Slavery In Thomas Jefferson's Declaration Of Independence
Thomas Jefferson:
The primary writer of the Declaration of Independance and one of the most prominent figures of the early history of America, Thomas Jefferson is one name that almost every American should have at least heard of by now. In the past, I have been taught that Thomas Jefferson was an abolitionist who believed that slavery was immoral, but his racism towards African Americans (and his idea of white superiority) was very surprising to me. He seemingly wants slavery to end (while owning many slaves himself) but also believes that, “It is not against experience to suppose, that different species of the same genus, or varieties of the same species, may possess different qualifications.” He states that African Americans are of a different species, and later remarks …show more content…
Out of all the various topics relating to the economics of slavery, the one that stood out the most to me was how believed that as “long as domestic slavery is general in any country, and for the most part supplies the labor of the country there is no possibility of the occurrence of the sufferings of the laboring class.” (71) He openly admits that slavery is needed in order to yield in massive problems. What really surprised me though, was a lack of feelings towards how the slaves might have possibly felt about their situation. Edmund talks about the politics of slavery and how it’s needed in order for laborers to make more money. However, because his focus resides primarily on the economic benefactors of slavery, he completely ignores the moralistic problems with slavery. Sure, it might be more profitable, but it’s amazing that he believes so much in the money aspect that he is willing to take away the rights of millions of people living in America to help line the pockets of rich
The primary writer of the Declaration of Independance and one of the most prominent figures of the early history of America, Thomas Jefferson is one name that almost every American should have at least heard of by now. In the past, I have been taught that Thomas Jefferson was an abolitionist who believed that slavery was immoral, but his racism towards African Americans (and his idea of white superiority) was very surprising to me. He seemingly wants slavery to end (while owning many slaves himself) but also believes that, “It is not against experience to suppose, that different species of the same genus, or varieties of the same species, may possess different qualifications.” He states that African Americans are of a different species, and later remarks …show more content…
Out of all the various topics relating to the economics of slavery, the one that stood out the most to me was how believed that as “long as domestic slavery is general in any country, and for the most part supplies the labor of the country there is no possibility of the occurrence of the sufferings of the laboring class.” (71) He openly admits that slavery is needed in order to yield in massive problems. What really surprised me though, was a lack of feelings towards how the slaves might have possibly felt about their situation. Edmund talks about the politics of slavery and how it’s needed in order for laborers to make more money. However, because his focus resides primarily on the economic benefactors of slavery, he completely ignores the moralistic problems with slavery. Sure, it might be more profitable, but it’s amazing that he believes so much in the money aspect that he is willing to take away the rights of millions of people living in America to help line the pockets of rich