Reference no: EM133238918

Assignment:

Discussion

The history of North American slavery is complicated because it dramatically changed from the colonial era to the Civil War. Before European settlers colonized North America, a person of any skin color or religious persuasion could be a slave. For example, millions of Irish people were enslaved by the British over a period of several hundred years. The British brought many Irish slaves to the New World (including North America) in the earliest days of exploration and settlement. The "peculiar institution" eventually became a color based system but it did not start out that way.

The history of slavery is also complicated by the practice of indentured servitude. Indentured servants signed a contract that committed them to work for a master for a specific amount of time, usually 5-7 years in exchange for room and board and most often, passage to the New World. Indentured servants were considered slaves but on a temporary basis. Some masters treated their servants well, while others did not. The family that purchased indentures was as important to that servant's experience as anything else. The experience of indentured servants varied widely because of this reality.

White and black slaves often lived together in the same "slave quarters." This led to the blossoming of relationships between white and black slaves, which angered white land owning masters. When these relationships contributed to open rebellion, like with Bacon's Rebellion in Virginia, the elites took action and passed laws which curbed the liberties of free black people as well as black slaves, creating a division between white and black slaves as well as free white and black people. Gradually, the planters stopped importing white slaves and increased their dependence on black slaves.

In your primary sources there are a few different accounts on slavery and indentured servitude. For this discussion, please answer the questions (found at the end of each source) for the following sources:

Pg. 56-An Act Concerning Negroes and Other Slaves (1664), Pg. 59-Complaint of an Indentured Servant, Pg. 65-Olaudah Equiano on Slavery (1789), Pg. 70-Advertisements for Runaway Slaves and Servants (1738)

1. How are the experiences represented in all four sources different? How are they similar? Be SPECIFIC. Use examples.

2. How does reading all four of these sources give us a more complete understanding of the early American slave system?