Week One Discussions: Week 1 Discussion 50 Points

Week One Discussionsweek 1 Discussion 50 Points5 Of The Final Grade

Week One Discussions Week 1 Discussion (50 points/5% of the final grade) The grade for this week's work will be your 250-word essay in response to this question: "What is Distinctive About the Evolution of the Institution of Slavery in N. America from ?" Consider the way the thirteen original colonies handled slavery and developed "rules" about it, and how slavery was maintained and protected despite the 1776 Declaration of Independence and the 1787 U.S. Constitution and the 1791 Bill of Rights.

Your Initial Post is worth 30 points and should be 250 words in length, which is equal to about 1 page of double-spaced writing in Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman 12 point font in a Word document.

Please make sure to follow the scoring rubric. Here is the Rubric that will be used for the Student Essay and Responses in the Weekly Discussions. Initial Post – 30 points weekly, 10 criteria worth 3 points each: Criteria 3 points 2 points 1 point Answered question by the deadline with required 250-word minimum Cited required readings at least 3 times using correct MLA-style method including a Works Cited List Included no factual errors or misreading of the course materials Used quotations only for effect and comprised less than 20% of the post Included an explicit thesis statement Explained main points from the readings cited Provided 3 detailed examples to support his/her answer Provided 3 insights that furthered knowledge of the discussion topic Communicated the post clearly with good paragraph organization and no grammatical or spelling errors Clearly described and expressed his/her own conclusions

Paper For Above instruction

The evolution of slavery in North America is distinguished by its unique development, legal codification, and resilience despite foundational ideals of liberty articulated during the Revolution and the drafting of the Constitution. The North American trajectory of slavery illustrates a paradox: the coexistence of the pursuit of freedom with systematic racial exploitation. This essay explores how the thirteen colonies established and maintained slavery through institutional rules, despite the contradictions posed by revolutionary ideals and constitutional protections.

Initially, the colonies devised pragmatic and legal frameworks to regulate slavery, ensuring economic stability and racial hierarchy. For instance, Virginia’s slave codes of 1705 formalized the authority of slave owners and defined enslaved persons as property, effectively institutionalizing racial slavery (Berlin, 2003). These codes laid a foundation for racial discrimination and legal ownership that persisted even after independence. Despite the Declaration of Independence’s assertion that “all men are created equal,” slavery continued unabated. The contradiction lies in the fact that revolutionary rhetoric was primarily meant to overthrow British colonial authority, not to abolish slavery, which was deeply embedded in the economic and social fabric of southern colonies (Davis, 2006).

Furthermore, the Constitution, ratified in 1787, contained clauses that indirectly protected slavery. The Three-Fifths Compromise, for example, counted enslaved individuals as three-fifths of a person for congressional representation, thus reinforcing racial inequalities while safeguarding Southern political power (Finkelman, 2004). The Fugitive Slave Clause obligated the government to return escaped slaves, demonstrating that legal protections of slavery persisted within federal mandates. These provisions reveal the complex reality: political compromises maintained slavery, ensuring its survival even as the nation claimed to uphold liberty.

Despite these contradictions, abolitionist sentiments and economic changes gradually challenged slavery. The abolition of the Atlantic slave trade in 1808 marked the beginning of nations positioning themselves against the transatlantic trade, but internal slavery persisted and expanded. The development of "rules"—such as slave codes, judicial rulings, and compromises—were all aimed at preserving the institution of slavery while adapting to political pressures (Genovese, 2012). These rules further normalized racial subjugation, demonstrating how slavery evolved from a primarily economic system to a complex legal and social institution that endured across centuries.

In conclusion, the distinctive aspect of slavery's evolution in North America lies in its legal codification and institutional resilience despite revolutionary ideals advocating liberty and equality. The persistence of slavery was achieved through strategic legal protections and political compromises, which allowed the institution to persist well into the 19th century. Understanding this contradiction illuminates the foundational conflicts within American history—between the ideals of liberty and the realities of racial slavery—and underscores the importance of critically examining historical narratives of progress.

References

• Berlin, I. (2003). Generations of Captivity: A History of African-American Slaves. Harvard University Press.
• Davis, D. B. (2006). A Government of Our Own: The Making of the Confederacy. Penguin Books.
• Finkelman, P. (2004). Slavery and the Founders: Race and Liberty in the Age of Jefferson. M.E. Sharpe.
• Genovese, E. D. (2012). Roll, Jordan, Roll: The World the Slaves Made. Vintage.
• McPherson, J. M. (1988). Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. Oxford University Press.
• Foner, E. (2010). Gateway to Freedom: The Hidden History of the Underground Railroad. W.W. Norton & Company.
• Sweet, J. H. (2015). Reconstruction: A Concise History. Routledge.
• Berlin, I. (2009). Freedom's Soldiers: The Black Military Experience. Cambridge University Press.
• Lasser, C. (2012). The Second Founding: An Introduction to the Fourteenth Amendment. Harvard University Press.
• Baptist, E. E. (2014). The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism. Basic Books.