"Really, it was difficult to determine which I had most reason to fear - dogs, alligators or men!"
Explain the context of this statement by Northrup in Chapter 10. (1 paragraph)
Choose one scene/event from chapters 11-13 that effected you the most as you read. Explain that event and why it made an impact on you at this point of Northrup's story? (1 paragraph)
(24 Points / 12 pts. for each paragraph. Due by class on Monday)
Northup decides to make a life-changing choice in Chapter 10 by once again refusing Tibeats beating and running away from the plantation. This choice impacts Northup greatly. He has to decide where in fact he is going to go, and if he will make it there alive. He is chased by men and their dogs through the swamp and at that moment, Northup finally realizes how slaves who are escaping and slaves who are still in bondage feel during those circumstances.
ReplyDeleteOne scene that impacted me most throughout these chapters was Northup's desire in seeing Mr. Ford and his planation after he has finished his work for Mr. Eldret. What I found most interesting about this scene that was Mr. Eldret agreed that if Northup in fact worked hard he could go and see Mr. Ford, yet when he tries to leave Tibeats has some harsh words for him. Also, I personally felt sorry for Northup when he tries to leave without a "pass" from his master. I personally cannot imagine being a grown adult and having to get permission from another adult to go about my personal business.
Tibeats and Northup are found alone again, and the situation escalates quickly. Tibeats wanted to find something wrong with what Northup was doing, and he did, and grew increasingly angry. He then tried to kill Northup but Northup got away and started running. Dogs were chasing him, but Northup found water and was able to get rid of his sent. Northup won one battle, but then had another when he realized all the dangerous creatures in the swamp, and in the surrounding woods. The water was called the “Great Pacoudrie Swamp”and was filled with tons of alligators, poisonous snakes, and other dangerous reptiles. Northup began to fear the alligators in the current situation almost more than the men that were on his trail.
ReplyDeleteOne event that effected me the most in these few chapters was the dances that Master Epps started to have when he discovered Northup’s talent with the violin. Whenever Epps came back in a “dancing mood” he would force all the slaves to dance and those who could play instruments to play. Epps took the dances very seriously and all the slaves had to dance perfectly. He even carried his whip with him and hit anyone who was slowing or stopped dancing. This event made an impact on me at this point in the story because even though dances were thought as something that would be enjoyable or fun, for slaves it was something they dreaded and was punishable.
Tibeats continually finds fault in Solomon's work, and believes that punishment is the only cure. Solomon has a second battle with Tibeats and, again, Solomon will not allow himself to undergo Tibeats punishment. Solomon realizes that Tibeats wishes to kill him in this battle and that his only option is to escape the plantation and head toward the swamps, becoming a fugitive slave. After Solomon's escape, he hears blood hounds chasing him; he knows that the swamp will conceal his scent and that the dogs will not be able to chase him anymore. He feels relieved once away from Tibeats and the dogs, but he realizes another fear upon entering the swamp: there are alligators and moccasin snakes surrounding him. Solomon no longer knows which is more frightening to him, "dogs, alligators, or men."
ReplyDeleteThe section that affects me the most is when Solomon describes the cotton picking system on Master Epps's plantation. Epps weighs each slave's daily haul of cotton. Then each slave must pick the same amount of cotton each day or else they will be whipped after the weighing. For example, Epps's best cotton picker, Patsey, can pick 500 pounds of cotton daily; therefore, she is expected to pick that much everyday of the cotton season, and if she picks less, she will be whipped. On the other hand, Solomon has to pick about 200 pounds of cotton each day in order to avoid trouble. This system greatly impacts all the slaves. The slaves, no matter how tired, always fear the cotton weighing every night, fearful that they will endure punishment themselves or have to witness the brutal whipping of others. This scene affects me since I cannot even imagine the fear that the slaves felt when going to the weighing each night. I cannot even imagine having to work hard all day, only to pick too little cotton and then be whipped. I cannot even imagine having to work hard all day, picking enough cotton only to have to witness another being whipped.
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ReplyDeleteNorthup continues to work, as a slave should; however Tibeats continuously finds miniscule errors in Northup’s work. When Tibeats finds Northup’s fault he tries to kill him. Northup barely escapes by running away as fast as he could. He soon heard dogs so he went through a river to loose the scent. He then finds himself in a swamp full of snakes, crocodiles, and other dangerous reptiles. He realizes that not only did runaway slaves have to deal with the fear of slave owners and their dogs but also the dangers of the wild.
