Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
The violence inflicted upon the slaves was harsh and arbitrary in order to make the slaves feel no sense of control or agency over their lives. In order for the slave owners to have a docile, subservient and productive slave population, it was essential to break the will of the slaves. When describing the treatment of two slaves named old Barney and young Barney, Douglass states, they never knew when they were safe from punishment. They were frequently whipped when least deserving, and escaped whipping when most deserving it. A lack of consistency when welding out punishment caused the slaves to feel like they had no control over their own lives and had no control over the behavior of the slave owners. Douglass describes the ethos of one slave owner as behave well or behave ill, it is the duty of the master occasionally to whip a slave, to remind him of his masters authority. When a human being must navigate a tortuous violent environment, there is a strong desire for self-preservation. In order to keep from being killed and brutally beaten, the slaves had to be alert to the slightest whims of their slave owners and overseers. The slaves worked and lived in an environment consumed with fear. Slaves who were considered unmanageable or who tried to run away would be severely beaten, and sometimes sold to another slave owner. Establishing an environment where the slaves felt like an escape from the plantation was futile, and any acts of agency could lead to death, was instrumental in sustaining the institution of slavery.
While the institutionalized use of violence was inflicted upon male and female slaves, gender played a significant role in the of types of violence experienced by the slaves. Douglass stated that the opportunity to perform errands in the slave masters house was a source of great pride among the slaves. One of the reasons why slaves wanted to be in the house was a constant desire to be out of the field from under the drivers lash Even though the male slaves may have seen working in the house as a form of temporary reprieve from the ever-present violent nature of the overseers, performing tasks in the house was not a place of safety for the female slaves. When recounting the death of his wifes teenage cousin at the hands of the slave masters wife, Douglass states that the slave masters wife seized an oak stick of wood by the fireplace, and with it broke the girls nose and breastbone, and thus ended her life. By callously killing, and beating the slaves, the slave owner wanted to instill upon the psyche of the slaves that their lives were worthless. The slave owners wanted to make sure the slaves understood they had no form of recourse to whatever the slaves may have perceived as unjust or inhuman treatment.
Slave women not only had to deal with brutality at the hands of the white women, but they also had to deal with the physical violence and sexual predation at the hands of white men as well. The slave women were viewed as sexual objects and were forced to oblige the desires of their masters. In Soul Murder and Slavery, Nell Irvin Painter highlights Harriet Jacobss experience as a slave girl. Jacobs was subjected to the sexual harassment of her slave master and had to grapple with the wrath of his wife. Jacobs became, like any slave girl in her position, prematurely knowing in evil things, including life in a household cum work site that was suffused with predation, infidelity, and rage. Harriet Jacobss experience as the subject of constant sexual predation was very similar to the lives of other slave women. Douglass described the existence of a slave woman named Caroline who was bought by slave owner, Mr. Covey, with the intention of serving as a breeder. Douglass states, after buying her, he hired a married manto live with him one year and him he used to fasten up with her every night The result was, that, at the end of the year, the miserable woman gave birth to twins. The children were regarded as being quite an addition to his wealth. Rape was used as another weapon to control the bodies of the slave women. They were subjected to rape, beatings and forced to breed in order to increase the slave population. They were used against their will as instruments to help propagate the institution of slavery. Their ability to exert any type of free will and agency was stripped from them.
Douglass vividly describes his own descent into psychologically becoming enslaved while he worked for Mr. Covey. He states, Mr. Covey succeeded in breaking me. I was broken in body, soul, and spiritthe dark night of slavery closed in upon me and behold a man transformed into a brute Even though Douglass was a slave from birth, he always believed in the right to be treated as a human being. His station in life was that of a slave, but for years he fought against being resigned to his social status. When he describes finally being broken by Mr. Covey, all of the abuse he endured finally caused him to acknowledge that he may be stuck living an enslaved existence. The description Douglass provides of the moment his body, soul and spirit was broken demonstrates the overall purpose behind the pervasive violence. Violence was one of many techniques merely used to socialize the slaves into believing that they deserved to be treated like property. Violence was used to invade the psyche of the slaves, to strip the slaves of their humanity. The mental enslavement of the slaves was needed in order to sustain the socio-economic institution of slavery without constant threat of revolt or rebellion.
It was important for the slaves to be completely disenfranchised in a society that was economically dependent on the institution of slavery. Throughout Narratives of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Douglass mentions that white people were not subjected to judicial tribunals for the heinous acts committed against the slaves. In the book, Douglas recounts the story of a slave named Demby who was shot and killed by a notoriously cruel overseer named Mr. Gore. Douglass writes, his Dembys mangled body sank out of sight, and blood and brains marked the water where he had stood. After describing the murder of Demby, Douglass explains the powerless of the slaves to seek any type of retribution or justice within the legal system. Douglass states, His Mr. Gore horrid crime was not even submitted to judicial investigation. It was committed in the presence of slaves, and they of course could neither institute a suit, nor testify against him. Since the slaves had no recourse in a socio-political system that denied their existence as human beings, Mr. Gore was unwhipped of justice, and uncensored by the community in which he lives. The slaves were not able to exercise any form of political power within the system. The major influence their labor had on the economic system was never utilized for their benefit. The slaves had no control over their identities and how they were defined, and they also had no avenue with which to exert any type of legal rights. In every way possible, the white ruling class wanted to make sure the slaves understood that they were merely property subjected to the total authority of the slave owners.
In order for the institution of slavery to thrive, the white ruling class understood the necessity of not only enslaving the African population and their descendents physically, but also the importance of enslaving them mentally.
The pervasive violence used to implement slavery included incessant beatings, whippings, rape, and sexual harassment. Slavery became an institution due the support received on social, political and economic levels. In spite of their livingwork conditions and social status, many slaves, like Douglass, inherently understood and held on to their sense of humanity, while maintaining a spirit of resistance.
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