Forgive the poor grammar.
Report by Matthew Havens.

To Be A Slave

The book deals with the lives of slaves and their masters. Early in the colonization of North America and South America, good, cheap labor was needed to help establish Europe’s colonies. White people could not be turned to as slaves because they could run away, change their names, and start a new life. Indians could not be slaves because they were susceptible to European diseases. Europeans turned to Africans because they were resistant to disease and the supply of them was inexhaustible. Africans were brought to the America’s on slave ships, White men would go to Africa and spend a few weeks capturing Africans, cramming them in the ship’s hold, and making sure that every available square inch of space on the ship held an African. During the voyages to the Americas, many Africans on the ship died from disease, starvation, suicide, and suffocation from the hulls low air supply. Africans were sold into slavery as soon as they reached the Americas. Some were sent to South America and the Caribbean Islands, others, however, were sent to North America. Slave owners in North America were the most cruel. They did everything they could to brutalize the slaves, control them, and erase their African traditions and ideas. Slaves in South America and the Caribbean Islands were generally treated better than those in North America. A slave’s life was filled with back-breaking chores and duties. The year began with hoeing the fields for cotton, and spreading the seeds. During the year, slaves had to keep the field’s soil loose and free of weeds. When harvesting came, slaves had to pick at least two hundred pounds of cotton everyday. If they picked less than two hundred pounds, they were whipped. If they picked more than two hundred pounds, they would have to pick that same amount the next day. Slaves had little or no breaks during the day. If a slave was caught slacking, he or she was whipped. Slaves had to work no matter what the reason. In one instance, a trough was built to hold the slaves’ babies during the day of labor. A thunderstorm occurred during the day and when the mothers got back to the trough, the babies were floating in it, drowned. Families were often separated in the slavery days. White slave owners and traders would sell a husband, but not a wife, a child but not a parent, and the separated family members would never get to see each other again. Some whites used blacks as “breeders.” They would encourage the slaves to procreate rapidly so that they could sell their babies when they turned two or three years old. In one instance, a mother who had had five children sold away from her by her master poisoned her two-month old baby rather than letting it suffer through an auction and a life of slavery. Slaves did their best to escape the troubles of the day. Blacks turned to Jesus as someone who knew their troubles because He was persecuted like they were. They turned to religion, praying and singing their troubles away. They would have secret meetings in the woods to dance and talk with slaves from other plantations. When freedom came, many ex-slaves did not know what to do as free men. Work was scarce for most blacks, and many had to continue working on their old master’s farm. Blacks were un-educated and did not know how to find good jobs. When blacks were successful, whites would not acknowledge them. Many blacks were killed by the Ku Klux Klan. Jim Crow laws and the Ku Klux Klan prevented blacks from being equal to whites. The analysis of the book hints at its purpose.

The purpose of the book was to educate readers on the history of slavery and prejudice. Writing on this subject is important because it offers a view of what slaves had to endure. The story relates to readers today in many ways. Prejudice still exists in the United States today. African traditions have been almost totally abolished in this country, whereas in South America and the Caribbean Islands it flourishes. The book gives an insight of African culture and traditions and tells how slaves used their cultural background to cope with slavery. African language is very musical and slaves made English musical too, in their own ways. In African language, an expression said in a different tone can have a different meaning than when it is said in another tone. Slaves blended their cultures into Christianity to ease the burdens of slavery. The author’s message is that slavery is wrong. He stressed the fact that slaves had to endure many hardships. He gave examples of what slaves felt about slavery. Many slaves tried to escape slavery, some would rather die than to continue being slaves. The purpose of the book was clearly defined by the author.

The author tried to be as informative and accurate as he could. The author used information from thousands of documents taken from books, universities, and the Library of Congress. The author can write on this subject because he was well informed and unbiased. He told the true story of a slave’s life. He presented the information by explaining facts and supporting them with stories told by slaves. The way the author presented and chose the ideas for his book help to determine the evaluation and recommendation.

The evaluation and recommendation for the story is based on its contents. The book is easy to read. There are few words that are difficult to read or understand. The information in the story is presented in a clear and concise manner. This book would be recommended to friends who want a detailed and accurate account on the lives of slaves. The book is worthy because it is accurate in its presentation of information. The author went through pain-staking efforts to gather the best information possible. The information presented in the book came from accounts told by real ex-slaves. To Be A Slave is enjoyable to read because it tells of an important part of American history. The book is creditable because of the source of its subject matter. The information in the book comes from other non-fiction books, universities, and the Library of Congress. The ideas presented in the book are unbiased. The author gave no opinions and tried to be as realistic as possible. To Be A Slave vividly describes the cruel and inhumane sufferings that blacks had to endure during the days before and after the Civil War, as well as the economic impact they had on the South’s agriculture. The information is accurate, and should be read by everyone over ten years old to understand more about America’s past.

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