Reference no: EM133351983

1. One historian, Curtis Harris, described the frequency of sexual violence on plantations. He argues that "[the] basic formulation of the slave code in the United States allowed for, even encouraged, the abuse of black women by white men." Describe on specific instance in Douglass' narrative that supports this argument. Explain the reasons why sexual violence was used as a tool by white slaveowners.

2. In the final chapters of his narrative Douglass says, "I have found that, to make a contented slave, it is necessary to make a thoughtless one. It is necessary to darken his moral and mental vision, and, as far as possible, to annihilate the power of reason." Support, refute, or qualify this statement using evidence from the book.

3. Historian Eric Foner wrote that "Resistance to slavery took many forms in the Old South, from individual acts of defiance to occasional uprisings. These actions posed a constant challenge to the slaveholders' self-image as benign paternalists." Describe one method of slave resistance that Douglass addresses in his narrative and explain the role that slave resistance played on southern plantations.

4. Historian Eric Foner wrote that even non-slaveholders played many roles in supporting systems of white supremacy and slavery. Describe one incident or conflict in the book where Douglass found his life negatively impacted by non-slave owners. Using this evidence explain how non-slaveholding whites were complicit in the perpetuation of slavery.

5. In your opinion, was chattel slavery more of an economic institution or a social institution? Use specific evidence from the book to support your argument. Fully explain your answer.

6. When describing his life in slavery Douglass argues, "Were I to be again reduced to the chains of slavery, next to that enslavement, I would regard being the slave of a religious master the greatest calamity that could befall me. For of all slaveholders with whom I have ever met, religious slaveholders are the worst." Describe in detail at least one incident in The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass that led to Douglass developing this opinion.