DeleteWhat shocked me the most is when the slaves would pick cotton they would be given a sack and sent out to the fields. Every time they would be sent out they were required to pick just as much cotton as they physically could. If they were to pick just a small amount less than their maximum pickings they would be beaten or whipped. It hit me that even if you are working as hard as possible some days must be harder to pick, due to rain and humidity. So how would it be physically possible to pick 500 pounds of cotton every day like Patsey. However the fear of the whip gets every slave working to their max and pushes them to work or die.
Once again, in chapter 10, Tibeats finds fault with Northup's work and a conflict arises. Tibeats plans to resort to severe punishment upon Solomon, who fights back and is able to resist Tibeats. Solomon proceeds to run away from his master and into the unknown wilderness. Soon after his escape, around 10 dogs and two men on horseback chase after him, hoping to pick up on his scent and recapture him. In the bayou, Solomon swims through the swampy waters among reptiles such as alligators. Under normal circumstances, an alligator would be far more formidable than a man would, but Northup, facing his predicament, questions whether or not the alligators or men are more fearful.
ReplyDeleteThe scene that impacted me the most throughout the chapters was when Solomon and Tibeats had their quarrel and Solomon revealed that their have been terribly unhappy times in his life during which he contemplated death as a means of escape. But after deep thought, he realized that "Life is near to every living thing; the worm that crawls upon the gorund will struggle for it. At that moment it was dear to me, enslaved and treated as I was." This quote was just kind of placed in the middle of the fight scene between him and Tibeats, but I still thought that it was very powerful. Life should not be taken for granted, no matter how terrible it may seem. I think that this could have possibly been an epiphany for Solomon who was questioning the point of life at the moment.
After escaping death once already from Tibeats, Northup soon finds himself in yet another almost predicted scuffle with him. However, this time Northup is alone and there is nobody close that can save him from Tibeat's plot to kill him. Northup quickly realizes that this could very well be the end of his live, and he decides to attack Tibeats again. This type Northup knocks Tibeats unconscious for a brief moment. During this time Northup sees a brief window of opportunity for his escape and leaps at it. Only minutes after his escape, Tibeats comes to and sends hounds and several men to retrieve him. As Northup proceeds further into the woods, he realizes that if he is caught by either the dogs or the men that he will surely be killed. However, while crossing the waters of the bayou, Northup discovers alligators and snakes in the waters. He then begins to question which he should fear most during his escape, "dogs, alligators or men." Northup knows that in any case, one wrong move in the bayou could render him dead. Northup's escape gives him a great appreciation for other slaves in the past who have made similar attempts at escaping.
ReplyDeleteThe event that effects me the most is the moment when Mr. Ford takes Northup on horseback and meets Mr. Tibeats in order to notify him that Northup is alive, and has come fourth about Tibeats cruel mistreatment of him in the past days. I expected that upon Ford and Tibeat's meeting that Tibeats would become extremely angry. Consequently, I was quite surprised when instead Tibeats commented on how fast Northup's escape was. Tibeats, seemed to be commending Northup on his escape rather than punishing him for it. I was also surprised at the manor in which Ford treated Tibeats. It was satisfying to hear the way Ford stood up to Tibeats and ridiculed him for using axes and hatches on his slaves, suggesting that treating slaves with some dignity will in the long run pay off more than harsh, and over dramatic punishment. This event also made me realize that despite harsh racism in the south during this time, there were still some white slave owners like Mr. Ford that cared for blacks, and made a point to grant them humanly respect.
In Chapter 10, Solomon was working hard, and once again, Tibeats was not satisfied with the work he was doing. Tibeats attempted to inflict a great punishment on Solomon, but Solomon resisted and fended him off. This gave Solomon time to escape into the woods, away from the plantation. Solomon could hear a group of men, with their ferocious blood hounds tailing him. Solomon was very afraid. He knew if he entered the swamp, the dogs would lose his scent. He entered the water and breathed a sigh of relief that the dogs were no longer tracking him, but he was quickly frightened once more. This time, it wasn't dogs or men he was afraid of, but deadly water moccasin snakes and alligators lurking in the water surrounding him. That is when Solomon says, "Really, it was difficult to determine which I had most reason to fear - dogs, alligators or men!"
