Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 40 views

    The American People, 6

    Uploaded by

    api-25933731
    The document summarizes slavery and life in the Old South. It describes how slavery expanded with the growth of cotton cultivation, fueled by global demand and new technologies, and how over 1 million slaves were transported westward as cotton production shifted. It discusses the justifications used to support slavery and daily life for slaves, including long work hours, family separation, and forms of protest against the system.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    The American People, 6

    Uploaded by

    api-25933731
    40 views3 pages
    The document summarizes slavery and life in the Old South. It describes how slavery expanded with the growth of cotton cultivation, fueled by global demand and new technologies, and how over 1 million slaves were transported westward as cotton production shifted. It discusses the justifications used to support slavery and daily life for slaves, including long work hours, family separation, and forms of protest against the system.

    Original Title

    null

    Copyright

    © Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)

    Available Formats

    DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    The document summarizes slavery and life in the Old South. It describes how slavery expanded with the growth of cotton cultivation, fueled by global demand and new technologies, and how over 1 million slaves were transported westward as cotton production shifted. It discusses the justifications used to support slavery and daily life for slaves, including long work hours, family separation, and forms of protest against the system.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    40 views3 pages

    The American People, 6

    Uploaded by

    api-25933731
    The document summarizes slavery and life in the Old South. It describes how slavery expanded with the growth of cotton cultivation, fueled by global demand and new technologies, and how over 1 million slaves were transported westward as cotton production shifted. It discusses the justifications used to support slavery and daily life for slaves, including long work hours, family separation, and forms of protest against the system.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    of 3

    Chapter 11

    Slavery and the Old South


    The American People, 6th ed.

    • Building a Diverse Cotton Kingdom


    The Expansion of Slavery in a Global Economy
     In 1860 the American South, if independent, would have been one of the
    wealthiest countries in the world based on the revenue of the cotton trade.
     Cotton cultivation and its expansion depended on technological development,
    land, labor, demand, and a global system of trade.

    Slavery in Latin America


     Europeans depended on African slavery in their New World colonies.
     African slaves were imported to replace the indigenous populations that were
    eradicated by disease.
     Sugar production was the cash crop for the Latin American holdings of the
    European powers.
    White and Black Migrations in the South
     Between 1830 and 1860, southerners began to migrate in a southwest direction to
    fill up the fertile land and increase cotton production for the mills of England.
     The center of cotton production gradually shifted from South Carolina to
    Mississippi.
     An estimated 1 million slaves were transported westward by this white migration.

    Paternalism and Honor in the Planter Class


     Most Southern males adhered to a long-standing tradition of medieval chivalry
    and aversion to industrialization.
     The Southern planters developed a paternalistic attitude towards his slaves; a
    kindly father-and-child relationship.
     An intensely masculine code of honor placed the virtue of women on a pedestal.
     The smallest insult could lead to pistol duels.

    Yeoman Farmers
     Most slaveholders (70 percent) belonged to the mid-level yeoman farmer class.
     A Yeoman farmer might have owned as many as ten slaves, but usually work
    alongside them.
     75 percent of all southerners held no slaves at all.
    Justifying Slavery
     Biblical Justification: ancient curse upon Ham, a child of Noah and other
    references
     Historical Justification: all great civilizations participated in slavery
     Legal Justification: the U.S. Constitution refused to address slavery directly
     Scientific Justification: multiple theories regarding inferiority of the black race
     Sociological Justification: the black race as societal “children” that needed
    paternalistic guidance
    Daily Toil
     Slaves were expected to work an average of 14 hours per day during warm
    weather and 10 hours in the winter.
     Work gangs of 20 to 25 slaves labored under the whip of a “slave driver.”
     The task system allowed slaves to finish a designated task each day at their own
    pace.
     A normal slave was expected to pick 130 to 150 pounds of cotton a day.

    Slave Law and the Family


     The legal status of slaves in the South was never fully resolved, leading to a wide
    range of laws governing the treatment of African Americans.
     Marriages between slaves were often arranged for optimal genetic reproduction.
     Slave families were often separated.
    Black Christianity
     Christian worship was an integral part of life in the slave quarters.
     Black Christianity often included aspects of Islamic and African religions.
     Black religious gatherings were usually forbidden unless a white overseer was
    present.
     For the white planters, religion became a type of social control.
    The Enduring Family
     Family relationships were central to the lives of most slaves.
     Slaves could draw love, protection, support, knowledge, and cultural identity from
    these extended families.
     Slaves often performed extra work to provide extra food and clothing for their
    families.
    Forms of Black Protest
     Daily acts of resistance might include breaking of tools, burning houses or crops,
    stealing food, self mutilation or simple work slowdowns.
     Females might fake sickness or menstrual cramps.
     The ultimate forms were murder or running away.

    You might also like