Kenyatta Bryant American History Book Review 11/15/11

"Many Thousands Gone", by Ira Berlin

In Ira Berlin's, Many Thousands Gone , he traces the progression of black society from the first arrivals in the early seventeenth century through the American Revolution. He reclaims slaves into the the history of the American working class, and reveals the diverse forms that slavery and freedom assumed before cotton was the main support of the slave economy. The book allows you to witness the conversion that occured as the first generations of Creole slaves, free blacks, and indentured whites gave way to the plantation generations. Their exhausting labor was the sole engine of their society and whose physical and phonectic isolation sustained African traditions on American soil. Berlin demonstrates that the meaning of slavery and of race itself was continually redefined, as the nation moved toward political and economic independence.

In my opinion, I believe that Berlin proved his point in illustrating the first two centuries of slavery in North America. Berlin makes it clear that racism was an system necessary for creating an intellectual and emotional climate that would allow slavery to exist. It gave an institution that honors the complexity of the American past with an unswerving, unsentimental gaze. One myth that Berlin seizes is that of the Old South, the common belief that

slavery was for the most part situated below the Mason-Dixon Line. Slavery became a southern phenomenon only after 200 years of American history. These 200 years are Berlins subject, as he tracks the black presence throughout early America, emphasizing in vivid detail the diversity of slave existence, urban and rural. He emphasizes the fact that as America was being constructed by slave labor, slaves were living their own lives and creating their own culture. Berlins argument, is that slavery, with all its resonance, haunts America even as the new century is about to begin.

I liked the book because it provided me with a deeper look into the foundation of slavery. Just as well as I'm sure that many people hear the term " slavery" and the first thing that comes to mind is a ship full of Europeans, coming to Africa and capturing blacks to take to America to work on plantations. For over ten years this is the story that i have heard repeatedly. I found it very interesting to be able to broaden and enlighten myself on an issue that is very sensitive and important to me on many levels. I learned that the very first African slaves were actually brought to Jamestown, Virginia in 1619. The slaves were treated as indentured servants and were released after a number of years. This kind of practice was replaced by the way of a race- based slavery which was used in the Caribbean. When the servants were freed, they became the main rivalry for resources and the unconstrained servants had to be replaced. Together with the combined vague nature of the social status of Blacks and the difficulty in the use of any other group of people that are forced servants, drastically led to the relegation of Blacks into slavery. I also discovered that Massachusetts was

the first colony to decriminalize slavery in the year 1641, and unfortunately other colonies pursued suit by passing laws that passed slavery on to the children of slaves and made them non- Christian imported servants slaves for a life time (Berlin, 1998, pg. 48).

One dissagreement that i have with Berlin is the fact that he claimed, " .....the master-slave relationship provided the model for all social relations: husband and wife, parent and child, employer and employee, teacher and student. From the most intimate connections between men and women to the most public ones between ruler and ruled, all relationships mimicked those of slavery." ( pg. 15)

Not only did this statement make no sense at all. I found it very distastful and offensive. To my knowledge, social relationships and personal/intimate relationships such as marriages, parent/child, and employer/employee are not at all comparable to that of master-slave. Slaves were treated as property instead of people. They were cruelly and harshly punished if they misbehaved, even killed if they did not abide by their masters' wishes. The diets of enslaved people were inadequate or barely adequate to meet the demands of their heavy workload. They lived in crude quarters that left them vulnerable to bad weather and disease. Their clothing and bedding were minimal as well.

Although women of any color nor race had any rights during these times, the wives of slave masters were somewhat respected and

acknowledged as human unlike slaves. And of course the children of these masters were treated exceptionally. To be honest, it was the slave who took care of the wife and the children as well as the master himself. Even though Berlin's point of view is absolutely different from mine, it doesnt change the nature of what his book is illustrating. At the end of the day, I learned so many things that I didnt know prior to reading and I would recommend this book to anyone.