CHAPTER 11 • SECTION 2
Families Under Slavery Perhaps the cruelest
part of slavery was the sale of family members
away from one another. Although some slaveholders would not part mothers from children, many
did, causing unforgettable grief.
When enslaved families could manage to be
together, they took comfort in family life. Enslaved
people did marry each other, although their marriages were not legally recognized. They tried to
raise children, while knowing that their children
could be taken from them and sold at any time.
Abolitionist Frederick Douglass, who was born
into slavery, recalled visits from his mother, who
lived 12 miles away.
RESEARCH &
Go online to explore
WRITING
CENTER
more of the heated
debate at
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History Makers
Nat Turner
Find links to biographies of Nat Turner at
the Research and Writing Center
@ ClassZone.com. Turner claimed that
the ability to read came to him in a vision.
However, some historians have speculated
that older slaves, perhaps his grandmother,
taught him how to read. Others argue that
a son of one of Turner’s masters did so,
despite laws that prohibited this practice.
CRITICAL THINKING ANSWER
Analyze Point of View He claimed
that his actions were dictated by God.
More About . . .
Frederick Douglass
Douglass remembered seeing his mother
just four or five times before she died and
never knew his white father. He lived with
his grandparents and an aunt before being
sent to work as a slave for a cruel man
who gave him daily whippings and barely
enough food to survive.
In 1838, he ran away from the shipyard
where he was working and traveled by
steamboat and train to get to New York
City, where he began living as a free man.
Working hard to educate himself, Douglass
became famous as he delivered lectures at
antislavery rallies throughout the North.
Unit 4 Resource Book
• America’s History Makers,
pp. 149–150
More About . . .
Slave Rebellions
In 1839, one of the best-known slave
rebellions took place at sea on the slave
ship Amistad. Ultimately the rebels were
caught and charged with murder.
However, because the importation of slaves
had been banned, the U.S. Supreme Court
ruled that the Africans were kidnap victims
and entitled to do whatever was necessary
to escape.
376 • Chapter 11
History Makers
Nat Turner
1800–1831
PRIMARY SOURCE
Nat Turner (above left) was born into slavery in
Virginia. He learned to read as a child and became
an enthusiastic reader of the Bible. Enslaved people
gathered in forest clearings to listen to Turner’s
powerful sermons.
In 1831, Turner led a group of followers in killing
about 55 white Virginians, starting with the family
of his former owner. It was the bloodiest slave
rebellion in American history. In an account of
events that he dictated to Thomas R. Gray before
his execution, Turner called himself a “prophet”
and said that God had called him to commit his
violent acts.
“
I do not recollect [remember] ever seeing my
mother by the light of day. She was with me in the
night. She would lie down with me, and get me to
sleep, but long before I waked she was gone.
”
—Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of
Frederick Douglass
Douglass’s mother resisted slavery by the simple
act of visiting her child. Douglass later rebelled by
escaping to the North. A small number of enslaved
people rebelled in violent ways.
Slave Rebellions Armed rebellion by enslaved
persons was an extreme form of resistance to
slavery. Gabriel Prosser planned an attack on Richmond, Virginia, in 1800. In 1822, Denmark Vesey
CRITICAL THINKING Analyze Point of View How
did Turner justify his use of violence?
planned a revolt in Charleston, South Carolina.
Both plots were betrayed and the leaders, as well
as numerous followers, were hanged.
For more on Nat Turner, go to the
ONLINE
The most famous rebellion was led by Nat Turner
Research & Writing Center
BIOGRAPHY
@ ClassZone.com
in Southampton County, Virginia, in 1831. Beginning on August 21, Turner and 70 followers killed
about 55 white men, women, and children. Most
of Turner’s men were captured when their ammunition ran out, and some
were killed. After Turner was caught, he was tried and hanged.
Turner’s rebellion spread fear in the South. Whites killed more than 200
African Americans in revenge. The state of Virginia considered ending slavery
because of the upheaval, but the proposal was narrowly defeated. Some state
legislatures, however, passed harsh laws that further limited the freedom
of both free and enslaved African Americans. For African Americans in the
South, the grip of slavery grew even tighter.
376 Chapter 11
DIFFERENTIATING INSTRUCTION: TIERED ACTIVITIES
OBJECTIVE Deliver a lecture about the life and ideas of Nat Turner or Frederick Douglass.
Basic
On Level
Challenge
Provide detailed biographies
of Nat Turner and Frederick
Douglass. Have students
read and highlight key
information about them.
Then have students introduce
themselves as lecturers and
give details about Nat Turner
or Frederick Douglass’s
accomplishments.
