Confluences of Pre-Civil War Literature - Term Paper Example

Confluences of Pre-Civil War Literature Introduction The period 1840-1855 is an important period in the history of America, both in literary development and in the reawakening of the perception of slavery. The period 1840-1855 has been classified as the New England Renaissance period, which featured the Transcendentalism and Anti-Transcendentalism literary movements (Stobaugh, 136). These two literary movements relate to a period when the spirituality of man became an important subject in literature, and thus the focus of many works of literature during the period touched on the relationship between the spirituality of man and nature. Transcendentalism focused on the fundamental idea of all humans becoming spiritually united, stressing on the need for the unity between God and man by holding that all men are a microcosm for the world (Stobaugh, 147). On the other hand, the Anti-Transcendentalism movement which also arose during the same period stressed on the need to focus on the limitations of mankind, and the destructive potential held of mankind on the human spirit (Stobaugh, 155). In this respect, while Transcendentalism recognized the need for all humans to be united in one spirit regardless of their diversity in culture, religion, race or status in the society, the Anti-Transcendentalism recognized that mankind holds the destructive potential that can wipe-out the ability of the human spirit to converge (Stobaugh, 137). Therefore, the period 1840-1855 was a period of literary reawakening that started to view all humans as equal, and started to stress on the need for all people to be treated equally despite their differences in race, status, beliefs and other social characterizations that divided the society into various cadres (Stobaugh, 172). Similarly, the period 1840-1855 is a period when the historical reawakening on the relevance of freedom in America was taking place, and thus the need to relook the human relationships emerged more strongly, especially in regards to the issue of slavery. Thus, while the Transcendentalism and Anti-Transcendentalism literary movement was taking shape, the anti-slavery agitation started to take shape gradually in different quarters of the American society (Stobaugh, 181). Both the Transcendentalism and Anti-Transcendentalism movements brought with them concept of self-reliance, which stressed on the need to reject the prevalence of the traditional authority. The concept of self-reliance stressed the need for individualism, where each person would be treated as an individual human being with unique personal interests, as opposed to being forced to conform to the societal norms and authority. It is the reawakening that was created by these two literary movements that transformed into a critical society focus, raising questions regarding the manner in which slaves were treated by their masters. Consequently, the Transcendentalism and Anti-Transcendentalism movements gave rise to a new wave of anti-slavery literature development, where both the scholars and the religious leaders started creating works of literature that included poems, novels, books and essays that focused on the need to have the slaves treated like normal human beings (Stobaugh, 177). Therefore, this discussion seeks to assess five basic works of literature that were developed during the period 1840-1855, with a view to establishing what ideas came together during the fifteen-year time frame, and in what ways these ideas were expressed by these works of literature. Discussion The New England Renaissance period 1840-1855 represents a period when America started focusing deeply on the humanity aspect, most especially in relation to the needs for freedom of equality and self-sufficiency for all people (Stobaugh, 137). This literary focus was motivated by the increased reawakening of the people that characterized the 19th century, during which the previous societal norms such as slavery and traditional authority started being challenged. In raising the need for freedom of equality, the issue of slavery was high in the list, owing to the fact that the Americans had started appreciating that slaves were equally humans who had similar needs for respect, love, recognition and appreciation. The religious wave that swept through America during the New England Renaissance period 1840-1855 focuses on the unitarian state of all souls towards God, where the unity of the soul could only be realized through having all people treated equally. The need for equal treatment of all people has been addressed through selected five readings that were developed during this period, which were addressing the issue of slavery, bringing into the forefront all the evils and the dehumanizing conditions that were associated with slavery. Thus, the five selected readings have the subject of slavery as the fundamental issue of discussion. These readings takes different forms, such as poetry, novel, essays , books and chapters of a book, all of which converge in their focus on the ills of slavery to the human soul. The selected list of the works of literature for the New England Renaissance period 1840-1855 that are analyzed under this discussion are “The Slaves Dream” 1842, “Narrative of the life” 1845, “Resistance to Civil Government” 1849, “Uncle Toms Cabin” 1852 and “The Mothers Struggle” of 1852. “The Slaves Dream”, 1842 The first work of literature addressing the slavery issue, which was developed earlier in the period 1840-1855 is the “The Slaves Dream” a poem by Henry Longfellow that was published in 1842 (Longfellow, n.p.). The poem focused on the slavery experiences in America. This poem reflected on the fictional dream of a slave enduring the harsh and dehumanizing conditions of slavery in America, and longing for the freedom and beautiful life that he could be living back in Africa. The dreaming slave longs to be back home to rejoin his family, longing for the love of his wife and children back home. Even though all that happens in a dream, the slave ends up shedding tears, and the tears drop down to the sand on which he was laying atop (Longfellow, n.p.). The situation envisaged by the slave is that of a world in Africa where the wild animals such lions and Hyenas roam freely, but the roaming wild animals, which are potentially dangerous, are better for the slave to interact with compared to the situation he is facing in America. America is a land where the slave cannot experience love. It is a foreign land where he cannot have a family of his own. The slave longs for going back to his family, where they “clasped his neck, they kissed his cheeks, they held him by the hand!” (Longfellow, n.p.). It is this imagery of a tender family that is devoted to this slave that sharply contrasts with his current situation, since while he would be highly appreciated and regarded with high esteem back at home; there is neither appreciation nor humane consideration in the foreign land. The “The Slaves Dream” is a poem of freedom, where back in Africa freedom reigns and there is absolutely nothing that does not accentuate the free movements, including the animals, mountains, people, the rivers and every aspect of the African continent that makes a slave in a America become a celebrated prince back in Africa. In developing this poem, Henry Longfellow was bowing down to the literary development of the period 1840-1855, where the concept of humanity and free spirit dominated the literary period. The poems concurs with the Transcendentalism and Anti-Transcendentalism movements regard for self-sufficiency, where people should no longer conform to the social pressures or even the traditional authority, but rather set to a free world where they are the microcosm for the world (Stobaugh, 147). In the presentation of the fictional dream, Henry Longfellow is equally agitating for the recognition of all humans as equal in terms of their need for freedom, love and appreciation, which is what the slave dreamer in the poem unfortunately lacks in America, and thus can only experience it back in Africa in form of a dream. The slave is startled by the mere possibility of a free life, devoid of the chains and limitations that the slaves were exposed to in America during the period. In his unconscious mind, the primitive jungle of Africa would be many times better with its freedom, than a civilized world where freedom is denied (Longfellow, n.p.). The slave desires to be abandoned in the free jungle where “the forests, with their myriad tongues shouted of liberty” compared to the life he is currently experiencing as a slave (Longfellow, n.p.). Nevertheless, even before the dreamer slave could finish enjoying his dream, he is awakened by the whipping of the slave driver, and his desires and longings for a world of freedom is instantly shattered by the reality of the slavery life that entails being whipped by the slave drivers, while also being worked through the heat of the day without the freedom to protest the mistreatments. Once again, the concept of the mankind destructive potential for the soul, which was introduced by the Anti-Transcendentalism movements of the period 1840-1855, has been revisited by Henry Longfellow in the poem, “The Slaves Dream”, where slave has now become a “worn-out fetter that the soul had broken and thrown away!” (Longfellow, n.p.). There is relationship between the description of the broken soul in Henry Longfellow’s poem and the mankind destructive potential for the soul as the major focus of the Anti-Transcendentalism movements of the period 1840-1855. The relationship is that; the slave drivers in the poem possess the destructive potential for breaking the soul of the slaves, by ruthlessly driving them through work and also whipping them, while denying them any form of freedom. The focus of the analysis of the poem “The Slaves Dream” by Henry Longfellow as a work of literature that was developed during the fifteen-year period 1840-1855, is to respond to the questions; what ideas come together during this time, and in what ways? Thus, starting with the first question, it is apparent that the idea that comes out of the poem is that slavery was a devastating experience for the slaves, which was capable of breaking down their soul and make their body’s lifeless (Longfellow, n.p.). Despite the fact that Henry Longfellow has presented the slave experiences in form of a dream, there is no doubt that the dream has been able to portray