ReplyDeleteThe part that impacted me the most in this section of the story was when Solomon was describing a slave's work in a cotton field. The main piece that shocked me was that when a new slave was bought and taken to the fields, he was lashed with a whip repeatedly and then sent out to pick as much cotton as he possibly could. This determined the true amount of cotton that the slave should be expected to pick on a daily basis, and if they didn't fulfill this, they were beaten. I found this to be extremely harsh and brutal. This made me feel extremely bad for Solomon and the other slaves. I also was shocked by the pure cruelty of the measures taken and strict standards set for hard working slaves. I was also incredibly shocked by the fact that Patsey picked 500 lbs per day and would be beaten if she didn't keep that pace up. That sounds insane.
In chapter 10 Solomon returns to work with Tibeats. He begins working on a new project under Tibeats watchful and scornful eye. In the workspace Tibeats and Solomon are alone and conflict is inevitable. Tibeats seems to find fault with every move Solomon makes and resigns to kill him. Tibeats takes up an axe but Solomon chooses to fight once again and disarms Tibeats. Solomon knows he will be in for a large punishment and when he hears dogs coming to get him he takes off running. He headed to the bayou and the only reason he was able to escape was his ability to swim which put the dogs off his scent and allowed him to make up ground.
ReplyDeleteWhat surprised me the most in chapter 11 was how when Solomon returned to the plantation and saw Tibeats once more there were nearly no reprecussions for his actions. Tibeats praised his escape and Ford had Solomon placed in the care of a new master yet for Solomon it was a good fate. He didnt have to suffer the pain of a brutal whipping.
In the beginning of chapter 10, Northup goes back to work with Tibeats, who, not surprisingly, was not satisfied with Northups work. Northup began a new project, and when Tibeats found fault in it, he took a hatchet to Northup. Northup ran through his three options, run away and get the hatchet in his back, take the hatchet straight on, or turn and fight Tibeats. Northup chooses to fight Tibeats and once again shows him up. Northup realizes that Tibeats will be very angry with him so he escapes into the woods and swamp. He hears men and dogs pursuing him, and thought that if he went into the swamp the dogs would lose his scent, but he would risk having alligators find him. He decides to go into the water and is relived when he knows that the dogs won't find him, but that relief is short lived when he thinks about the alligators that could possibly be lurking underneath the water. Northup say that he wasn't sure which to be more afraid of, alligators, dogs, or men.
ReplyDeleteI think that the most impactful part for me in this section was when Northup was exposed to the brutal conditions of the slaves that worked in the cotton fields. He was surprised, even at this point in his captivity, to see the brutality with which everyone was treated. If they didn't fill their daily quota of cotton that had to be picked, they would be beaten. I thought this scene was equal with the scene where Northup beat Tibeats in the hatchet fight. It showed the strength of the human resolve, to save themselves and the will it took to stand up against someone with an advantage over you.
Solomon again is working under master Tibeats and, again resists his the beatings and runs away. Solomon decides to leave the plantation, and has to find a destination and can't help but wonder if he will make it there alive. Once he hears the dogs began to come after him he is left with the decision of facing his great punishment or swimming across the bayou with the risk of gators attacking him.
ReplyDeleteIt is the the only way to get the dogs off his scent.
The one event in these chapters that impacted me the greatest was Mr Ford's treatment of Northup after he runs away from Tibeats. We have a vision that all slave owners were vicious men who whipped and beat their slaves into submission completely unprovoked; though this is true in many cases, Ford's treatment of Northup shows the other side of the coin. Ford takes Northup in, gives him food and let's him rest before returning to speak to Tibeats. When they do find Tibeats Ford effectively tells him how he treated Northup was completely wrong and that Tibeats was in no way capable of taking care of him. It impacted me because of the compassion Ford shows for Northup, it shows he does in fact care what happens whether or not Northup is still his.
ReplyDeleteAs Northup continues to work for Tibeats, Tibeats only begins to treat him more cruel. The first encounterment with Tibeats Northup knew that he had other people there to back him up. After the first incident Northup lived in fear of Tibeats because he knew that he was out for him. So when Tibeats comes at Northup the second time he fears for his life. He begins to realize that he could die right then and there.After Northup beating Tibeats once again he knows he must get out of there. As Northup escapes he is chased by dogs. He fears that the dogs will attract other men that would easily kill a run away slave. So Northup tries to lose the dogs. He tries to do this by jumping in the swamp. In the swamp he was not alone there were Alligators. At the time of the escape Northup is not only afraid of Tibeats but other men and also dogs or Alligators.
ReplyDeleteI think the event that impacted me the most was when Northup went back to Mr.Fords. Mr.Ford had become someone that Northup can trust. It surprised me that Northup was able to escape and trust that Ford would help him. This shows how much Northup mind set has changed to accept slavery on some condtions