Slavery's Demise
Max Greene
10/20/06
HUSH
Mr. Delaney
SLAVERY'S DEMISE
Abraham Lincoln has always been known as the "Great Emancipator." People think he was solely responsible for freeing the slaves, yet the resolution of the slavery issue came about as a result of the Civil War. Lincoln's emphasis on the restoration of the Union as a result of the Civil War made slavery a less important issue, but nonetheless the Civil War also resulted in slavery's eventual extinction.
This demise of slavery was caused by two main factors. The first factor was the aggressive and repressive reaction of the slave owners and their governing bodies to the efforts of slaves rebelling against their living and working conditions. The second factor was the developing belief in the North that slavery was morally and philosophically wrong and should be outlawed. This conflict increased sectionalism between the pro-slave South and the abolitionist North, eventually leading to our country's first and only civil war.
Slavery existed in our country long before the Civil War. Slavery was present in England long before the first settlers coming to America. What did change about slavery in America was the economic dependency upon it that grew over time. When slaves were first brought to America, they were thought of as aides to their masters. While these slaves did not have their freedom, generally, they were treated with some respect. As the country's economy moved forward, slaves began to be considered almost machines, not people. Slave owners would force their slaves to wake up as early as possible, and work them all day long. Slaves were also often beaten horribly. One slave recollected, "I myself, and three or four others, have received two hundred lashes a day and had our feet fettered." This treatment existed almost entirely, although not exclusively, in the South because of the prominent cotton industry, which required...
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