Monday, June 24, 2013
Question?
I would like to know whether there is a greater point that Genovese is making when he describes the culture of the
south and the slaves in such great detail.
Besides his point on the structure of society and paternalism, I feel
like I am missing the connection between that and the culture that the slaves
and masters created. My question is, how
do the many details in the book connect and support Genovese’s ideas on
paternalism? Although I enjoyed reading the stories and details of the book, I am having trouble piecing
it together.
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Katie: I understand your comments as referencing his subtitle: what world did the slaves make, according to Genovese? In class we discussed a limitation of the book in that Genovese is considering a rather static “picture” of plantation life so in reference to “the world” of the southern plantation, there is a lack of a dynamic progression in his depiction of plantation life. Beyond that, for me, all of the details/characteristics of plantation life he describes make up “the world” in his subtitle that the slaves made. All the details together depict a world in which the slaves’ efforts to create and sustain a culture by carving out a system of rights and obligations – reciprocities - were accepted by the slaveholders and which they used as weapons to maintain their humanity and sense of self-worth. That world is quite different from the more traditional view and understanding of slavery in the Old South. In seminar Robert gave us some background on where "Roll, Jordan, Roll" "fits" in the historiography.
ReplyDeleteThanks Bryan, I found your explanation very helpful.
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