JRC Assignment #1

The most important emotional knowledge communicated by slaves is fear. This can place a slave in a paralyzing moment. I believe this because a life without freedom isn’t a life worth living. Therefor desperate times call for desperate measures. When captured and put to work as a slave you will feel powerless, knowing that there is so many of them and only one of you. This shock can cause you to not care about anything because you have nothing more to loose. If you don’t try something you might as well be considered dead, if your not living the way you want.

“From The Interesting Narrative Of The Life Of Olaudah Equiano” Equiano is a character who looses everything and is taken from his village at the age of 11. His rights were taken from him and all the odds seem to be against him and yet he still has hope of some day getting home. I believe he knows little of how freedom feels because when he escaped, he was panicking even though he new he was free. It was as if that feeling of freedom was new to him, I guess the thought of being caught again tormented him inside. Being that he is far away from his home he turned right back into the hands of the people who mistreated him.

In Benjamin Banneker’s letter to Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin expresses the way he feels about slavery and how the world is against those of his complexion. In an educated yet respectful manner Benjamin states that he feels the president, Thomas Jefferson has chosen the wrong path and some how shows that he is much more of a man than he will ever be. He feels he has had enough of the mistreatment of his race, which has long labored under the abuse. This man is very religious; in fact I believe he practices monotheism. I know this because he states “that one universal Father hath given being to us all”("Banneker' s letter"). In other words, he feels every being is some how related and have connection to this universal father and cant quite understand why we are hurting family.

It’s hard to believe a world such as the one stated in my essay ever existed. Sometimes I find myself asking if these people ever questioned them selves, and put them selves in the slave’s position. If so, did they have any remorse?  Benjamin states that, “we have long been considered rather as brutish than as human”. How dare these people consider Benjamin’s race animals when in reality it is them, who are the animals. Such mistreatment; would only be done by animals. I am glad the world has come a long way since 1791. Life isn’t easy, and their life wasn’t easier. In other words, close your eyes, put your self in their shoes and walk in it for a while.