Have students research and
take notes on Nat Turner and
Frederick Douglass. Then
have students introduce
themselves as lecturers
and deliver an antislavery
lecture in which they share
Nat Turner or Frederick
Douglass’s life experiences.
Have students research and
take notes on Nat Turner and
Frederick Douglass. Then
have students introduce
themselves as lecturers and
deliver an antislavery lecture
in which they compare Nat
Turner’s experiences and
goals with those of Frederick
Douglass.
CHAPTER 11 • SECTION 2
A Common Culture By the early 1800s,
a distinctive African-American culture
had emerged on Southern plantations.
This common culture helped enslaved
African Americans bond together and
endure the brutal conditions of Southern plantation life.
Religion was a cornerstone of AfricanAmerican culture in the South. Some
slaveholders had tried to use religion to
force enslaved people to accept mistreatment, emphasizing such Bible passages
as “Servants, obey your masters.” But enslaved people took their own messages from the Bible. They were particularly inspired by the book of Exodus,
which tells of Moses leading the Hebrews out of bondage in Egypt. Many
enslaved African Americans believed that this story offered a message of
hope for their own people.
spirituals—folk songs that were
Enslaved people expressed their beliefs in spirituals
often religious in nature. Many spirituals voiced the desire for freedom.
Sometimes, spirituals contained coded messages about a planned escape or
an owner’s unexpected return. African-American spirituals later had a strong
influence on blues, jazz, and other forms of American music.
COMPARE AND CONTRAST Compare the different conditions faced by African
Americans in the South.
Answer: Most Southern African Americans were enslaved; of these,
about half worked on plantations. A small minority were free, but
still had severely limited rights.
CONNECT
What forces and events affected
national unity and growth?
Ask students what they have learned so far
that can help them answer this question.
Students might mention:
• The introduction of the cotton gin
increased economic growth in the South.
• The issue of slavery divided many in the
South and in other parts of the country.
• Cotton growers moved westward and
took over Native American lands.
(top) The Old Plantation,
late 1700s (above)
Enslaved Africans
brought the banjo to
the American colonies.
• Enslaved African Americans in the South
developed a common culture.
4
ONLINE QUIZ
2
Section Assessment
TERMS & NAMES
1. Explain the importance of
• cotton gin
• Nat Turner
• Eli Whitney
KEY IDEAS
3. How did the invention of the cotton gin change
Southern life?
4. What forms did resistance to slavery take?
USING YOUR READING NOTES
2. Causes and Effects Complete the diagram you
started at the beginning of this section.
CRITICAL THINKING
5. Analyze Point of View Why did many Southern
farmers who owned no slaves support slavery?
6. Connect Economics and History The cotton
gin made it possible to clean the same amount of
cotton with fewer workers. Why did this result in an
increased demand for slaves?
CAUSE
Eli Whitney invents
the cotton gin.
EFFECT
Assess & Reteach
Assess Have students complete the Section
Assessment.
For test practice, go to
Interactive Review @ ClassZone.com
EFFECT
to the Essential Question
Unit 4 Resource Book
• Section Quiz, p. 164
Interactive Review
@ ClassZone.com
Power Presentations
Test Generator
Reteach Have students use each subheading
to create a cause-and-effect question, such as
“What caused slavery to expand?” Have teams
of students take turns writing and answering the
questions.
7. Art Choose an African-American spiritual. Write
down and illustrate the lyrics, drawing any images or
symbols used in the spiritual.
Unit 4 Resource Book
• Reteaching Activity, p. 167
National and Regional Growth 377
SECTION 2 ASSESSMENT ANSWERS
Terms & Names
1. cotton gin, p. 373; Eli Whitney, p. 373;
Nat Turner, 376
Using Your Reading Notes
2. Possible Answers: slavery grows; Southern
economy expands; more cotton grown; Native
Americans forced off Southern lands.
Key Ideas
3. It made a few slaveholders rich and powerful;
it resulted in a huge rise in slavery; it divided
enslaved families.
4. Some resisted violently, while others left the
area or tried to maintain their families.
Critical Thinking
5. They hoped to own slaves themselves some
day and become rich; it had become a
customary way of life.
6. Because cotton could be cleaned much faster,
more cotton could be processed and sold.
Increasing cotton production meant greater
numbers of workers were needed to grow and
pick it.
7. Art should depict images and symbols
contained in the spiritual. Use the rubric to
score the students’ drawings.
Art Rubric
Content
Accuracy
4
excellent; most important
images and symbols are shown
no errors
3
good; some important images
and symbols are shown
few/minor
errors
2
fair; few important images and
symbols are shown
several
errors
1
poor; no important images and
symbols are shown
many
errors
Teacher’s Edition • 377