Frederick Douglass' Narrative depicts the vicious, horrible nature of slavery. Born as a slave himself, Douglass witnessed black people of all ages suffering under their cruel masters, and often being treated little more than animals. Deprived of all rights, these human beings were brainwashed into subservience and, without knowledge, unable to rise up or rebel against the monsters who owned them.
While the slaves were undoubtedly the ones most affected during these appalling times, Douglass firmly states his belief that slavery had an adverse impact upon everyone. One of the first major examples of this concept is when Douglass is given to Mrs. Auld. He initially describes her as, "[M]ade of heavenly smiles, and her voice of tranquil music" (44). Because she had never owned a slave before, Mrs. Auld seemed to be outright disturbed by Douglass' submissive mannerisms. She even went as far as teaching him how to read and write (something that was unheard of, at the time), before being reprimanded by her husband. However, the power that comes along with owning another human being soon overtook Mrs. Auld, and transformed her from a kindly woman to "one of harsh and horrid discord; ... a demon" (45). Various other slaveholders in the book also seem to be completely overtaken by the vice of slavery--committing such deplorable acts as rape and murder.
John Dalberg-Acton, an English writer, once stated that "Absolute power corrupts absolutely". Do you agree that the "fatal poison of irresponsible power [i.e. slavery]" (Douglass 45) damaged white slaveholders at all? How do you think these people were able to convince themselves that they were in the right?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI do think it’s certainly possible that slaveholders were damaged by the power they had. But what’s interesting about it is whether having the power itself was the source of corruption of their character or, is it rather that a dark side exists in each one of us. Perhaps it’s human nature that our own ignorance, the need for approval of others, or fear as Mrs. Auld may have felt of her husband and of the slaves, are factors that are capable of motivating humans to inflict cruelty upon others humans. We’ve seen ordinary people become monsters, from the atrocities against Native Americans to the Holocaust, and acts of genocide throughout history.
ReplyDeleteConvincing themselves that slavery was right seemed to come easily for whites. The many excuses they had included were that slavery was legal, that there would be extreme social chaos without it and that blacks were inferior. But the justification that Douglass talks about with painful awareness in this book is their belief that being slaveholders is their divine right as they hide behind the bible to justify it. Douglass explains this in a profound quote on page 81 when he went to live with Mr. Freeland in 1834. He talks about the ministers he observed in what he called a community of “religionists”. He says, “I assert most unhesitatingly - the religion of the south is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes – a justifier of the most appalling barbarity, -a sanctifier of the most hateful frauds, – and a dark shelter under, which the darkest, grossest and most infernal deeds of slaveholders find the strongest protection.” We can ask ourselves, does religion mask the dark deeds of humanity to this day?
The dehumanizing element of slavery can be summarized as the systemic use of positions of power to oppress other human beings to the point that they understand their own existence as a lower tier existence, closer to domesticated farm animal than fellow human being. One might try to argue that this process also does harm to the humanity of the oppressor but the obvious difference is that the oppressor has choices available to a person in a position of power that an oppressed person does not. Social factors may constrain or influence the oppressor's personal choices, but they have a freedom to exercise their will in reaction to ethical reasoning and feelings of compassion. Because of this I have a hard time seeing Mrs. Auld as a victim of the social and psychological ills of slavery. As Douglass points out: "It was at least necessary for her to have some training in the exercise of irresponsible power, to make her equal to the task of treating me as though I were a brute" (pg. 32). She had to consciously work at cultivating the behavior that transformed her from a kind and compassionate slave owner (oxymoron?) to a harsh dehumanizing urban overseer. I don't see her as an ethical person turned unethical by a society that promotes slavery. I see her as an innocent and ignorant person in a position of power who quickly learns how to use that power to maintain her position in life. This person is not a victim of power, but an abuser of power. I don't think they she or others in a similar position needed to be convinced that what they were doing was right. They simply came to understand the nature of power and chose to use it against other human beings. This is the opposite of being a victim. They are not corrupted by power, they willfully choose the abhorrent actions that maintain their power and lifestyle regardless of any feelings of compassion or rational ethical thought that may cross their minds.
ReplyDelete