "relationship" with Mr. Sands as a way to express her liberty by "freely" choosing her sexual partner for the first time in her life. It was also a way to defeat this complete power that Dr. Flint has imposed over her. Linda went against the will of her owner. It was her own decision to break the rules established by the subjection of her master. This action acted as a rejection of the master's authority. Linda took this action as a way to become free from slavery. It enhanced her humanity that had been taken away by the restrictions of slavery. This is proven when she states that: "I thought he would revenge himself by selling me, and I was sure my friend, Mr. Sands, would buy me" (Jacobs, 192-193). She was sexually unfaithful to her master in order to obtain her freedom. Dr. Flint thought that he had total control over Linda, but she was determined to gain her liberty by choosing to have a sexual