the great desire for freedom that slaves had during this period, while at the same time expressing the cruelty and dehumanizing conditions that the slaves were going through. The concept of self-reliance that was the fundamental principle developed by the 1840-1855 period literature has also been brought out as missing in the lives of the slaves, who are not in a position work on their own, but have to be driven by the slave drivers. Additionally, the slaves cannot establish a family of their own as they would have done back in Africa, but they must outlive the desire for a family that appreciate or respect them. The dehumanizing condition of the slave life was both a function of worn-out bodies from hard labor as a well as a broken soul achieved through severe punishments, such as whipping and denial of essential freedoms. “Narrative of the life” 1845 The other work of literature that represents the slavery focus of the New England Renaissance period 1840-1855 is “Narrative of the life” of 1845 by Frederick Douglass, covering the real life of this author from the time he was born of a slave family, until his adulthood when he was able to escape to freedom from the South (Douglass, n.p.). Frederick Douglass was born at around 1817 or 1818, and this confusion is characteristic of all slavery births which were neither documented nor paid attention to. Douglass could not have known his date of birth, since the only person who could have probably remembered the date of his birth was gone so soon, since Douglas “never saw my mother…more than four or five times” (Douglass, n.p.). Additionally, he did not know his father, since his mother was separated from him just before he could turn 12 months old and later died when he was only 7 years, having had no close contact with him that would have enabled him to ask about the identity of his father (Douglass, n.p.). The life of slavery is characterized by brutal and inhumane conditions such as insufficient food, little clothing, and overworking of the slaves to exhaustion (Douglass, n.p.). Punishment is also a common factor for all slaves whether they have broken the rule or not, since all slaves must be subjected to whipping, but sometimes the punishment is more cruel since it may entail killing the slaves in cold blood such as shooting them (Douglass, n.p.). Slaves were never considered humans by any means, and “killing a slave, or any colored person in Talbot county, Maryland, is not treated as a crime” (Douglass, n.p.). One of the overseers in the plantation of the master where Douglass was initially a slave, Mr. Gore, was such an example to the slaves, since he did not stop to think twice if he thought that killing was the best punishment for a slave. At one instant, he simply drew his gun and shot Demby, one of the slaves that he considered to be hard to manage simply for running away to hide after being whipped. Such cruelty was not exceptional to Mr. Gore, but to all slave masters and slave overseers, who had the right to treat the slaves as they deemed appropriate. However, Douglass was much lucky compared to other slaves, since as a child he worked in household chores, and later was given out to an urban slave owner, where the treatment of slaves were not as cruel as the case was in the field plantations. At first, when he was brought to the home of the urban slave owner, Douglass was treated kindly by the wife of the slave owner, Sophia Auld, who had not kept a slave before (Douglass, n.p.). This enabled her to remain kind initially, such that she even started teaching Douglass how to write, until her husband prohibited it, observing that giving slaves some education was making them unmanageable. Nevertheless, the short stint of kindness that Douglass enjoyed from Sophia enabled him to enlighten, realizing that there were numerous evils that are associated with slavery, while also realizing that there is an abolitionist movement in the North America that fought against slavery (Douglass, n.p.). It is this enlightenment that enabled Douglass to plan and run away from slavery in the Southern Baltimore to freedom in the North, where he was able to establish himself as an enlightened ex-slave and was therefore able to write and have his first book in form of an autobiography published in 1841 (Douglass, n.p.). The walk to freedom from Baltimore to the North was the best walk of Douglass’ life, since with it came a chance to escape from the death of cruelty, since in the South “it was worth a half-cent to kill a "nigger" (Douglass, n.p.). Nevertheless, the most horrible of all experiences that Douglass had to experience was that of property valuation by his masters, where he and other slaves were counted among the property that the masters owned, and among the property were other animals such as cows, sheep, goats and pigs, which were all accorded the same value like the human slaves (Douglass, n.p.). The other horrid experience that Douglass can still recount, other than for the coldblooded killings, assaults, battery and the whipping of slaves he witnessed, is the condemnation of her grandmother who had outlived all her masters and their children into a life of loneliness to a forest, where she was to live in a mud hut and fend for