City College of San Francisco Twelve Years a Slave Book by Solomon Northup Essay

I’m working on a history report and need an explanation to help me learn.

Approximately 100 slave narratives werewritten by enslaved African-Americans before the Civil War (as well asmany that were written after slaves were freed after the war). Thesefirst-hand accounts of life under slavery provide valuable documentationabout the nature of racial slavery in the antebellum south. Over thenext two weeks, you will read excerpts from one such narrative, Twelve Years a Slave,written by Solomon Northup, a free African-American in New York, andillegally kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841. He was sold to aseries of owners in Louisiana and spent 12 years enslaved on a cottonplantation. His account provides a vivid and more personal account ofthe trends in antebellum slavery discussed in this week’s lesson.

• NOTE: The bookfeatures very vivid descriptions of physical and emotional abuse ofenslaved persons, so it may be hard to read at times. I assign this bookbecause it represents an important, and often neglected, voice on thesubject of slavery, and it is important to fully comprehend the realityof the institution that shaped so many Americans lives.

In this video, I provide step-by-step instructions on how to complete your paper, so definitely worth a watch before you begin!

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IMPORTANT INFO BELOW

• Read assigned selections from Solomon Northup, Twelve Years a Slave.

• • • You can also use a free online or e-book reader version through Project Gutenberg (Links to an external site.).
    • The book is also available as an audiobook—including a free audiobook version on YouTube.

• • I encourage you to read the whole book, but the minimum requirement is Chapters 3, 6-8, 12-14, and 16-18
  • If you choose not to read the whole book, read this brief introduction
  • Editdownload before you read the assigned chapters to give you the necessary background on the events of the beginning of the book.

• One of the main themes of Northup’s book is the way in which slavery was institutionalized throughout the entire southern society. Write a 3-4 page (double spaced) essay addressing this theme by analyzing 1-2 of the following prompt topics:
  1. One of Northup’s main goals in writingthis book is to encourage northerners to join the abolitionist movementto abolish slavery in the U.S. Toward this goal, he carefully detailedthe effect racial slavery had on enslaved people’s bodies, emotions,perspective, and lives, to present a vivid and accurate portrayal of thehorrors of slavery for white Americans who may not have witnessedslavery first-hand. How does Northup describe racial slavery’s effect onblack bodies, minds, goals, and dreams? (Note: Be specific! You mustprovide specific examples, quotes, and details from the book). On theother hand, how does Northup argue that slavery did NOT change enslavedpeople’s minds, goals, and dreams? What did you think would have beenthe most compelling aspect(s) of Northup’s account, for northern whitereaders? (Be sure to address ALL 3 questions if you chose this prompt)
  2. What laws, organizations, and socialcustoms does Northup mention helped maintain racial slavery inLouisiana? Discuss several specific examples, and analyze what thoseexamples tell us about antebellum slavery.
  3. It wasn’t only slave-owners who fueledracialized slavery. Non-slaveholders and poor whites also had a vestedinterest in continuing slavery, even when it did not directly benefitthem through free labor. In what ways were all white members ofSouthern society complicit in the system of slavery, whether they ownedslaves or not? What evidence from the assigned chapters can you cite tosupport your conclusions?
  4. In several places in his book, Northupcalls attention to the intersection of race, gender, and violence byhighlighting the exploitation of enslaved women. What can we learn aboutthis intersection from the stories of Eliza and Patsey? How did theinstitution of racial slavery effect various women in Northup’s book?
  5. At the end of chapter 14, Northupargues: “It is not the fault of the slaveholder that he is cruel, somuch as it is the fault of the system under which he lives.” Whatargument is Northup making? Really think critically about this quote—heis NOT excusing slaveowners’ behavior. What is the context in which hemakes this statement, and what is he really saying? Note:This is the most challenging prompt question, requiring deep analysisand understanding this quote in context of all the assigned readingselections, not just the couple pages surrounding it. There is a lot toexplore in this topic, but it is the most challenging to do well, so ifyou’re looking for an easier/quicker paper to write, I suggest picking adifferent prompt.

• Upload your paper by hitting the red “Submit Assignment” button at the top of this page and following the instructions.

• • You can compose your essay in whateverword processing program you choose: Word, Pages, Google docs, text, etc.However, only Word Document and PDF files can be uploaded, so if youuse a program besides Word, please save your document as a PDF beforeuploading it.
  • Reminder: Compose your assignment offline and save a copy for the semester.

Paper Requirements

• Essays must be a minimum of 3 full pages, double spaced, in 12 point Times New Roman font.Papers shorter than the minimum page requirement will not receive fullcredit. There is no penalty for papers longer than the page requirement(write as much as you need to in order to make your argument well!)
• Essays should include an introductionand conclusion, contain a clear organizational structure, and provideevidence from the reading to back up your argument.
• Your essay MUST include specific examples fromthe assigned chapters to support the claims or arguments you make. Youshould also incorporate relevant information from the weekly lessonand/or textbook to support your argument, and to draw connectionsbetween the personal experiences Northup recounts and the broader trendsin antebellum slavery discussed in this class.
• You may not use any sources in writing your paper outside of the assigned readings, course textbook, and class lesson material. DONOT use the internet as a source for your paper. Your papers will bechecked with anti-plagarism software when you submit it. Any copying ofideas or information from an internet source will be considered copy writing and will result in an F on the paper.
• You MUST provide citations for all direct quotes you use from the readings. At the end of the quote, use the following citation style:
  • If you read the physical book, cite the page number: (Northup, page #)
  • If you listened to the audiobook, youcan cite either the time of the quote you use, or simply cite thechapter the quote is from: (Northup, 1:39:05) OR (Northup, Chapter 7).
  • If you read the ebook, cite the chapter: (Northup, Chapter 7)
  • Papers not citing sources will docked points.
  • You do not need to provide a Works Cited page.