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The problem of slavery in the United States is a complex set of socio-economic, socio-political, civil-legal, racial issues, the roots of which go deep into American history. The video published by Annenberg Learner (2019) describes the confrontation development between the North and the South, investigating the human side of historical changes. The main points highlighted in the lecture are focused on the socio-economic differences between the two systems, the actual life of slaves, and methods of blacks’ rebellion.
To begin with, it is worth noting that the two regions constituting a union, in fact, were not that culturally and ideologically different. The American society of the 1860s remained, with scarce exceptions, deeply racist. The North, in this respect, perhaps even ahead of the South, where whites at least did not shy away from living with their black slaves under the same roof. Slavery in the North was abolished not for religious and moral, but for economic reasons. Because of the climate, such labor-intensive sectors of agriculture as rice growing, cotton growing, tobacco growing, where slave labor had the most significant effect, simply did not develop. The way the slaves’ liberation was carried out says a lot about the northern society, the degree of its infection with xenophobia.
Moreover, the North and the South shared economic interests since both aspired to develop western territories, the construction of railways. The South also used northern ships to conquer new markets. However, as pointed out in the video, the Northerners did criticize southern slavery for its cruelty and barbarism, depicting horrifying stories of black people suffering from the rules of institutions in which they found themselves, at the same time having the same desires and dreams as other Americans.
Furthermore, the second point concerns the life of slaves and how it used to be perceived in the South as opposed to the ideas shared in the North in this regard. Southerners justified the slavery system primarily by claiming that blacks were much happier and safer. Moreover, the slave owners ridiculed and condemned the capitalist way of life of the northerners, considering a free worker much more powerless than the people of color. The main argument in favor of this position was that slaves freely expressed their identity by singing folk songs and preaching their customs and religion. At the same time, photographs of mutilated blacks and fugitives’ stories expose the southern system’s terrible side, sobering from the naive and blind belief that slavery will grant more freedom and tranquility. Thus, the actual life of people of color over time takes on more and more realistic outlines, explaining the true meaning of the songs of the enslaved ones.
Finally, the lecture details the opposition to the system by the blacks themselves. The striving for literacy can be considered an example of the struggle for freedom. Although this education was strictly not encouraged by the owners, blacks understood that the path to liberation lay through the ability to read, write and state their thoughts. Moreover, the new desired order was transmitted through songs, stories, and disobedience by the slave owner. People of color created a world where the weak win, and the slaves become free in fairy tales and sayings. They also sought to carve their free temper through petty and more severe defiance, from theft to physical abuse.
In general, the video shares substantial everyday and cultural moments that are important for understanding the slavery system and the preconditions of the American Civil War. However, several details remain unclear in this discussion. First, since it was noted that the northern states were even more xenophobic, why did they so vehemently criticize the southerners, who, in turn, did not shy away from being in close contact with the slaves. Second, given that the southern economy was lagging behind in development, why was the Confederation so opposed to capitalism, especially given its dependence on exports and the agricultural industry? It is hard to imagine that the issue of slavery was so fundamental that the southern states were even ready to leave the union.
Reference
Annenberg Learner. (2019). Slavery [Video]. Annenberg Learner. Web.
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