12 YEARS A SLAVE

In partial fulfillment
Of the requirements in
BIOETHICS

Submitted by:
DIVINAGRACIA, Mary Charmaine
FLOR, Pauline Rose
INOSANTO, Sarah Mae
JAYME, Jaybayl Abril
LEE, Chaeun
MALLORCA, Pia Lorenz
MANIKAN, Jodi Jill

Submitted to:
MONTEL, Zenny

December 03, 2015

12 YEARS A SLAVE
INTRODUCTION

Slavery was dominant with the black people in the pre Civil War in the United
States of America. The movie, 12 Years a Slave, came out in 2013, but the book came
out earlier in 1853. 12 Years a Slave is a narrative inspired by the real autobiography of
Solomon Northup who was enslaved for 12 years illegally.
This film is about the happenings during Northups slavery. It highlights the
unimaginable suffering of the black people during the time when slavery was at its peak.
This film also portrays the hardships experienced by the black people brought about by
racism. Also, the violation of human rights regarding freedom is clearly depicted in this
film.
In the era of 1800s, Solomon Platt Northup, a
son of a liberated black slave, primarily lived freely. He
lived in New York, worked his way as a multifaceted
laborer, married in the northern state of New York, and
had a talent in playing the violin.

In 1841, two men offered him new profitable work by playing the violin in a circus
so Northup traveled with the two con men to Washington, D.C. He was kidnapped,
drugged and sold in area near the Red River of Luisiana as a slave under many
different white masters. His longest master was Edwin Epps. Northup was a
subordinate and treated as a property under Mr. Epps ownership.
In 1853, Northup was freed with the help of his friends in the North. He was
rescued and he returned to his family in New York.
THEMATIC TOPICS
The major thematic topics are Slavery as a moral cancer that rejects freedom,
justice, and dignity of a human person. 12 Years a Slave shows slavery that disagrees
with the Human Rights in all possible outlook (Inosanto 2015).
RACISM
Generally black people were looked down upon. Back then, the negros have
been labelled as people who were only made to work and werent supposed to be
educated. This movie showed how racist people could be and how cruel they could get
when they have power and the money. It shows how people could really have a high
disregard to the human rights of each individual even up to the point where they were
just regarded as property and not as humans (Divinagracia 2015).
FREEDOM
This movie is based on a true story of man's fight for survival and freedom. This
is all about a black man named Solomon Northup, from upstate New York, who was
kidnapped and sold into slavery in the South. As he had hard time surviving and
maintaining some of his dignity, he found out that kindness was present from others. He
have seen and experienced slavery with other people similar to him (Lee 2015).

The right to ones own life and to live this life exercising his own freedom was
violated. It is to the extent that you are stripped of this freedom when you are enslaved.
This speaks for Northup who was a free man in the beginning, however being tricked
and drugged, was sold and enslaved. He had no right to speak, to do what he wanted,
to be provided his basic needs, and to even be called by his own name. He was at the
mercy of his masters or owners.
Ownership. Man should have the right to be his own person. No one has the
right to claim you as his property. Slavery was the direct contrary. Slaves were treated
as commodities. They were sold, lent, and used just as any object bought by money
could be. To make things worse, their owners abused them in every way you can
imagine. Still they couldnt do anything; otherwise, they will be mercilessly executed
(Manikan 2015).
The violation of these rights
lead to further inequality and massive
injustice in the society. These empowered
the rich and white people more; and
destroyed the lives and hopes of the black
people. These widened the gap between
the black people and the white people
despite the fact that both belong to the
same country. Stereotypes were created. Black people were slaves and white people
were royalties (Manikan 2015).
The black people were robbed of their right to freedom. They were abused.
All men are equal but they werent treated as an equal. They were deemed as
uneducated people thus giving them a low social status in society (Divinagracia 2015).

Slavery is a violation to the human rights. Subordination and ownership by a man

towards a fellow man is human injustice and inequality. Northup is born a free black
man. He is given the freedom and right to roam around New York. Once he was
captivated and kidnapped by the two con men, his human rights are scratched out
(Inosanto 2015).
In slavery, the people were denied the recognition as a person. Women and men
were not treated equally. The essences of human life of the slaves were not present.
They were basically treated as a material (as a slave) which can be sold. There were
too cruel punishments that were present during that time. The called " slave" had no
freedom of speech, no rights to slaves (Lee 2015).
Solomon was a slave for 12
years.

During

those

years,

he

experienced abuses such as when Mr.

Tibeats tried to lynch him. However,
his owner, Mr. Ford (a better master
compared to the other ones), was
able to stop Mr. Tibeats and the others; however, Northup was left hanging there, on
tiptoes for the whole day. In his attempt to protect Platt
from Mr. Tibeats, Mr. Ford sold Splatt to Mr. Epps, who
has committed various abuses on his slaves. Mr. Epps
also was attracted to one of his slaves, Patsey, and has
raped her multiple times (Mallorca 2015).

