Reflection 2 - George Fitzhugh on the Blessings of Slavery

In week five for Document Interpretation 4, I interpreted a text written by George Fitzhugh in 1857, entitled “Cannibals All! Or, Slaves Without Masters,” in which he defends the institution of slavery and argues that it must be continued. His formal argument evaluates “the conclusion that the unrestricted exploitation of so-called free society, is more oppressive to the laborer than domestic slavery” (Preface, ix). Fitzhugh reasons that enslaved people are not equipped to make their own decisions, that they prefer to be enslaved, and that to upset the mutual balance is almost selfish.

Of all of the Document Interpretations, this text is my favorite thus far because his interpretations are fascinating to analyze, as he provides a contrasting viewpoint on the topic of slavery. Previously, what I’ve learned about the institution has been from the perspective of those who were in favor of abolition, giving me only half of the story that existed at this time. Fitzhugh’s work, on the other hand, contains over 350 pages of explanation as to the analytical nature of his views, and he states that he endeavors, “to furnish the reader with abundance of facts, authorities and admissions, whereby to test the truth of my views” (Preface, ix).

From this assignment, I’ve been able to develop my critical thinking skills about historical events. Regardless of the validity of the argument, I’ve learned that I must reserve my judgment in order to understand an author’s true purpose. While I can acknowledge my disagreement of his argument, I cannot dismiss everything he is saying, otherwise I would never be able to understand all of the reasons that slavery was such a pressing issue.

Throughout completing all of the Document Interpretations, my academic skills have certainly improved. Fundamentally, these assignments have changed the way that I interpret academic texts. In understanding these types of texts, the first goal is to establish the author and their basic message, and then continuing by asking why the author created this document and for whom they intended it. After that, I look at their credibility and accuracy, and finally how it’s useful as a source of information. Following this process saves me a lot of time because I can quickly eliminate sources that are useless and organize my thoughts on a source before including it in my work.

#History7A #History #Reflection