Garrison is arguably the most famous abolitionist writer, and for good reason. He started the well-known anti-slavery paper The Liberator, which included several other writers like Harriet Beecher Stowe (who wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin). Garrison is often referred to as “radical” abolitionist, which means his views and words are very different from most of the other writers. Keep this in mind and try to understand what makes him such a radical writer. What is his tone and how does it affect his argument?
“Truisms” is also written by Garrison. A truism is an idea or belief that many people accept to be true (a famous one is the saying “You get what you pay for”). Garrison makes a list of ideas that, when he looks at American society, he sees people believing in. He is writing them as satire, calling out hypocritical ideas about slavery. It is a unique way to show how slavery is wrong and immoral in several different ways. Which one stands out as being the most interesting and why? What does it say about the effect slavery has on people or the country?
For Garrison, past writers had been too soft condemning slavery. Something new was needed; immediate action was required. He combines many of the previous arguments about slavery into his writings, which shows that as America progressed, so too did the anti-slavery writings. By the publication of The Liberator, several arguments had been put forth, which Garrison would compile into these two pieces. Some are more easily recognizable than others, but look for examples of past rhetoric, including religious, political, and claims of hypocrisy.
“Truisms” is also written by Garrison. A truism is an idea or belief that many people accept to be true (a famous one is the saying “You get what you pay for”). Garrison makes a list of ideas that, when he looks at American society, he sees people believing in. He is writing them as satire, calling out hypocritical ideas about slavery. It is a unique way to show how slavery is wrong and immoral in several different ways. Which one stands out as being the most interesting and why? What does it say about the effect slavery has on people or the country?
For Garrison, past writers had been too soft condemning slavery. Something new was needed; immediate action was required. He combines many of the previous arguments about slavery into his writings, which shows that as America progressed, so too did the anti-slavery writings. By the publication of The Liberator, several arguments had been put forth, which Garrison would compile into these two pieces. Some are more easily recognizable than others, but look for examples of past rhetoric, including religious, political, and claims of hypocrisy.
"To the Public"
[When speaking on slavery] I found contempt more bitter, opposition more active, detraction more relentless, prejudice more stubborn, and apathy more frozen, than among slave owners themselves...Yea, till every chain be broken, and every bondman set free! Let southern oppressors tremble- let their secret abettors tremble- let their northern apologists tremble- let all the enemies of the persecuted blacks tremble...
Assenting to the 'self-evident truth' maintained in the American Declaration of Independence, 'that all men are created equal, and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights- among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,' I shall strenuously contend for the immediate enfranchisement of our slave population...I once assented to to the popular doctrine of gradual abolition. I seize this opportunity to make a full and unequivocal recantation, and thus publicly to ask pardon of my God, of my country, and of my brethren the poor slaves, for having uttered a sentiment so full of timidity, injustice, and absurdity...
On this subject, I do not wish to think or speak, or write, with moderation. No! no! Tell a man whose house is on fire, to give a moderate alarm; tell him to moderately rescue his wife from the hands of the criminal; tell the mother to gradually extricate her babe from the fire into which it has fallen- bu urge me not to use moderation in a cause like the present. I am in earnest- I will not equivocate- I will not excuse- I will not excuse- I will not retreat a single inch- AND I WILL BE HEARD.
Definitions
enfranchisement: giving right or privilege
unequivocal: without a doubt
[When speaking on slavery] I found contempt more bitter, opposition more active, detraction more relentless, prejudice more stubborn, and apathy more frozen, than among slave owners themselves...Yea, till every chain be broken, and every bondman set free! Let southern oppressors tremble- let their secret abettors tremble- let their northern apologists tremble- let all the enemies of the persecuted blacks tremble...
Assenting to the 'self-evident truth' maintained in the American Declaration of Independence, 'that all men are created equal, and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights- among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,' I shall strenuously contend for the immediate enfranchisement of our slave population...I once assented to to the popular doctrine of gradual abolition. I seize this opportunity to make a full and unequivocal recantation, and thus publicly to ask pardon of my God, of my country, and of my brethren the poor slaves, for having uttered a sentiment so full of timidity, injustice, and absurdity...
