The Varied Conditions of Life Under American Slavery

The issue of slavery is often explored only at the surface. One might think of only large plantations and brutal owners when asked to consider the horrors of slavery. While that was a very real part of it, the customs and practices of slaves and slave owners were much more varied than one might think. In Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave, author Frederick Douglass analyzes his life as a slave, and the character of his various masters and fellow slaves. Eric Foner's Give Me Liberty also explores the more realistic lives of slaves. While it is an issue that has for many years been looked at in black and white, slavery had many diversities within itself.

Throughout his life Frederick Douglass had a number of different masters. As a child one his overseers was Mr. Severe. He was the stereotypical cruel overseer many people might imagine when speaking about slavery. He showed to the slaves no mercy or understanding and would not hesitate to deliver a whipping if the opportunity arose, as he "seemed to take pleasure in manifesting his fiendish barbarity" (Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass, Chapter 2, Page 48). Another radical overseer was Gore. An especially cruel man, Gore killed a slave for addressing the wounds received during a whipping. Whipping was the method of choice for keeping slaves in order. According to Give Me Liberty (Page 354), "rare was the slave who went through his or her life without experiencing a whipping." Not all masters were physically abusive though. Under different circumstances a master could be more bearable.

While masters and overseers on plantations and fields were very physically abusive, those who oversaw slaves for different jobs usually did not need to be as barbarous. One of the more obvious examples in Douglass' experience was Mrs. Auld. She not only lacked any sort of desire to beat him, but showed interest in teaching him to read early after his arrival. Though having a slave soon got the best of her, she still never resorted to physical or even verbal abuse. Her husband, Hugh Auld also refrained from beating and whipping, but took advantage of him. He demanded that all of Douglass' salary received from his caulking work.

Douglas recalled noticing that there was a huge difference between the way slaves were treated in the country and in the city. In the country whipping was much more common and the living conditions were nowhere near as comfortable. He described having no clothing as a child in the south to keep him warm at night, and having to sleep inside bags that he found. He never received his first pair of trousers before preparing to move to Baltimore. In Baltimore, a much more urban setting, work demands and punishments were much milder. It can be said that slave owners in the cities had more of a personal relationship with their slaves. Mr. and Mrs. Auld most likely knew all of their slaves by name because they didn't have a large number of them. As Douglas mentioned in Chapter 3 of his narrative, Colonel Lloyd might not even recognize one of his own slaves, and one of his own slaves might not recognize Colonel Lloyd. He described in his chapter an incident when one of the slaves complained to Colonel Lloyd about the way he was treated, not realizing he was speaking to his master.

Slaves could be assigned a variety of different jobs and responsibilities based on who was in charge of them and where they lived. Southern slaves were obviously assigned more strenuous work, as they were primarily used on the fields. Even in the country, however, there was diversity in work based on age. While middle aged men and women were most often put to work in the fields, children and elders would work less demanding jobs in and around their masters' homes. Even field slaves had the opportunity to work inside the home sometimes. Douglass described the honor any slave would feel to be selected to run errands in the 'Great House Farm'. This was the house on the plantation of Colonel Lloyd, Fredericks first master. Slaves would take pride in being selected, as "it was associated in their minds with greatness" (Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Chapter 2, Page 49). "Most city slaves were servants, cooks, and other domestic laborers" (Give Me Liberty, Chapter 11, Page 354). Many city slaves also became skilled at crafts and trades. Frederick Douglas became a skilled caulker, and was allowed to find his own employment under the assumption that all earned money would go to his master.

There was also diversity in slave communities between men and women. Though they would often be assigned the same tasks, their treatment was very different. While

one might think that women were treated with somewhat more respect than men were, quite the opposite was true. Frederick Douglas's narrative describes more women being beaten and whipped than men. This could be because women were completely defenseless. Women were much less likely to fight back as Douglas did on several occasions. It could also be due to masters assaulting these women sexually. If and when they attempted to resist they would be whipped. Sexual assault on slaves was not uncommon. It could have in fact been the cause of Frederick Douglas's conception, as he believed that his father may have been his master.

While today slavery is generalized as a horrific deprivation of inalienable rights, it is too often made into a caricature and not explored with the same rigor with which other historical phenomena are. It is only fair to those who served a life of slavery for us to understand the different ways which slaves and slave owners lived. Frederick Douglass admits to his readers that he did not have an especially hard life compared to that of other slaves. He was fortunate enough to survive a very difficult time in his life because he lived under overseers who were not the cruelest of them all, and because he was a strong-willed person. Without the diversity of conditions which existed at the time, Douglass may not have lived to tell his story.