Facing Slavery
Chapter 8 Study Guide
Vocabulary
Slave trade- the exchange of captured people for goods
Dilemma- a situation in which a person is forced to make a decision even though he/she does not like any of the choices
Middle Passage- the voyage of slave ships across the Atlantic Ocean, from West Africa to the West Indies and the American continents
Triangular trade- the exchange of slaves and goods between Europe, the Americas, and West Africa, using shipping routes across the Atlantic Ocean
Slave auction- a public sale in which slaves were sold to the highest bidder
Overseer- a person who was in charge of the work of slaves and could punish them for disobeying him
Griot- a western African storyteller who recites the history of a tribe or family
Spirituals- a type of religious song that developed among enslaved Africans and that expressed deep emotion
Key Concepts
* West Africans faced many dilemmas
-trading people for guns
-raiding villages
-making people slaves from other villages
*West Africans during the 1500s
- most lived in freedom
-valued family/ancestors, society based on family
-many different cultures/languages
-storytelling history
-worshipped the spirits of ancestors
* Slaves on slave ships endured:
-unbearable heat and smells
-lice, fleas,rats
-chained together-could not move
-serious illnesses/deadly diseases-15 out of 100 died before reaching land
(thrown overboard, sharks followed ships to feast on those thrown overboard)
*Upon arrival in the Americas
-immediately sold as slaves at scrambles(slave auctions)
-most slaves worked in the fields on plantations- 16 hour days
*The life of a slave
-most slaves worked on sugar and tobacco plantations
- field slaves had the hardest life
-a way of resisting their new lives was to pretend not to be able to understand what they were told to do
- families were separated-children sold to different families than parents
-slaves coped with their terrible situations by singing, storytelling, going to church- it gave them hope for a better life
Reading Further
Alex Haley, an American writer, wrote a book about his ancestors called Roots.
In his book he described meeting a griot, or village storyteller, in an African village. This griot shared stories about Haley's ancestors, and his family history. This was a life-changing trip to Africa for Haley.
In their new location in North America (mostly southern colonies), slaves expressed their emotions through singing spirituals.
*** Be able to find Africa and the southern colonies of North America on a map.
***Be able to write a song or a story that an African slave might have passed on to children/grandchildren , to teach them the family history.
Be sure to be able to include: the series of events that led to your being a slave in North America, a description of your life as a slave, a message of hope, or piece of advice to be passed down through your family. If you include codes, be sure to explain what the codes mean.