Slavery and politics in early America

Type :

Term papers

Pages :

6 pages

Format :

.doc

Published date :

12/18/2008

Category :

History & geography

Sub category :

Modern history

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Summary :

Introduction.
The American revolution as a product of the system of slavery.
1. The ideals of the 18th century enlightenments.
2. The development of the declaration of independence.
The wake of the successful war to gain freedom from the British.
1. The new constitution.
2. Extra representation in congress to the south in exchange for a stronger central government.
3. Section of the constitution pertaining to slavery.
4. The last mention of slavery.
The era following the establishment of the United States as a country.
1. The first interpretation of the constitution by a group of highly religious abolitionists.
2. Wiecek description the followers of the second interpretation.
3. The third abolitionist movement.
4. The fourth abolitionist movement.
Conclusion.

Abstract

The legal practice of slavery in the United States of america ended on December 6th, 1865 with the passage of the 13th amendment to the Constitution. In the wake of the terrible carnage of the American Civil War, people have tried to make sense over what the hundreds of thousands of lives were lost for. The battle of the Union versus the Confederacy was the product of decades of strife and stress over many factors, one of which was the legality of slavery in america. When considering the legal history of slavery the United States, it is essential to consider how a nation nominally founded on certain inalienable rights could simultaneously treat other human beings as property. Using historian David Brian Davis' work, Inhuman Bondage: The Rise and Fall of slavery in the New World, as a starting point, this paper aims to investigate this apparent hypocrisy. Utilizing a combination of historian Edmund Morgan's thesis on the development of American republicanism, the perspective from historian Don E. Fehrenbacher and framework of historian William Wiececk, I will consider first the American revolution and its relationship with slavery. I will then focus on slavery and the American constitution, particularly the three specific references to the practice.