• Home Page
  • Essay On The Antebellum South African Americans

Essay On The Antebellum South African Americans

Improved Essays
Show More
Whites vs. Blacks In the Antebellum South African Americans had a difficult life compared to the lives of whites. The white people treated the African Americans as property and nothing more. Since the slaves had no rights they could not do anything to help themselves. Slaves were not allowed to do anything else except work and get beaten if they did something wrong or not do what they were supposed to do. Whites did not get punished for what they did to their slaves. They could do anything they wanted and no one would care. African Americans could lose everything they ever cared about while whites didn’t lose anything. The lives of both whites and African Americans differed extremely in the Antebellum South. African Americans had …show more content…
The white men would sexual abuse their women slaves for their own needs. When the slaves would become pregnant they did not stop work and kept working up till their due date. Most of the women lost their babies due to being whipped and too much labour. When the baby did come the women only got a couple of weeks to recover which slowed process for the whites. The white men did not care for the baby because technically that baby was his property and not his son or daughter. Since the baby was mulattoes which is mixed blood, they too would become a slave and most likely be sold to another plantation. It is sad because the person who is supposed to be a father to this baby is sending them away as if they have no clue who they are. The slaves could have husbands and wives but the owners never recognized it and sexual abused anyone they saw fit. There was no out for the slaves and no one could help them without being …show more content…
The amount of physical abuse these people went through would kill anyone now a days. That’s how much they had to endure daily without complaining. Imagine having to get up everyday knowing that the whites are ready to beat you and whip you. That’s what these people had to wake up to everyday and maybe for their whole lives. African Americans lived in fear their whole lives hoping that they could make it past this part of their life and survive, even though most of them didn’t. Solomon is moved to Edwin Epps’ plantation and describes his new master as “portly,” “repulsive,” and a drunk who enjoys whipping his slaves “just for the pleasure of hearing them screech and scream.”( Northup, 12 Years a Slave, Page 122). As Solomon stated their owners did not care for the well being of their slaves and found enjoyment in torturing them.
The whites could seriously injure their slaves, so if they couldn’t continue their work that was one less person to get the work done. Whites would push their slaves to their limit and then if they couldn’t go on they would get rid of them then buy new ones. Whites treated their slaves like food, they only have so much time until they go bad and when they do they throw away the old and replace it with the

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Ida B Wells The Red Record Analysis
    • 733 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Ida B Wells The Red Record Analysis

    For over two centuries the African-Americans suffered under the ruling of white man, they served as slaves. In Ida B Wells, The Red Record Tabulated Statistics and Alleged Causes of Lynching in the United States, she recalls lynching statistics of black men and women, and tells the awful happenings of this time. During slavery these individuals where reduced to mere physical attributes since the white man owned their body and soul it made sure, they made sure to reduce them to only financial worth. The methods used to accomplish this were by inhumane treatment, severe punishment (such as whippings), and scourging. The reasoning behind this inhumane physical punishment was to keep slaves subservient and submissive to their white masters. Yet,…

    • 733 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Decent Essays

    Essay On How Slaves Were Dehumanized
    • 675 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Essay On How Slaves Were Dehumanized

    Southern African Americans were forced to work all day for no pay. As soon as the sun rises the slaves had to work until sunset. Africans Americans in the South had no option to take a day off or not like how a regular free person would have.Also if the weather was good or bad the slaves were usually out working. Southern Africans slaves were also considered as property of their slave owner. A slave could not leave the farm without permission because if they do it would be considered escape. If a person ever tried to helped a slave escape they could be charged with theft due to the slave being property of whoever their slave owner is. African Americans in the South had no right to vote for anything for example voting for president. Even though the Africans represented about 40% of the population in the South they did not have the right to vote.Africans were not allowed to learn to read, it was against the law to teach a slave how to read because many whites thought that if a slave learned how to read he would be capable to learn how to escape or use their knowledge against…

    • 675 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
    Read More
  • Decent Essays

    Ap World History Dbq Slavery
    • 503 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Ap World History Dbq Slavery

    Slaves were treated so inhumane during this time that owners would separate them from their families so that they would infringe a fear on their owners. This was the main reason the slaves were treated badly because the Slave holders wanted there slaves to have a fear of their slaves so they would be afraid to cross them. One of the ways that this was used is by whippings, anytime the slaves were to do anything that the slave owners did not agree with they were allowed to whip them, because they were considered the slave…

