Christianity and Slavery In Early American Literature Essay

In the 18th -19th centuries piety had a great find on culture and literature. The American hostel created a unique culture influenced by its norms and traditions, historical and political overhaulwork forcet, Christianity and slaveholding. Dogmas and norms of the rules of order were embo unwrapd in the sacred tradition and transferred into literature. Religion and sla actually did not independently becoming an constituent(a) factor of culture. Thesis primordial American Literature reflects cultural norms and tradition of the society and shows that blacks and whites were united by virtues and apparitional dogmas of Christianity.Early American Literature show that with the tutelage of literature, hoi polloi embodies their beliefs and hopes, ideas and ideals. Christianity and church was a absolute force which dictated mixer norms and companionable order. For instance, the poetry by Phillis Wheatley vividly describes the immenseness of chasteity and pietism for both whites and blacks. In the poem On Virtue he writes Virtue, thro my youthful years / O forswear me not to the spurious joys of time / solely guide my steps to endless animateness and bliss (Wheatley, 1996). In other poems he depicts characters as devoted parishioners who follow all told value and commandments.Phillis Wheatley can be considered as a moral poet of his time introduction social contradictions and moral value of slaves and their hopes. He describes the manipulations of divinity and goodness in bearing of slaves. In ISAIAH Wheatley describes For man the wrath of an infinite God / To execute th endlesss dread command / My any(prenominal)body I sacrificd with willing submit (Wheatley, 1996). These examples show that religion and Christianity determines lives of slaves in malevolency of the item that church and Christianity were used to demurrer and legitimatize the institution of slavery.Many characters in his poems wonder why anyone would understand a differ ence between slaves and masters, blacks and whites. Morality is render done with(predicate) religious ritual and values followed by slaves. It is not surprising that religious dogmas became the code of behavior for many women who involve strong arguments to prove their decisions. Also, the Christianity was used to detect defense of domesticity and the role of women as return and wives only. In To his Honour the Lieutenant-Governor, on the finale of his Lady Wheatley writes ALL-Conquering last by thy overwhelming powr, /Hopes pullring plumage falls to develop no much/Of scenes terrestrial how the glories fly, / stuff their splendors, and submit to die (Wheatley, 1996). This ascendant underlines the fact that all people argon mortal. alteration surface trying to challenge emergency, people cannot change ordered hierarchy of the world, and is punished with an incessant hell. In the speech, Frederick Douglass addresses a very grave problem of racial inequality in Ame rica and its impact on the society. In his speech the Fourth of July, Frederick Douglass depicts social and political situation and ridicules low morals and false values existing in the society.As the most important he bases the master(prenominal) arguments on the principles of liberty, moral and religious norms. He appeals to emotions of listeners through the story of God and morality. Douglass takes this, for the point of this celebration, is the 4th of July. It is the birthday of your National Independence, and of your political freedom. This, to you, is what the Passover was to the emancipated people of God (Douglass, 2002). greenback between spiritual and temporal mightiness creates a space for freedom, in which an item-by-item can fight for freedomwhole kit and boodle of two African-American writers and abolitionists show that slaves believed in God and followed Christian morality in their life. For slaves and free black men religion was a moral guard which make their behavior. Christianity played a crucial role in lives of all slaves. Both abolitionists depict that religion and church exercise power, contain their traditions and values. It is important to note that during 19th coulomb religion had a great influence on social life and was a great deal used as a theme and framework in literature (Fogel, 1989).Douglass gives some overview of the cultural situation of that time and peoples attitude towards the slavery. This speech is very important as it appeals to all(prenominal)one both blacks and whites. In general, it is possible to say that in Douglass gives a vivid explanation of the slavery that relates with accuracy to the real events. He depicts that everyone must die eventually, and so the natural roots of body politic are therefore in mortality, whether payable to natural causes or to the bloodshed of internal warfare. Douglass blames church stating that it supports slave-owners and slavery.On the other hand, he states the venomou s creature is nursing at the tender breast of your youthful state for the cheat of God, tear away, and fling from you the terrible monster, and let the weight of twenty millions shatter and destroy it forever (Douglass, 2002). He separates Christianity and the American church underlining that The American church is guilty, when viewed in connection with what it is doing to uphold slavery (Douglass, 2002). In his speech, a spirit of mischievous and incendiary anarchy runs through the entire work.This duality in views and ideals allowed slavery to continue. The short bosh of Edgar Poe The Masque of The ablaze(p) Death vividly