What role did violence play in the slave society? What forms did this violence take?

Violence takes a big toll in this movie. Some forms of violence that takes place are whipping, beating, and hanging. Sometimes slaves are beaten even when they did nothing wrong. When Solomon was working under Mr. Ford, Tibeats tried to beat Solomon but Solomon quickly took his belt away from him and started whipping Tibeats with it. During Tibeats' beating, he kept apologizing to Solomon but as soon as Solomon stopped beating him he immediately threatened to murder him with whatever it takes. The next day, Solomon was dragged by Tibeats and his men in which they hung him until he had almost died. It was not until a worker came to his rescue and informed Tibeats that he could not kill Solomon for he did not pay for him. When Solomon was working under Mr. Epps, he was given an order to retrieve Patsey who had ran away. The reason for her disappearance was because she went to get a tiny bar of soap from Mistress Epps. From working in the sun all day and feeling filthy, the least she wanted was to feel sort of clean. Because of the sudden runaway, Mr. Epps was extremely furious and instructed Solomon to whip Patsey but he did not have the heart to so Mr. Epps decided to do it on his own. Many of these violent actions take place due to the other party not being able to control their fury and that is how they take out their anger.

Patsey showing Mr. Epps the soap

What chances did enslaved African-Americans have of obtaining permanent freedom through revolt or escape?

Slaves had a little to nothing chance of escaping or revolting against their master. They will always be discriminated against, in which at that time could not have a say in that kind of situation. Even if they said they were free, they could win against the white people's words. Just like Solomon, he kept insisting that he was a free man in the state of New York and that he even has papers to prove it, but he was kidnapped to Georgia and Georgia was not a free state. Therefore, he involuntarily became a slave. Two white men earned Solomon's trust but only one of them did not let him down. The first man he trusted was named Armsby and he totally betrayed Solomon with little to no doubt in his mind, even after he swore he would not tell on his honor. Solomon requested him to deliver a letter to his family in New York in which he would write. Soon enough, Armsby told Mr. Epps who dragged Solomon from his sleep to ask about this situation. Solomon came up with a clever alibi by explaining to Mr. Epps that he would not be able to write with no ink or pen and that Armsby is a drunken man who does not know what he is saying. The second man who had Solomon's trust name is Bass. Bass was a man who was building a little house for Mr. Epps and he is a righteous person who thinks that slaves are just as equal as any other person. He actually got into a bit of an argument with Mr. Epps due to his belief that slaves are human beings too. But of course, Mr. Epps ferociously disagreed and called slaves baboons. Solomon requested that Bass would deliver a letter for him to New York and Bass hesitated but for someone's freedom he was willing to risk himself. In the end, Solomon had free papers thanks to Bass and was free from being a slave. 

Solomon and Bass

How do changes in ownership affect working and living conditions?

When Solomon Northup was working under a slave owner named, William Ford, Mr. Ford treated him with respect. Mr. Ford made sure his slaves were well fed and got enough rest. A worker who was working under Mr. Ford named, Tibeats, despised Solomon.They would get extremely angry at almost anything Solomon did, even if Solomon did it correctly. At one point, Solomon had enough of the beating for an unreasonable purpose so he started to whip Tibeats in which it resulted in fury in both parties. Because he hated Solomon so much that he was capable of murdering him, Mr. Ford sent Solomon away to another master because he wanted to save his life. Actually, Solomon had almost been murdered because he was hung on a rope for an extended period of time. However, Tibeats had no right to Solomon's life because he did not purchase him. The master Solomon was sent to next is named Edwin Epps and he was very harsh and cruel, but he was the only one willing to take him in. Mr. Epps was probably one of the worst slave owners out there. He made his slaves work five times as hard as Mr. Ford. He picked favorites and they were usually women. Mr. Epps forced people to pick hundreds of cotton in a day with no rest. If the slave had picked less than expected, then that slave would get a beating. Working and living conditions really depend on the slave owners because personalities vary. 

Cotton Picking

Slave Narrative

Maryland Narrative:
Charles Coles

Summary:
Charles Coles was a slave owned by Mr. Dorsey. Although Charles Coles was a slave, he sure did not feel like it due to Mr. Dorsey's pleasant actions. He treated the slaves with care and even gave them medical attention when they were ill. Mr. Dorsey was liked by many and kind so people enjoyed his company.

Analysis/Reflection Section:
Mr. Dorsey was viewed as a kind master that actually treated slaves like human beings. He must have been liked by his slaves because there were not any cases of any of them trying to flee from his farm.

Maryland

Religion in Early 1800s

Great Second Awakening 
The Second Great Awakening is the repeat of the Great Awakening that occurred during the 19th century in the United States. It is a religious revival movement that altered the American religion. Millions of people were joining the movement. The Second Great Awakening also established many other movements. The following were 4 forms of Christianity that were growing rapidly in the 1800s: Baptists, Methodists, Unitarians, and Mormons.

Baptists are people who practice Baptism.

• Believes in God
• Baptism is a religious ritual in which water is gently sprayed onto a person's forehead. By doing so, it is supposed to be a form of purification.

Methodists were inspired by John Wesley, George Whitefield, and Charles Wesley(John Wesley's brother).

• Practices logical reasoning
• Believes God exists as 3 people

Unitarians are people who believe that God is one person.

• Believed that Jesus was a good man and a prophet of God
• Believed that God may be a supernatural being 

Mormons are people who are part of a religious movement called Latter Day Saint movement which is a collection of church groups.

• Believes that God may be among them physically
• Some of their beliefs can be found in the Bible

Presbyterian:

• Represented by elders
• Uses some of John Calvin's teachings
• Historically a confessional tradition

Congregational:

• Believes they originated from theologian Robert Browe
• Believes in improving intelligence
• Were largely established in Plymouth Colony and MA Bay Colony

Baptist Symbol

John Wesley Preaching

John Wesley was preaching because the local townspeople were trying to make him stop attempting to convert people into Methodism. 

Book of Mormon

Tecumseh Speech

Two Themes:

In the speech, Tecumseh is trying to persuade the Osages to work with him to eliminate the white people by demonstrating teamwork and determination. Joining alliances is a theme shown in the speech. Tecumseh wanted to work with the Osages. He says, "We are friends, we must assist each other to bear our burdens." By helping each other out, they will be able to take down the white people. The second theme is determination. Tecumseh is determined to kill the white people. He states, "We will cause the rivers to stain the great waters with their blood." He is persistent on destroying them. Two themes in Tecumseh's speech is teamwork and determination and Tecumseh expresses those themes throughout the speech.

Tecumseh

A Theme in Relation to a Song: 

The song, "Count on Me," by Bruno Mars is a good song to demonstrate the joining of alliances. Bruno Mars sings, "You can count on me like 1, 2, 3, I'll be there." That means that Bruno has that person's back. He will always be there when he is needed. In Tecumseh's speech, he speaks about uniting with the Osages. This means he will always stay loyal and will not betray them because he wants to defeat the white people. Bruno's song is a nice song about friendship in which Tecumseh was trying to form with the Osages.

Album Cover