Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Takaki Chp 3 "Giddy Multitude"

Takaki Chapter 3 “Giddy Multitude”

In chapter three the thesis would be Takaki states, “Driven by immediate economic interests and blinded by a short time horizon, the planters had not carefully thought through what they were doing to black people as well as American society and future generations” (76). I feel that this chapter talks about the beginning of slavery and how it got started. The lower class of servants, slaves, and landless men both black and white wanted to change order of constructed slavery.
In chapter three the argument was to change slavery. Takaki states, “Caliban, as described in the list of actors, was not only a “savage” but also a “deformed slave” (52). In this chapter Takakii listed many people during that time who were treated unfairly as servants and slaves he named Caliban, Indians, white, and black, and the play the Tempest. Each were treated unfairly and as an act of slavery. Takaki states, “All Indians, regardless of whether they were farmers or hunters, were subject to removal, even extermination, if they continued in their “barbarism” (53). Takaki even talked about some servants that were victims of the Irish “slave trade”. More and more slaves where brought over to Virginia colony from Germany, Ireland, England, and were to to work as slaves or servants. Sometimes the black and the white slaves and servants worked together in a partnership. Takaki stated, “Occasionally, perhaps often, whites and blacks ran away together. Court recorders indicated repeated instances of blacks and whites conspiring to escape together” (55). Virginia absolutely was against the way blacks and whites were working together were not accepting it. When blacks and whites were caught together they were both strongly punished for their actions. In order to keep the blacks as socially low as possible, they passed many laws restricted blacks from doing things such as voting, or having the freedom of assembly or movement. Blacks were treated differently then whites when they were being punished. The blacks were treated worse then the whites were.
Why was there slavery, and why did one servant or slave get treated differently from the other because the color of their skin was this fair at all? This is a big question to many people, why were human beings getting treated unfairly from other human beings? Takaki stated, “What worried Jefferson more than the threat of miscegenation was the danger of race and war” (75). He did not want race and slavery in our world anymore, he wanted peace. Takaki also stated, “In Jefferson’s view blacks were libidinous race. “They [the black men] are more ardent after their female,’ he clammed; “but love seems with them to be more an eager desire than a tender delicate mixture of sentiment and sensation” (74). This was explaining how black people are not as hard or mean as they are portrayed to be and that was used as an example. Takaki stated, “ Unless slavery was abolished, Jefferson feared, whites would continue to face the danger of servile insurrection. Commenting on the slave revolt in Santo Domingo” (75). What Jefferson was saying was unless slavery stops there will be rebellion against government and danger will continue. The world needs a change and slavery must stop or else people are going to rebel against our government and our world and people will be in danger.
I felt this chapter was long I liked the material that it gave and I definitely learned something from this reading. I agree with Jefferson and Takaki’s argument that slavery must stop and treating people differently was wrong. Trying to change the world and their views can be a difficult thing. But Takaki tried to explain the process and the possibilities in the chapter and even though it was a bit long and drug out I felt he made me understand what his argument was.

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