Critique
It is difficult to begin a critique of this book as it attempts to deal with issues that are specifically and explicitly not compatible with traditional views of American history; the scholarship that the authors engaged in was necessarily hampered by the lack of previous research and accurate record keeping. Both primary and secondary sources were in scant supply, and without these tools it would be difficult for a text on any subject and within any academic discipline to be created. In this regard, the authors have done a commendable job of attempting to piece together collective histories and individual narratives that need to be told in order to gain an accurate understanding of early America and Virginia.
That being said, the authors spend far too long in this reader's opinion discussing and analyzing the works of previous historians that these authors specifically point out as being inaccurate, incomplete, or outright wrong in their conclusions. The result is a text that appears to be more concerned with the manner in which the specific historical epoch and community has been studied and presented previously, rather than with an accurate and detailed representation of this epoch/community. Statements like, "it was difficult for the historian to imagine," and, "a modern historian who attempted to classify" appear throughout the book, making this a sort of meta-history, and an analysis (usually resulting in a correction or condemnation) of previous scholarship in the authors' research area (31, 45).
There is, of course, a great deal of merit to this type of scholarship; it is necessary to point out where academic fields...
Indentured Servant Analysis Elizabeth Springs' letter to her father on September 22, 1756, is both a letter of apology due to her failure to communicate and a review of the horrendous conditions she was working under as an indentured servant. This paper reviews -- through historical context -- the situation that many indentured servants from England suffered through and puts Springs' letter into a perspective. The Letter from Springs to John Spyer Elizabeth
Another major cause of exodus was the decline of linen manufacturing from 1771 to 1773. Many thousands of people suddenly lost their jobs and joined the hundreds going to America. "The linen trade... had entered upon a period of stagnation, and the consequent distress gave an impetus to the emigration to the land of promise" (Dunaway, 1944, p. 30). Religious persecution suffered by the Ulster habitats was another reason
But, it was an evil system in which "armies of free men, guilty of no crimes and entitled by law to freedom," were contracted to provide labor "without compensation" (Blackmon). In conclusion, while it is true that the Civil War ended and the Emancipation Proclamation (and the 13th Amendment) supposedly freed the slaves, there was still a dark social policy of indentured servitude, as pointed out in this paper. There
indentured servants and company towns. Specifically, it will research and discuss how sociological concepts apply to these topics. Sociologically, company towns and indentured servitude are two of the most complex topics of life in historic America. Indentured servants placed their trust in others to eventually gain their freedom and a better life, while company towns existed to better the company, rather than the residents. These two forms of controlled
environment strictly controlled by its owning company, woman often found difficulty obtaining any kind of role outside of domestic duties. Work in company towns was generally reserved for males, which granted them the responsibility of providing for their families while restricting their wives to the duties at home. Women's lives within company towns, aside from placing them in a position of dependence on their husbands, were quite dull. In
Domestic Life as a Woman in a Slave Family I am a black female slave living in Virginia in the late 17th Century. I was born into slavery on a plantation and all I have ever known is slavery. My slavery was passed on to me by my mother, who was raped by the old plantation owner here in 1660 (DuBois & Dumenil, 2016, p. 55). I was married to
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