Comparative Analysis of Slavery by Stanley Elkins and Ordeal by Fire Research Paper

Comparative Analysis of Slavery by Stanley Elkins and Ordeal by Fire by James McPherson - Research Paper Example The difference in skin colour made a total difference in the perception of humanity that led to different treatment towards different people depending on their skin colour. Slave trade became a common phenomenon in America in the early 18th century with the onset of agricultural developments and the industrial revolution. However, slavery in America can be traced back to the 16th century when the first slaves entered America, twenty of them, all blacks from the African continent. These were brought into America as permanently indentured servants leading to more Negros and Caucasians moving into America as permanently indentured servants. Slavery, later on, grew in the southern agriculture where three types of crops were grown: tobacco, rice and indigo as a means of providing cheap untrained labor (McPherson, 1982). The farm owners who grew indigo felt devastated with the smell that was associated with it and did not want to touch it hence the need to have the African slaves to work o n the production as they concentrated on the sales and the keeping of the income that was accrued from the enterprise. Two American writers Stanley Elkins and James McPherson became so bold to address the evil that was being meted out on humanity by their fellow humans. In a bid to advocate for the abolition of the vice, these writers sternly criticized the trade of slaves in America and pointed out the need to set them free as they held to the fact that all men were created equal and that the slave trade was an embarrassment to the American continent. McPherson notes that at the onset of slavery in North America, slaves rarely worked on farms since most northerners only owned subsistence farms, slaves were therefore used as cooks, butlers, and house cleaners. These were more of light chores that did not humiliate the slaves. However, the dawn of agriculture-shifted things all together and the normal manual household chores were replaced with the forced farm labour. This left the sl aves with no choice other than to admit and be receptive to the prevailing shift in working conditions. Macpherson’s protest began at the point when forced labour was entitled to the slave immigrants. Arising from this, he launched a campaign for the slaves’ freedom. He argues, â€Å"The industrial revolution's new inventions made northern slave labour uneconomical. Free labour replaced slavery in most northern states except for the border state of Delaware. Free labour emphasized the right of each individual to "sell" his labour to the highest bidder† (McPherson, 1982). Thus, the sale of men in the American markets like goods moved McPherson to challenge the ethical implications of this. This according to him was a complete disregard of the human nature by her fellow humans, to sell a person as a good in the market was an abuse to human nature â€Å"when the southwest opened up new cotton lands, after depleting the upper south's soils, the slave population aga in increased. Upper south whites bred slaves for sale in the lower south† (McPherson, 1982)