Freedom as a human right was violated. This type of human right limits a human
person to his abilities, needs and wants. Man is affected psychologically by limiting
himself with what he can actually do and focus his characteristics and capabilities with
what his master thinks he can do (Jayme 2015). Physically, man is unable to perform
what he wants, like play the violin to his accord, travel back in New York to see his

family, or pause working for a moment

because he is tired. Man can be abused of
his body sexually. Enslaved women of the
black race were raped by masters and their
dignities were destroyed. Some werent in
their right mind to even handle because
theres no moral support (Inosanto 2015).
After violating the human right, the result especially for the slaves are lose of
hope, unity, and faith for a worthy living. They were physically and mentally distracted.
They suffered severe trauma. Distrust was dominant, and proper social interaction was
diminished (Lee 2015).
In the case of Solomon, he fought back for his right. In the end they were sued
but after the court trial, they failed to give justice to the slave problem. In effect though,
Solomon was able to talk about slavery and helped people who were in the same
situation (Divinagracia 2015).

INTERVENTIONS TAKEN TO CORRECT THE VIOLATIONS

Solomon was the one who overcame being enslaved and at the end, after all
those hardship, he was free from the slavery and went back to his family. Solomon
himself was the one who corrected the violations during his slavery period (Lee 2015).
Northup was freed by his northern friends, and according to the book, a slave trader and
his accomplices were revealed, and put in prison after the book that Northup narrated
was published in great detail. He escaped to his home but full justice was not
accomplished because slavery in this era was still dominant (Jayme 2015).

ADDITIONAL INTERVENTIONS TO CORRECT THE VIOLATIONS

People shouldnt have tolerated slavery. People cant enslave another. People
are not property that you can sell or buy. They could work for you but you cant own their
lives. Interventions should have been made by the people who were involved (like the
guy who was played by Brad Pitt). He and other people shouldve started a group or an
anti - slavery campaign to stop everything from happening. The government shouldnt
turn a blind eye on this issue. People should stand up and get rid of slavery
(Divinagracia 2015).
Yes, Northup was freed but this was not because people realized they were
wrong and slavery was inhumane. He regained his freedom because he did something.
He continued to fight. He asked for help from a benevolent man. But we cannot speak
for the rest of the enslaved. Even Northup turned his back from them. Slavery was and
still is present.
We need more people who would stand up, who would fight, and who would do
what is right in this society. We need to realize that we are all equal and it is not alright
to harm our fellowmen. Among all of the creations, we were blessed with intellect and
will. We need to stop degrading ourselves. Let us not be beasts of the wild (Manikan
2015).

MODERN WORLD INTERVENTIONS

Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863 was a powerful move that
promised freedom for slaves in the Confederacy as soon as the Union armies reached
them, and authorized the enlistment of African Americans in the Union Army. The
Emancipation Proclamation did not free slaves in the Union-allied slave-holding states
that bordered the Confederacy. Since the Confederate States did not recognize the

authority of President Lincoln, and the proclamation did not apply in the border states, at
first the proclamation freed only slaves who had escaped behind Union lines. Still, the
proclamation made the abolition of slavery an official war goal that was implemented as
the Union took territory from the Confederacy. According to the Census of 1860, this
policy would free nearly four million slaves, or over 12% of the total population of the
United States.
(Reference: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_the_United_States)
Enslaved people lived with the perpetual possibility of separation through the sale of
one or more family members. Slaveowners wealth lay largely in the people they owned,
therefore, they frequently sold and or purchased people as finances warranted. A
multitude of scenarios brought about sale. An enslaved person could be sold as part of
an estate when his owner died, or because the owner needed to liquidate assets to pay
off debts, or because the owner thought the enslaved person was a troublemaker. A
father might be sold away by his owner while the mother and children remained behind,
or the mother and children might be sold. Enslaved families were also divided for
inheritance when an owner died, or because the owners adult children moved away to
create new lives, taking some of the enslaved people with them. These decisions were,
of course, beyond the control of the people whose lives they affected most. Sometimes
an enslaved man or woman pleaded with an owner to purchase his or her spouse to
avoid separation. The intervention was not always successful.
(Reference: http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/tserve/freedom/16091865/essays/aafamilies.htm)
Based on an article regarding the selling of slaves, up to this day, there are parts
of the world where it is still being practiced. Africans sell their own people as slaves.
Arabs do this as well. In order to stop racism and slavery among nations, I think the only
thing that we all have to practice is the value of respect for the human person and see
each other as equals. By respecting the person, we acknowledge their rights, their
dignity and their humanity. After all, we are all the same, regardless of color and race
(Flor 2015).