    • 503 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Summary: The Inhumanity Of Slaveholders
    • 1041 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Summary: The Inhumanity Of Slaveholders

    Slaveholders considered slaves to be just creatures and they believed they could treat them that way. They were inhumane and chilly…

    • 1041 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Virginia Lawmakers And Slavery Essay
    • 636 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Virginia Lawmakers And Slavery Essay

    Firstly, if white man got a black woman pregnant both parties ended up being punished. The black woman would get whipped and the white man had to confess his sin and face punishment. The lawmakers did not want the blacks and whites to reproduce together because they were not considered equal. Next, if a slave resisted their master it was said that they would be punished in a violent manner. Many times the punishing of a slave would even lead to the murder of that slave. Slaves were considered to be the whites’ property; therefore, they were to be punished like an animal not a human being. To continue, if a slave left the property without a certificate of permission it was law that they had to be given 20 lashes by the police. Slaves simply did not have the right to leave property as they pleased because their master’s owned them and they told them where and when to go places. Severe punishments led to both parties, black and whites, being afraid to break any…

    • 636 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    American Life In The Antebellum Era Essay
    • 796 Words
    • 4 Pages

    American Life In The Antebellum Era Essay

    As President Abraham Lincoln cited in a speech, “‘a house divided against itself can not stand’”(Lincoln). This reference to a bible verse, Mark 3:25, characterizes American life in the antebellum era. Leading up to the Civil War, the United States was divided culturally between the North and the South. The main difference between the North and the South was rooted in the institution of slavery. By 1804, all Northern states had abolished slavery within their borders. However, due to the prevalence of plantations, slavery extended well into the nineteenth century in the South. The institution of slavery was a cornerstone for life in the Southern United States, affecting the economy, politics, and culture of the region. The atrocities that accompanied…

    • 796 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Effects Of Nat Turner Rebellion
    • 2057 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Effects Of Nat Turner Rebellion

    A day in the life of a slave was tiring. They worked from sunrise to sunset and rarely had a day off, if lucky once a month. They would spend their limited free time mending their huts, relaxing and making pots and pans. The slaves were not allowed to read or write, and only some were allowed to go to church. They had no choice, no freedom and no money. They had to do exactly what their…

    • 2057 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On The Antebellum Period
    • 1211 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Essay On The Antebellum Period

    Social expectations of the Antebellum period played a grand role in everyday lives of the people of the time, and especially the region. One particular book, The Laws of Etiquette, written in 1836 gives an introductory to why these “laws” are of great importance to follow as the writer remarks, “these forms may be abundantly absurd but still they must be attended to; for one half the world does and always will observe them, and the other half is at a great disadvantage if it does not .” As many of the rules and instructions of how to behave in society in the handbook seem quite frivolous or unnecessary, the authors describe it as a custom of the elite plantation culture and it is almost an honor to be able to participate in the customs. With…

    • 1211 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    African Americans During The Colonial Era Essay
    • 1089 Words
    • 5 Pages

    African Americans During The Colonial Era Essay

    would choose a Driver to get work out of the slaves, but there is a catch; the Driver is also a…

    • 1089 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Roots The Movie Essay
    • 739 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Roots The Movie Essay

    The whites compacted as much slaves as they could under the deck. The slaves barely got any time to go up on the deck to get fresh air. On the deck the slaves were washed and they were forced to dance. They were whipped if they didn’t do what they were told to do. Under the deck, the slaves were chained down too little bunk bed type shelves. It was very hot and smelly down there. If a slave threw up or died, the whites wouldn’t do anything. The other slaves would have to suffer with the terrible stench. It would be one of the most horrible and disturbing experiences to be on the bottom half of that…

    • 739 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Similarities Between Islamic And Atlantic Slavery
    • 1050 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Similarities Between Islamic And Atlantic Slavery

