This movie pulled on the heartstrings. Similar to all the movies I have seen based on a book, the book is superior. The question remains how much did Hollywood invent, and what of the story happened. In this report I will take a summary of what the movie portrayed, and compare and contrast it to the historical accuracy of the information.
The movie follows the life of Solomon Northup, a free black man, who had a wife and two young children. In 1841, while Northup’s family had gone away, he met two men in Saratoga New York. These Men promised Northup they would pay him for playing violin in a circus show; they introduce themselves as Brown and Hamilton. They trick him into traveling to Washington, D.C.; where they sell him into slavery in the …show more content…
Burch beats him with a paddle until it breaks, and is beaten further with a whip called a cat o nine tails. Solomon Northup says in his book, “Even now the flesh crawls upon my bones, as I recall the scene. I was all on fire. My sufferings I can compare to nothing else than the burning agonies of hell (Northup).” The scene where Northup tries to organize the slaves to overtake the ship did happen but not in the way it was depicted. Robert, one of the slaves on the ship was the one who tried to organize the others to take over the ship. The movie shows the reason this strategy was foiled was because Robert was stabbed when he tries to stop Eliza, the slave woman, from being raped. Instead, what stopped them overthrowing was that Robert dies of Smallpox. It is accurate that Northup’s name was changed to Platt …show more content…
Northrup says of his owner Ford, “there never was a more kind, noble, candid, Christian man than William Ford.” Northup stated that, ‘the influences and associations that had always surrounded him, blinded him to the inherent wrong at the bottom of the system of Slavery (Northup).” The brawl with Tibeats over the bucket nails shown in the movie did happen, in addition to a second confrontation. It is also in Northup’s book that Tibeats hung Northup from a tree barely able to stand on his tip toes for hours, before Master Ford cut him down, and rescued him. Ford sold Northup to Epps to try and prevent any further problems between the two men. Epps was crueler than what the movie portrayed. Although Northup doesn’t explain in great detail the relationship between the slave Patsy, and Epps as much as the movie shows, he suggests that Epps had lewd intentions toward her. The movie shows, Mistress Epps encouraging Master Epps to whip Patsey, out of jealousy. Northup describes the whipping as, “the most cruel whipping that ever I was doomed to witness
The movie follows the life of Solomon Northup, a free black man, who had a wife and two young children. In 1841, while Northup’s family had gone away, he met two men in Saratoga New York. These Men promised Northup they would pay him for playing violin in a circus show; they introduce themselves as Brown and Hamilton. They trick him into traveling to Washington, D.C.; where they sell him into slavery in the …show more content…
Burch beats him with a paddle until it breaks, and is beaten further with a whip called a cat o nine tails. Solomon Northup says in his book, “Even now the flesh crawls upon my bones, as I recall the scene. I was all on fire. My sufferings I can compare to nothing else than the burning agonies of hell (Northup).” The scene where Northup tries to organize the slaves to overtake the ship did happen but not in the way it was depicted. Robert, one of the slaves on the ship was the one who tried to organize the others to take over the ship. The movie shows the reason this strategy was foiled was because Robert was stabbed when he tries to stop Eliza, the slave woman, from being raped. Instead, what stopped them overthrowing was that Robert dies of Smallpox. It is accurate that Northup’s name was changed to Platt …show more content…
Northrup says of his owner Ford, “there never was a more kind, noble, candid, Christian man than William Ford.” Northup stated that, ‘the influences and associations that had always surrounded him, blinded him to the inherent wrong at the bottom of the system of Slavery (Northup).” The brawl with Tibeats over the bucket nails shown in the movie did happen, in addition to a second confrontation. It is also in Northup’s book that Tibeats hung Northup from a tree barely able to stand on his tip toes for hours, before Master Ford cut him down, and rescued him. Ford sold Northup to Epps to try and prevent any further problems between the two men. Epps was crueler than what the movie portrayed. Although Northup doesn’t explain in great detail the relationship between the slave Patsy, and Epps as much as the movie shows, he suggests that Epps had lewd intentions toward her. The movie shows, Mistress Epps encouraging Master Epps to whip Patsey, out of jealousy. Northup describes the whipping as, “the most cruel whipping that ever I was doomed to witness