herself at that age (Douglass, n.p.). The condemnation of her grandmother to a lonely life in the forest where she could see none of her children, grand children and great grandchildren was terrible enough, compared to the lifetime she had lived to witness her children and their descendants being divided and shared among the slaves in the manner their white masters pleased. The contrast of religion and slavery is yet another important aspect that emerges from Douglass’s narration of his experience as a slave. He was a slave of Captain Auld, who at one point attended a religious Methodist camp-meeting and got converted to Christianity (Douglass, n.p.). Douglass and the rest of the slaves expected that out of it, their master would change and become more kind or considerate towards the slaves, most probably even declare slave emancipation for them. However, the result was directly opposite of their expectations, since their master became even more cruel, too much mean and grossly unhappy than he was before. This aspect brings the concept of religion that was the major focus of the New England Renaissance 1840-1855 into the forefront (Stobaugh, 162). The concept of religion has been portrayed in a way that serves to show that religion had not managed to transform the society during this period to achieve the desired unity of souls. The New England Renaissance 1840-1855 period was a period of reawakening the interest in freedom of equality for all people regardless of their race, religion or status in the society (Stobaugh, 149). Thus, the “Narrative of the life” 1845 by Frederick Douglass is a literary work that was developed in response to the reawakening of this historical period, targeting at bringing out the social evil of slavery, and the manner in which slavery was killing the souls of the slaves. The Anti-Transcendentalism 1840-1855 movement was a movement that focused on the destructive potential of mankind on human spirit (Stobaugh, 136). This concept has been revisited once again by the personal account of Frederick Douglass’s slave experience, where he observes that the sole intention of the white masters separating the slave children from their mothers was “to hinder childs affection toward its mother and to destroy the natural affection of the mother for the child” (Douglass, n.p.). This is one aspect of the destructive potential of mankind on the human spirit, since the masters destroyed the spirits of both the slaves and their children through separating them at a tender age before they attained the age of 12 months. Therefore, the personal account of Frederick Douglass in the “Narrative of the life” 1845 has been collaborated by Henry Longfellow’s “The Slaves Dream” 1842, which contends that cruel and inhuman treatment of the slaves was simply meant to wore out their bodies, while also breaking down their spirit (Douglass, n.p.). “Resistance to Civil Government”, 1849 The argument by Thoreau that government is an impediment to the exercise of the free will of the people in his 1849 lecture, “Resistance to Civil Government”, is a reflection of the perception that the social institutions have not been able to address the importance of giving priority to individual conscience over the dictates of the law (Thoreau, 5). Thus, the concept of freedom and equality of all, which was the main focus of the New England Renaissance 1840-1855 literary period has been revisited again under this reading, with the intention of showing that the traditional social policies that denied individuals the essential right to freedom such as slavery, has done nothing but ruin the society (Thoreau, 7). The Mexican war has been presented as an example of an area under which the government policies can be misused by the few individuals who are in power, in order to deny the rest of the society their basic rights, eventually resulting in an unnecessary war (Thoreau, 5). The social ills mostly perpetrated in the society are as a result of policies that empower the majority in the society over the minorities, not because they hold the most legitimate viewpoint, but simply because they are the strongest group (Thoreau, 6). Thus, slavery is one of the devastating social ills that has affected the American society, based on the fact that the majority group, who were the whites, were empowered to dominate over the minority group that consisted of the blacks and the people of color. This strong group empowerment caused the voice of the slaves, which was legitimate, to be ignored, since the majority and strong group was controlling the instruments of power in the government, thus shaped the policies in a way that favored the interest of the majority (Thoreau, 12). The “Resistance to Civil Government”, argues for the agitation of the right to freedom, by holding that whenever the government in power is unjust, then people should react by distancing themselves from this government, while at the same time refusing to follow the laws that are dictated by the government (Thoreau, 22). The perpetration of injustice does not set a country free, and neither does it educate the society nor settle a country from controversy and possible conflicts, but rather serves to breed civil unrest that would eventually disintegrate a