On this subject, I do not wish to think or speak, or write, with moderation. No! no! Tell a man whose house is on fire, to give a moderate alarm; tell him to moderately rescue his wife from the hands of the criminal; tell the mother to gradually extricate her babe from the fire into which it has fallen- bu urge me not to use moderation in a cause like the present. I am in earnest- I will not equivocate- I will not excuse- I will not excuse- I will not retreat a single inch- AND I WILL BE HEARD.
Definitions
enfranchisement: giving right or privilege
unequivocal: without a doubt
"Truisms"
1. All men are born equal, and entitled to protection, excepting those whose skins are black and hair woolly; or, to not be mistaken, Africans and their descendants
2. If white men are ignorant and depraved, they ought freely to receive the benefits of education; but if black men are in this condition, common sense dictates that they should be held in bondage, and never instructed.
3. He who steals a sheep, or buys one of a thief, deserves severe punishment. He who steals a negro, or buys him of a kidnapper, is blameless. Why? Because a sheep can be eaten, and a negro cannot, because he has a black fleece, and it a white one.
6. To kidnap children on the coast of Africa is a horrid crime, deservedly punishable with death; but he who steals them, in this country, as soon as they are born, performs not merely an innocent but a praiseworthy act.
7. In Africa, a man who buys or sells another, is a monster of hell. In America, he is an heir of heaven.
11. No one but idiots desire immediate abolition. If the slaves were liberated at once, our throats would be cut, and our houses pillaged and burned.
12. Our slaves must be educated for freedom. Our slaves must never learn the alphabet, because knowledge would teach them to want to end their oppression.
15. A white man, who kills a tyrant, is a hero, and deserves a monument. If a slave kills his master, he is a murderer, and deserves to be burned.
16. The slaves are kept in bondage for their own good. Liberty is a curse to the free people of color- their condition is worse than that of the slaves! Yet it would be very wicked to bind them with fetters for their good!
17. The slaves are contented and happy. If sometimes they are so ungrateful or deluded as to run away, it is pure philanthropy that makes their masters offer a handsome reward for their detection
24. The Africans are our slaves- not because we like to oppress, or to make money unjustly- but because Noah's curse must be fulfilled, and the scriptures obeyed.
Definitions
depraved: wicked
philanthropy: generosity
Noah's Curse: a story from Genesis in which Noah's descendants were turned into slaves
1. All men are born equal, and entitled to protection, excepting those whose skins are black and hair woolly; or, to not be mistaken, Africans and their descendants
2. If white men are ignorant and depraved, they ought freely to receive the benefits of education; but if black men are in this condition, common sense dictates that they should be held in bondage, and never instructed.
3. He who steals a sheep, or buys one of a thief, deserves severe punishment. He who steals a negro, or buys him of a kidnapper, is blameless. Why? Because a sheep can be eaten, and a negro cannot, because he has a black fleece, and it a white one.
6. To kidnap children on the coast of Africa is a horrid crime, deservedly punishable with death; but he who steals them, in this country, as soon as they are born, performs not merely an innocent but a praiseworthy act.
7. In Africa, a man who buys or sells another, is a monster of hell. In America, he is an heir of heaven.
11. No one but idiots desire immediate abolition. If the slaves were liberated at once, our throats would be cut, and our houses pillaged and burned.
12. Our slaves must be educated for freedom. Our slaves must never learn the alphabet, because knowledge would teach them to want to end their oppression.
15. A white man, who kills a tyrant, is a hero, and deserves a monument. If a slave kills his master, he is a murderer, and deserves to be burned.
16. The slaves are kept in bondage for their own good. Liberty is a curse to the free people of color- their condition is worse than that of the slaves! Yet it would be very wicked to bind them with fetters for their good!
17. The slaves are contented and happy. If sometimes they are so ungrateful or deluded as to run away, it is pure philanthropy that makes their masters offer a handsome reward for their detection
24. The Africans are our slaves- not because we like to oppress, or to make money unjustly- but because Noah's curse must be fulfilled, and the scriptures obeyed.
Definitions
depraved: wicked
philanthropy: generosity
Noah's Curse: a story from Genesis in which Noah's descendants were turned into slaves