Chapter 18 Summary

In Chapter 18 of Bury the Chains, Hochschild opens the chapter by bringing us to St. Domingue, the island that was a French colony that brought about some of the most notable slave rebellions. After Vesuvius erupted, the slaves started to rebel by running through the plantations and towns and lighting everything they could on fire, especially any sugar crops. All of a sudden, the number of white people being killed increased drastically and the world was in shock. Since St. Domingue was such a profitable colony because of its rich soil, abundant sugar crops, and coffee crops, the destruction of everything was a harsh reality for people to face. Despite the destruction in these colonies, France and Britain decided to go to war over them. Unfortunately, Britain lost more than they would gain from that war because of Toussaint L'Ouverture’s ability to raise a strong force of the slaves to fight against them. Many British men became ill while fighting and suffered from malaria and yellow fever. Unfortunately, the British were not succeeding in their efforts to win against France and decided to withdraw from the war.

Reviews of BTC

In The Boston Globe review from "Up From Slavery," Brookhiser did an excellent job of providing a summary as to what the book is about. Brookhiser was able to capture the main story lines within the book while offering his own critique. Brookhiser was able to mention the sequence of events on a more brief level, while incorporating the main figures that were influential to this movement. I liked that I could find out exactly what was going to happen in the book through his summary, but nothing extreme was given away.

It was interesting to find Brookhiser pointing out Hochschild’s obvious dislike of Christianity. This was something I noticed as well as I have been reading. Not only did Brookhiser point this out, but our classroom discussion in previous weeks pointed out the same flaw. Hochschild has made mention of Christianity in almost any place applicable thus far in the book. Whether Hochschild was intentionally trying to bash Christianity or trying to hide it behind his story line, his dislike of Christianity is apparent. In Hochchild’s book, he pays much more attention to details when describing certain main figures that were apart of the abolition movement. In these instances, he has been focusing on the Christianity of either Newton or Wilberforce. As I read, I am able to pick up on where Hochschild is incorporating the Christianity aspect. Going beyond offensive, it just seems so excessive when it comes to the descriptions of certain characters.

In The Nation, the review by Daniel Lazare included a well written summary of the events that occur in Bury the Chains. Lazare was able to give a summary while provoking questions at the same time in response to the summary. I do agree with the idea that this movement sparked a new type of politics. Lazare points out how Hochschild successfully makes a comparison between present day solidarity and the different movements going on during the time of slavery. I found this to be interesting because Hochschild is constantly comparing present day movements and/or issues to events occurring in the time period he focuses on in his book.

Lazare’s response to the modern changes in politics really made me reconsider my thoughts about the book thus far. He writes, “Yes, fliers, posters and such are now ubiquitous. But are individuals, or broad social forces, responsible for historical change? Are people like the twelve London activists whom Hochschild spotlights "causative," as the sociologists say, or are they bit actors who strut briefly upon the historical stage?"

After reading this, I realize that Hochschild does point out the twelve main men who started this movement. At the same time, these men would not have been successful had it not been for the support from others and society. So I am really now left wondering: did these individuals, or did society’s need for change in general provoke the start of the abolitionist movement? Were these twelve men as influential as Hochschild makes them out to be?

Chapter 15 Summary- BTC

In Chapter 15, the antislavery movement took flight all across Great Britain. This was a result of the efforts put forth by several key figures including Thomas Clarkson, Wilberforce, and the Quaker community. When the Industrial Revolution passed through Britain, post offices, newspapers, and new roads helped provide ways to spread information across the country. Granville Sharp started to help slaves take their m,asters to court to be prosecuted. The white lower class started to stand up for slaves, emphasizing their freedom. Naval impressment started to become an issue as well. Press gangs began seizing both sailors and innocent people in order to have them join their ships. As this naval impressment continued, Clarkson and Sharp were able to connect the press gang seizures to slavery. Both were equally unjust because of their foundation in capturing people and putting them to work.

