Difference between revisions of "HIST 131--Week 13 Questions/Comments"
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To Mary's question: Jefferson and the framers of the Constitution left out the issue of slavery primarily because they didn't want to deal with it. They didn't want to be responsible for creating a situation no one liked and pushed it off to the future generations to deal with, sort of like what Congress is doing with Social Security--they know they should get rid of it, but they don't want to. Douglass's pamphlet brought up some interesting points. He begins with the statement, "no man is guaranteed a right of property in man" (page 263). He then goes on to say that in his opinion, the slave system should be only in the hands of the South, where slavery is a basic way of life much like the North uses child labor or has degenerative factory conditions, and then the North ought to completely get rid of it. So it seems like to me, Douglass was in fact, by promoting the continuance of slavery in the South, potentially calling for the South to secede from the Union. -- Meganne Lemon | To Mary's question: Jefferson and the framers of the Constitution left out the issue of slavery primarily because they didn't want to deal with it. They didn't want to be responsible for creating a situation no one liked and pushed it off to the future generations to deal with, sort of like what Congress is doing with Social Security--they know they should get rid of it, but they don't want to. Douglass's pamphlet brought up some interesting points. He begins with the statement, "no man is guaranteed a right of property in man" (page 263). He then goes on to say that in his opinion, the slave system should be only in the hands of the South, where slavery is a basic way of life much like the North uses child labor or has degenerative factory conditions, and then the North ought to completely get rid of it. So it seems like to me, Douglass was in fact, by promoting the continuance of slavery in the South, potentially calling for the South to secede from the Union. -- Meganne Lemon | ||
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| + | I found it interesting that Douglas points out the hypocritical attitude that most Americans have about slavery. He attacks the contradictions in their speech and actions by saying that "when their own [white] liberty is in question they will avail themselves of all the rulse of law which protect and defent their freedom; but when the black man's rights are in question they concede to everything for slavery and put liberty to the proof." This argument is based on the rhetoric of democracy that so many white Americans used, but refused to apply to slavery. Therefore, his arguments are very strong. I also found it interesting when we learned in class that he had white sponsors who bought his and his family's freedom after the court ruling. -Iris Onks | ||
== Jefferson Davis and the Pro-Slavery view of the Constitution, Speech before US Senate, May 1860 == | == Jefferson Davis and the Pro-Slavery view of the Constitution, Speech before US Senate, May 1860 == | ||