society (Thoreau, 6). Thoreau’s argument is that the American government is unjust due to its support or rather condoning of slavery, as well as due its support for aggressive wars against the minority and those who are perceived as less strong in the society (Thoreau, 27). While democratic processes such as voting and petitioning are meant to achieve and install fairness in the society, these processes are not in any way effective. This is because, the few individuals in the position of power are able to manipulate and take advantage of the majority in the society to establish policies of unfairness, which might be unfavorable for the wider society, but suitable for the majority. Thoreau demonstrates his own practical approach to addressing injustice in the society, through an example where he protested slavery in America by refusing to pay his taxes and in return, he was jailed for a night (Thoreau, 19). Standing up for justice in the society is the only way through which the society can be transformed. This is because, transformation in the society has been promised time and time again, but the outcome has always been the transmission of the traditional government into the future, with the promised transformation only happening in newspapers but not in the hearts of men (Thoreau, 16). Through distancing oneself from the government, one can be able to see the government for what it is, but whoever is working in the government cannot agitate for the change of the government. In this respect, Thoreau’s 1849 “Resistance to Civil Government” lecture echoes the fundamental concept of the right to freedom for all people. This was the basis of the New England Renaissance period 1840-1855 that focused on the creation of reawakening on the importance of humanity aspect of equality for all (Stobaugh, 172). The rights to freedom advocated for by Thoreau and the equality of all that was the focus of the Transcendentalism movement 1840-1855, are based on the fact that the conscience or the human spirit is the most important element that needs to be set free if the true freedom and equality of all is to be achieved. Thus, Thoreau argues that defeating slavery can be effectively achieved if the slave holders would distance themselves from the evil of slavery and participate in fighting it, as opposed to expecting others to fight it from outside. This is simply because those inside it will not see the social evil of slavery (Thoreau, 21). In this respect, Thoreau’s lecture agrees with the first two readings which hold that slavery is a battle that was won by injuring and defeating the spirit of the slaves. Thoreau observes that with a defeated conscience, transformation and liberation can never occur (Thoreau, 16). “Uncle Toms Cabin”, 1852 The reading, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” is a novel that echoes the need for unitary spirit as the basis for ending slavery, as was advocated for by The New England Renaissance 1840-1855 (Stobaugh, 137). The reading majorly focuses on the role of Christianity in changing the mind and hearts of the supporters and perpetrators of slavery and slave trade, such that they eventually get transformed and get rid of slavery by freeing the slaves. Uncle Tom and his family were living with a slave master that was not as cruel as the rest of the slave masters, but his fate comes when his master decided to sell him to a ruthless slave trader, together with the son of the maid that had served the master for many years (Stowe, n.p.). When Eliza realizes that Uncle Tom’s family and also her son are to be sold to a slave trader, she decides to run away to the North and eventually to Canada with her son. However, she did not do that without first warning Uncle Tom of the impending sale, which leaves him totally devastated. Nevertheless, Uncle Tom is a good religious man, and he becomes infectious with his goodness and his Christian values while he is on the boat being transported to the slave market, such that he gains the favor of Eva, a young white girl who was traveling with his father in the boat (Stowe, n.p.). The friendship that develops between Uncle Sam and Eva causes him to save Eva and her father when they fell into the ocean when the boat they were travelling in had problems. Thus Eva’s father opts to buy Sam as his slave, after realizing that he was a good man with strong Christian values. When at the home of Augustine, Uncle Sam develops a close Christian connection with Eva, until she dies after succumbing to illness, but he had already made a mark on her (Stowe, n.p.). The death of Eva affected his family who now realized the value of Christianity and thus decides to set Tom free from slavery, only that he is accidentally killed before he can accomplish this mission. This causes Uncle Tom to find way into the hands of other cruel slave owners who mistreat him to his death. Meanwhile, Eliza and her son had managed to find their way to the North and eventually to Canada, despite being trailed by the slave owner who had bought Harry from her slave master (Stowe, n.p.). Eliza is coincidentally able to reunite with her husband and her mother, and together they cultivate Christian values in the slave holder who was trailing them until he is fully