Blog Assignment One

Benjamin Banneker wrote a lengthy letter to Thomas Jefferson, then Secretary of State, in which he criticized how Jefferson felt no compassion for the slaves around the U.S. Banneker just wanted Jefferson to realize that all humans were equal, and should actually be treated so. He also made it clear that he wasn’t a slave and that he was of the African race. “…however variable we may be on society or religion….relation to him.” Banneker felt that no matter what the color of your skin was you were born with inalienable human rights and they can’t be taken away from you just because you were a different skin tone. In the Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano, we see the life of slave through the eyes of a former slave by the name of Oludah Equiano. In Equiano’s narrative we see the different emotions felt during a slave’s time on labor camps. For example there was time when Equiano was taken away and on the boat he was on he saw people swimming freely in water deeper than their ankles. At most Equiano has only ever seen water that would just cover his feet, small streams and puddles. But here on this boat Equiano saw people swimming in deep water, coming back up only for a quick breath of air. He was in awe and amazed by what he was seeing for the first time. Then there was the time when he tried running from his master. Equiano was paralyzed with fear when he heard noises of leaves rustling in the forest, because he knew that at any second he could be caught and executed by his slave master.

            Although slaves, their masters and the people who traded and sold them are all human beings with emotions, slave masters and traders most of the time didn’t feel grief or pity on the slaves. The reason most slave masters and traders didn’t show these emotions were because they enjoyed what they were doing. They all knew perfectly well that when they were punishing the slaves, they could possibly go too far and kill them. The reason they enjoyed this was because they felt power over others, they felt like they could control people and tell them to do whatever they please. Slaves couldn't do anything but obey their master’s orders and this was where masters got their pleasure, which overshadowed most 

of their other emotions like pity and sadness for the slaves.