portrays the hero-worship of remainder and pile. The protagonist of the story, the Prince Prospero fights with conclusion trying to outwit it. Although, Poe depicts that it is a venous blood vessel sacrifice that is painful and sorrowful causing terrible sufferings and emotional burden for the Prince. He looks around and sees the ordinariness of the ir existence. The Red Death or plagues is a figure of demise depicting that human beings cannot escape death.The ruby-red stains upon the body and especially upon the face of the victim, were the oath ban which shut him out from the aid and from the sympathy of his fellow-men (Poe, n. d. ). Previously, the Prince had been a man who was in some manner pose above ordinary mortals, who, either through his depth of suffering or his nobility of nature felt and suffered to a greater extent than readers could be expected to do in everyday life. The hero also suffers death at the end, his downfall being a result of a fatal stigma in his character, a trait which he cannot help as it is a part of his makeup, just which causes the tragedy and eventually his death.The themes of fate and death show that being a part of culture religion was reflected in literary flora. Poe portrays that behavior of people was sacredly determined and that the key to successful ideas was in the spirit of religious dogmas and values. In general, Poes name is for degrees of personal freedom results when a man, seek against death, is pushed further back, achieving little in his attempt for life, and having degrees of freedom removed from him. Mortality is undergone in order to expand the human spirit, to drudge into matters previously kept hidden, to grow through fear.The fear before unknown and penalty were the main causes allowing slavery to continue. The Black heave belongs to a literature of horror limning a world of an alcoholic suffered from rambunctious rage and violence. In the intoxicated state the unnamed narrator cannot control his trespass and hangs his favorite black cat. In a period of time, he tries to kill some other cat with an axe, still kills his wife who tries to entertain the animal. In this story, Poe portrays two different worlds cosmos and fantasy that resulted in terrible crimes.Also, Poe unveils the theme of human relations people love each oth er and make friends, but if they deprive their friends they are finished. (Poe, Black Cat, 2005). A Black Cat is a symbol of death and fate, fear and Hell. Similar to this explanation, the existence of the institution of slavery, in which white men played the dominant role and wielded control, fundamentd slaves at the mercy of God and destiny. Christian traditions and consciousness allowed slavery to continue for a long time. Christian-conscious world was used as a strong force that impact all aspects of life.Fear of death and punishment limited actions of slaves and forced them to subdue religious norms and traditions. In reality, Christian-conscious world was the only henpecked institution which affected life of whites and blacks through culture and traditions. In literature, religion helped to develop and sustain morality by promoting moral reasoning and by exemplifying values and behaviors that were conducive to human dignity. In Puddnhead Wilson hold Twain describes the role of fate and destiny in life of a slave. The events took place in the Dawsons Landing.Through the characters of tom turkey and Roxy Mark Twain shows that the fate and fear of unknown are determined by social traditions and religious norms. He writes he was not committing any sin that God would remember against him in the Last cracking Day (Twain, 2001). Tom comes to know that every moment and every act persona the same fate. The anticipation of his life dissolves the trace of overriding importance. Mark Twain explains grapple the flea incomparably the bravest of all the creatures of God, if ignorance of fear were courage.Whether you are asleep or awake he will attack you .. you are to him as are the massed armies of the earth to a sucking child (Twain, 2001). The literary woks under compend show that church worked hard to single out religious values of slaves and masters and their respective(prenominal) on peoples. Christianity was the law of life for defenders. The surpass b etween these groups and a largely layman but still vaguely society is such that the preservation of the former from the evils of the last mentioned has been achieved by the erection of considerable social barriers.Religious piety and submission were beliefs that were more marginal components of the ideology depicted by the early American writers. But, truly say it was not an ideology we understand it but obsession. The religious mores and Christian dogmas were such that traditional practice isolates slaves from the wider society. Christianity can be seen as one of the main causes of slavery and oppression. whole kit Cited Page 1. Douglass, F. The Fourth of July. 2002. Available at http//douglassarchives. org/doug_a10. htm 2. Fogel, R. W.Without Consent or Contract The upgrade and Fall of American Slavery. W. W. Norton, 1989. 3. Poe. E. The Masque of the Red Death. n. d. Available at http//bau2. uibk. ac. at/sg/poe/works/reddeath. html 4. Poe, E. The Black Cat. 2005. Available at http//www. online-literature. com/poe/24/ 5. Twain, M. Puddnhead Wilson. 2001. Available at http//emotionalliteracyeducation. com/classic_books_online/puddn10. htm 6. Wheatley, Ph. Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral. 1996. Available at http//www. gutenberg. org/dirs/etext96/whtly10. txt