Reyes 1 Cesar Reyes I.

Lecture and film Tamora Hoskinsson 28 March 2014 Section 26 Freedom Had Two Definitions Freedom had two different meanings during the Civil War era, however it was not a vocabulary term that separated these two definitions but by the perspective of those that lived in the time. What freedom meant to a white southern man was not the same through the eyes of a black man. Both races lived very different life styles that contributed to their definition of freedom. When the Civil War broke out both sides saw their counterparts express what their own description of freedom. In order to understand why white southerners and black men had different definitions of freedom we must inspect what caused such a situation. In the film The Challenge of Freedom it was explained that prior to 1860 the country was slowly separating between those who supported slave labor and free labor for white people. Finally when the Union expanded westward the southerners wanted to make the new sates slave states and the northerners wanted the new territories to be a place where they can work their own farms. This was making the Union separate in to two halves. So why does the two meanings of freedom arising from this dilemma? To a white southerner freedom meant having more privileges than that of a black man, one of them being able to purchase a slave and command said slave to complete any task they are

Reyes 2 giving with no pay. Robert Smalls is a perfect example; he was born a slave in Beaufort, South Carolina. Smalls was raised working for a man named Edmund Mackey but at the age of twelve he was not sent to the fields to work but instead Mackey made Smalls work for his sister in law in the city of Charleston. Just like any other piece of property that white southerners owned, they let others borrow their slaves but any money the slaves made was not for themselves but for their owners. Luckily, for Smalls for every fifteen dollars he made a month in the city he would be able to keep one dollar. (not all slaves had that privilege though) For southerners that was freedom, a white male could do what he pleased with his property even of that property was another human being. This meaning of freedom for southerners was one of the causes that stimulated the Civil War. In 1863 Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, when southerners heard they could no longer have slaves work for no pay they were upset and this fueled the fight between the north and the south. To white northerners it was unfair that slaves did the same work as they did for no pay, so the Emancipation Proclamation seemed fair, the same could not be said for the southerners. If slavery was no longer allowable this meant southerners freedom was being stripped from them. For slaves their meaning of freedom was entirely contrary of white southerners. Up until the civil war slaves were giving few privileges that closely resembled freedom. Once again Robert Smalls is a perfect example. He was granted permission by his owner to hire himself out, in return he paid Mackey fifteen dollars every month (this wasnt not uncommon in the times). This supposed freedom was not enough for Smalls he wanted more. Eventually Smalls got married and planned to buy his freedom along with his wife. That is what true freedom meant to the blacks, to be truly free and have no owners. This never happened for Smalls because when the civil war broke out blacks were treated with extreme prejudice. The

Reyes 3 Civil War as depicted in the film made white southerners fear their slaves, but why? When word broke out that blacks were fighting alongside northerners, they were encouraged to rebel against their owners and flea north. This is why Smalls was unable to buy his freedom, white people where too scared of blacks to give them anymore privileges. Smalls was one of many Slaves that ran away into the north and helped defeat the confederates. When the war was over slaves were free men and they experienced true freedom. Children were built schools to attend, that was one privilege that slaves considered only for true free men. Land was also granted to them this was seen as a great opportunity the now free black men knew in order to prosper in the Sates they needed to own land. Smalls with a handful of other free black men got into politics. The Beaufort republican club became the base of Smallss political career. From there on he only continued to rise up, eventually getting elected to be a representative in the State house of South Carolina were most of the legislature was black. By this point blacks were in every level of government. That is what blacks saw as true freedom, having an equal opportunity as a white man in the Union. For white southerners freedom to them only meant a cruel life their slaves and also deprived other Americans of an equal opportunity to earn money were slaves were working as free men. For blacks their vision of freedom was to be treated equally amongst the whites and it was granted to them thanks to the north. To finish, towards the end of the Civil War white southerners lost their version of freedom and black slaves earned their own.

Reyes 4 II. Primary Documents What does the contrast between these to documents suggest about the impact of the market revolution on American thought? Both these documents are the exact opposite of each other in the topic of market revolution in America. In one side there is the laborer, and on the other is the scholar. Ralph Emerson is looking further in the future and expecting the US to expand and become a bigger participant in the market revolution. While a current worker of a cotton textile factory is against the current happenings of the revolution. Emerson communicates in his speech that America hast to end mimicking other countries and become successful, in the matter of being self-dependent. He explains that to Europe Americans are weak timid and have no means to raise their standards in independence. Emerson encourages those who can to raise the bar of the typical American and show the world that America is in fact independent. What Emerson fails to reveal in his speech is the ruthless side effects of a growing country. To the wealthy person in the era of market revolution they were unaware of the physical labor that is put into the growth of their country. As explained in a pamphlet by a women laborer in a cotton textile factory, the growth of a county does come easy. Those that were not fortunate to be born wealthy are forced to build up the country that their superiors live in. The author of the pamphlet describes the unconditional work areas and intense hours with little to no pay. She goes as far as saying that factories treat their employees no better than they would treat slaves. From this womens point of view all the work put into the revolution is not worth it.

Reyes 5 This revolution has two sides to it. Those who are for the growth of the American market and look forward to the future, and those who actually have to physically make it possible. One side has no idea what the kind of labor goes into such a project, while the other side toils away and the fruit of their labor is enjoyed by their wealthy counter parts.