Possible Essay Question

A question that I am interested in is how the conditions of the slave ships and plantations are similar to the conditions of present day sweatshops. The sugar plantations and sweatshop factories are both extremely unsafe places. A major danger includes working with heavy machinery or operating machinery without appropriate protection. Both the slaves and sweatshop workers include children and other workers who are either getting paid little to no money at all. Also surrounding this idea I find it interesting how people are aware of how horrible slavery is and how horrible sweatshops are, but since there is such a reliance on the goods they produced, no one person can make a difference alone. People seem to be recognizing that these problems exist, but nothing else is occurring beyond this point. Only a select few people are taking action against sweatshops and slavery, but unfortunately, the majority of people aren't doing anything.

Chapter 12&13 Summarys-BTC

On pages 167-174, Equiano starts to publish an anti-slavery book which helped the campaign across the world even more. After getting married, Equiano was so caught up in selling his books that his wife became second on his list of priorities. His book focused mainly on his own experiences with slavery which captivated his argument perfectly. Equiano’s book became a bestseller and really helps readers become familiar with the life of a slave and the impact of slavery on all aspects of society.

On pages 192-198, the sugar boycott began and was gaining popularity all over. The boycott was so influential that if people did use sugar, it was not slave-grown sugar. Sugar was the right product to boycott because of its widespread use in England. Clarkson also published the Abstract which just contained hundreds of descriptions of the conditions of slavery and what many slaves endured on their journeys within the Slave Trade that was read by many.

Chapter 11 Summary-BTC

In Chapter 11, King George III had finally become sane again and the plans to push anti-slavery bills were able to continue. When proslavery traders mentioned taking their business overseas, the need for this movement to become international grew even more. Clarkson was an influential member at the hearings as he showed his sample case of all of the African trading goods he collected. Clarkson gained help form James Phillips after creating a diagram to show how tightly packed the slave ships were and how unsafe the conditions were. After having this diagram published in newspapers and magazines, more people from around the world turned their attention to the issue of slavery. The picture spoke louder than words in some instances and really exposed people to the unfair life of the slaves. James Stephen also reappears as he takes a stance against slavery after trying to prosecute a white man who beat two slave children. James Arnold was also able to contribute to these meetings before the Council by giving a testimony grounded in all of the experiences he had had with slavery. In 1789, Wilberforce finally made his speech against slavery, but unfortunately once again, the bill was sent to the Commons and then was postponed. Clarkson set out to find more and new witnesses that could help him prepare for the next hearing.

Comments: Using pictures of what the slave ships looked like and how cramped they were was a really good strategy to use to persuade others to join their cause. Images can speak louder than words sometimes and in a picture as detailed and horrifying as the one presented, no words are necessary to get a message across to others. This definitely proved to be an effective strategy and like the book mentioned, it was not like others could show pictures of slaves being happy on slave ships.This technique really helped their cause gain more support and raise awareness around the world about the conditions of the slave vessels.

Chapter 9 Summary- BTC

In Chapter 9, William Wilberforce became an influential speaker at the House of Commons speaking on behalf of the anti-slavery movement. As more support was needed, pamphlets and books were translated into many different languages and sent all across the world. Hand-delivered letters were also given out in London in order to serve as a “fundraiser” to gain support. A significant supporter of this movement was John Newton. Newton had sent out an apology letter confessing all of his experiences and knowledge with the cruelties of slavery which was quite useful for evidence to support this cause. Testimonies given by Falconbridge were extremely detailed and helped those unaware of the cruelties of slavery to get a grasp of what the conditions were really like. Another significant moment occurred when Sir William Dolben helped pass a bill limiting the number of slaves that could be placed on a ship and required a death list of both slaves and crew members. Just as the movement was becoming overwhelming, all bills sent to Parliament were put on hold because of King George’s illness.

Comment: While reading this chapter, I was shocked for two reasons. The first reason was because Newton re-entered the story in general. The second reason was because of Newton’s change of heart and his apology letter. I could not believe he finally came to terms with the horrors he witnessed and that he was willing to give accounts of his experiences for evidence. It was interesting to see Newton in such a new and positive light after having such negative feelings towards him from the previous chapters.