Social Relationship In Solomon Northup's 12 Years A Slave

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In 12 Years a Slave, Solomon Northup went through many obstacles of slavery. He was born a free man who was kidnaped and converted into a slave. Going through this processes he thought of ways to alter the thinking of a slave owner especially to avoid getting punished. Northup also meets along the way free colored people who were also kidnaped and turned into slaves. As well, as others who were separated from their families. The social relations in this time era was that the white slave owners’ and holders want to look more powerful on the control of their slaves. When Northup was kidnaped, he was ordered not to share that he is a free man to the white slaveholders. He was threatened in this manner: “if ever I hear you say a word about New-York, …show more content…

Master Epps and mistress Epps were an example of what immoral aspect they wanted the slaves to do to the others. They handed Northup a whip in which he was given directions to whip anyone who was working slowly. If he did not do the job he was ask to do, there was a whip waiting for him. He never thought that he would be in the immoral act of making others suffering like they were doing to him. He did anything possible to avoid making others suffer and himself. He had no choice of declining this order because he was supposed to do what he was told with no hesitation. It seems like the abuse of his masters to him has affected him because he is to perform his duty than to suffer pain himself in order to avoid the punishment. His role as a tormentor is avoided when Epps and the overseers are gone but he brings up the idea that “It is not the fault of the slaveholder that he is cruel, so much as it is the fault of the system under which he lives.” He is suggesting that the slave owners are only cruel because of the way society wants whites to think of colored men and women. He has realized this by being told to do this order. This not only impacts the slaves but also impacts the community because it shows that other slaves can have control over their own slave

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