changed, and thus decided to go back to the South and free all the other slaves he owned in honor of Uncle Tom and his Christian values (Stowe, n.p.). Thus, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” has been able to demonstrate the practical application of the unity of spirits as the fundamental concept that was advocated by The New England Renaissance 1840-1855. This has been realized through the novel managing to show that Christianity/religion is the basis that can bring the human spirits to unity. The unity of the human spirits enable people of different status, races and backgrounds to reason together and adapt the common good for all, as opposed to opting for what would favor the majority (Stobaugh, 185). “The Mothers Struggle”, 1852 The “Mother’s struggle”, is a chapter in the novel “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” by Harriet Stowe that specifically covers the journey of Eliza and her son Harry, who are slaves on their journey to escape from their master’s attempt to sell them (Stowe, 82). They have embarked on the journey to free from slavery by crossing to the North from Kentucky. The journey is marred by numerous challenges despite the fact that both Eliza and her son are light skinned enough to pass as whites. The sharp contrast that arises in this narration is that slavery is a deeper social evil that does not even care to distinguish the physical appearance of the individuals, rather focusing on discriminating people based on their race. Eliza and Harry are trailed by Mr. Haley, the slave trader who had bought Uncle Tom and Harry from the Shelby’s home (Stowe, 90). Uncle Tom had been forced to join Mr. Haley to trail Eliza and his son, although he was trying to distract Mr. Haley through delaying him and also causing him to follow the wrong road. Nevertheless, they are to appear where Eliza had sought refuge just a few moments after she had laid his son to rest (Stowe, 85). Mr. Haley is banking on the fact that Uncle Tom is a man of high Christian values, and thus believes he will help him trail Eliza. Eliza is therefore forced to escape from the place she had sought refuge and run towards the Ohio River, where the ice cold snow becomes the biggest challenge that distracts her from crossing into the North and free from slavery (Stowe, 93). Compared to the dehumanizing conditions that the slaves are exposed to under the hands of the slave traders, Eliza opts to jump into the river risking her life and that of her son in the process. However, she manages to walk over the blocks of ice and cross over to the other side, effectively finding way into the North from where she is able to free from slavery (Stowe, 93). Once again, the unity of spirits concept that was advocated for by The New England Renaissance 1840-1855 has been demonstrated in the reading “The Mother’s struggle” by Harriet Stowe, underlining the role of religion in uniting the minds and the hearts of people of different races, status and background (Stobaugh, 188). In the reading, Mr. Haley who was a slave trader and the Shelby family that owned the slaves banked on the strong Christian values held Uncle Tom as the basis of cooperation in the mission to trail Eliza. Nevertheless, the reading has managed to portray the risks and the dangers that slaves had to experience in their course to free from slavery. Nevertheless, the slaves preferred taking such dangerous risks, as opposed to continue experiencing the cruelty and brutality of slavery. Conclusion The New England Renaissance 1840-1855 was a period of reawakening the focus on the humanity aspect in America. This reawakening created the need to reevaluate the role of unity of spirits in helping establish the equality of all people in America, regardless of their race, social status, background or religion. The Transcendentalism and Anti-Transcendentalism literary movements that emerged during the period advocated for the role of religion in creating the convergence of human spirits, which would then enable the abolition of the social evil of slavery. The selected readings in the discussion were developed during the fifteen-year period between 1840 and 1855. All the five readings cover the subject of slavery and the role that the lack of unity of spirits played in cultivating the continued suffering of the slaves in the South of America. Further, the readings have managed to show that it is through the unity of spirits that the social evil of slavery could be overcome, as opposed to applying government policies, elections or petitions. Works Cited Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the life. The Anti-Slavery Office, 1845. Web. December 4, 2014. Longfellow, Henry. The Slaves Dream. Maine Historical Society, 1842. Web. December 4, 2014. Stobaugh, James P. American Literature: Cultural Influences of Early to Contemporary Voices. High School Level Student. Green Forest, Ark: Master Books, 2012. 136-193. Print. Stowe, Harriet B. “Chapter vii: The mothers struggle” in Uncle Toms Cabin. Boston: John P. Jewett, 1852. Web. December 4, 2014. Stowe, Harriet B. Uncle Toms Cabin. Boston: John P. Jewett, 1852. Web. December 4, 2014. Thoreau, Henry D. Resistance to Civil Government. Yoge Books, 1849. 1-29. Print. Read More