Women And Slavery Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Women And Slavery - Essay ExampleSlaves were owned by their masters, having no rights of their own. They were subject to brutal punishments a good deal for false or whimsical reasons, depending upon the thirst or mood of the master who owned them. Men were beaten and a great deal killed by their masters for unavoidable human error. Deliberate offenses were punished by barbaric torture, such as being left in the hot sun while restrained by a stock, after being beaten and horsewhipped on a bare back. Patrollers were men assigned to riding on horseback through areas to check for slaves off the plantations runaways were punished. Both men and women runaways were branded on their cheeks with an R, signifying runaway. manlike slaves who attempted to run away were beaten and had their tendons slashed on one leg so they couldnt walk very well, much less run. Women were often beaten and raped by their masters to satisfy their base natures or to provide some form of entertainment children were innate(p) of these events, were owned, like livestock. The slaves were frequently traded and change in the open market at designated marketplaces. They were chained together and displayed in a public place. Each potential buyer would examine the slave they were elicit in as livestock the body, attitude, and minimal history of each slave was considered. Slaves social and work history were recorded along with their trade records for example, it would list the cite of the slave, the amount of pervious purchase, any significant social history, such as violence or mental instability, with the current asking price often these histories were inaccurate. It was uncommon that families were allowed to remain together each person being sold piecemeal, although, young children were usually left with their mothers until they were old enough to be useful as servants or laborers. Neighbors and other plantation owners developed a network for trading slaves. They often borrowed each others slaves during times of harvest or disaster. Towards the end of the thraldom period, slaves, in preparation for transition, would obtain permission to rent themselves out to neighboring plantation owners in order to make money to buy their freedom. The Slave Codes born from the Negro Act of 1740 controlled every detailed aspect of slave life. The children usually wore no clothing until adolescence then clothing of the poorest quality was distributed once a course by the master, occasionally winter clothing was issued at Christmas. The elderly or physically disabled slaves original nothing extra, neither warm clothing nor shoes. Slaves werent allowed to learn to read or write, neither could they assemble together, nor practice folk traditions, customs, or their religion. Plantation slaves often had more of a sense of community, because they usually worked together. They were often managed by a driver who was of their own community making him responsible for the performance of ever y slave on the plantation. It often led to disputes among them, as he also had to be the one to deliver the required punishments. On the plantations, slaves lived in cabins they built for themselves it was often just a lean to shack of one room, urban slaves lived in the attics or back rooms of the masters home. Slaves lined up weekly, usually on Saturdays, at a central location on the plantation, usually near the area where butchering was done to receive their weekly rations of food their diets were poor, usually very high in meat fat and starch. They received flour, molasses, peas and beans, lard, cornmeal, and a poor cut of scrap meat. (From this is comes the tradition some companies still have