    African American’s were the slaves involved during this circumstance; farming sugar cane was their main priority. In the Caribbean, on the island of Barbados, there were three groups to categorize: Masters, Servants, or Slaves. Slaves were cared for more than the servants. Based on laws of the islands servants were only obligated to serve for 5 years. Although, depending on master being cruel or merciful, the servants could have an extremely miserable life, and a mistake could cost them their life. Richard Ligon described a scene he witnessed where “an overseer beat a servant with a cane about the head, till the blood has followed”.(Companion Reader, 115) This caused the slaves to live in constant fear, they wouldn’t even attempt to do something that would cause harm to themselves. The workload for the slaves was heavy, as they worked from Monday at 1 A.M. to Saturday night. They come from different parts of Africa that spoke different languages, so many of the slaves couldn’t even communicate with each other. The average of women and men on these plantations were close to equal because they were allowed to marry and typically lived in the same small house. Women were allowed rest after giving birth, which was needed because they encountered tough work and the children would be born into slavery. Other than getting the majority of Saturday and…

    • 1050 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On Ancient African Americans
    • 388 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Essay On Ancient African Americans

    Ancient African people made many beneficial contributions to the society. Some of their greatest accomplishments occurred in astronomy, math, medicine, navigation, architecture, engineering, tools, and metallurgy. A lot of treatments in medicine used today were employed from several ancient people from Africa. One of these treatments is when doctors use salicylic acid for pain. Inventions used now that come from their metallurgy are steam engines, metal chisels, saws, copper/iron tools, weapons, glue, nails, and art. The history of African technology and science isn’t as talked about as much as the Greeks and Romans. Even though Africa made endless discoveries years before them. A lot of recent evidence claims that Ancient Africans sailed to South America and Asia hundreds of years before the Europeans. Earlier changes like the making of tools, the emergence of agriculture, and metallurgy (smelted metals like bronze, copper, and lead) happened within the Paleolithic Era. Due to that time period having a scarcity of written resources in large parts of the continent it's caused a big problem. It's made it hard for researchers in the 21st century to find any detailed history from the Paleolithic…

    • 388 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Why Have Slaves Kept Their Salves Alive
    • 754 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Why Have Slaves Kept Their Salves Alive

    After it had been declared that slavery was illegal across the United States of America, there still were many social injustices that were going on. Many African Americans were still being treated unfairly in a society that claimed they were free citizens. As slaves, they did not have almost any rights or freedoms. They were not identified as human beings and were forcefully put to hard labor. One of the main reasons that slave masters kept their salves alive was because of the hard manual labor they were able to produce. When African Americans were no longer seen as property, the economy started to become worse since there were no people to do the work no one else wanted to do. THE convict labor system was not your normal law-enforced correctional system. Men and some women who were mostly former slave owners would take a convict place them in hazardous working conditions. They would then work those jobs six days a week normally from sun up to sun down. The difference between owning a black slave and overseeing someone in the convict labor system was that a slave owner had to keep their slaves alive and somewhat healthy enough to produce good labor. A convict however, was worked to death most of…

    • 754 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Improved Essays

    Impact Of Slavery On African Families
    • 726 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Impact Of Slavery On African Families

    Black people owned by white owner, and have lower living condition to them. They were sold in America because ancient time in the U.S., there are many landowners and their needs cheaper labor. In America, black slave was separated from their family and sold to different owners for profit. In American history, African slaves doesn’t have a right and freedom same as white Americans. They are illiterate people’s who cannot understand better than white American, but they are brought into the U.S. to work in the plantation. The most slaves had to work from sunrise to sunset. They don 't have a good living and not enough food to eat. Their owners controlled their lives and they could think about the future. Black women were sexual raped by the white owners of their house. A white owner encouraged black women to give birth and makes more profit from their children. There were not legalized to marry black men and women. They don’t have to thought about live together and have own children. Their owners controlled them. Their owners would provide them with housing, building materials, Food, and clothing. Must of the time, their living quarters were built near to the plantation area. Each owner has their own policy and system to treat black slaves. Some plantation owners would provide the housing, but other cannot. African slaves house was built like an African culture where they have to make a hut with…

    • 726 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
    Read More
  • Decent Essays

    What Is Whipping?
    • 155 Words
    • 1 Pages

    What Is Whipping?

    It showed how the masters considered their slaves as property that they can use as they please. Whipping was the ultimate punishment that was given out for whoever didn’t work up to the average production per day. Cotton was the ultimate harvest that was being cultivated at this time thanks to Eli Whitney that helped with the cotton boom which was the main reason in the first place for the heavy re-investment in slavery.…

    • 155 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
    Read More

Related Topics

Ready To Get Started?
Discover
Company
Follow
©2023 Cram.com
Privacy Policy |  About Ads |  Site Map |  Advertise  | 
  • Cookie Settings