1/8/2016
Other
War Propaganda
Civil War Propaganda and Its Impact on the Abolitionist Movement
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| Gordon as He Entered Our Lines. Gordon under Medical Inspection. Gordon in His Uniform as a U.S. Soldier. |
During the time of the Civil War, propaganda and paper media were extremely popular. The image above, published in Harper's Weekly in 1863, is an example of pro-abolitionist propaganda. The image not only provides the idea that former slaves can hold the esteemed position of a soldier, but also the horrid treatment of a slave by his master indicated by the man's scars.
The placement of the middle image and its size draw the audience's attention to the image. By doing so, the paper emphasizes that slavery is immoral because of the harm it causes. The third image on the right, captioned "Gordon in his uniform as a U.S. Soldier," encapsulates Gordon when he is at a great state in his life and has fully welcomed the abolitionist movement. The man's name helps portray him as a human being rather than a "contraband," a concept Professor Fahs' mentioned during lecture.
Even Gordon's position in the three images reflects his progression and the abolitionist movement's progression during this time. In the left and middle image, one can see that Gordon is sitting down. This shows his helplessness at the time. He had become weakened by the brutality and hardship he had faced in the south. The middle image still displays Gordon seated as he shares his scarred back. This further proves that slavery had caused him to become helpless to the point where he is not standing on his own. In contrast to these images, the drawing farthest to the right provides a standing photo of Gordon, which not only displays he can stand on his own but he has also joined with others that have learned to stand on their own in battle for the abolitionist cause. Gordon acts as a symbol for the abolitionist movement in this image. One can clearly see this progression of Gordon's feelings at the time throughout the left and right image portrayed in the news article. The left image where "Gordon ... entered our lines" implies that Gordon was unhappy with the treatment he received as a slave in the south. In the photo on the right, Gordon's expression displays a smile. This disproves the idea that many people at the time believed that slaves were happy being slaves and that they were meant to be in slavery because they were predisposed to being so. As mentioned in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave, people of the "slave-holding religion" (Douglass 109) believed the biblical story of Ham. Ham had seen his father in the nude and for doing so was forced to move himself and his decedents to Africa, meaning that all African Americans are to be punished because of this single religious idea (Douglass19-20).
Reflecting on the abolitionist movement during that time period tells us to think about how race and racism are handled in our world. With movements like Black Lives Matter, we are reminded to not forget that although we no longer have slavery there is still racism in America. How should we handle this racism and who is to blame?
Work Cited:
Gordon as He Entered Our Lines. Gordon under Medical Inspection. Gordon in His Uniform as a U.S. Soldier. 1863. Library of Congress, Washington D.C. Library of Congress. Web. 8 Jan. 2016. <http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/89716298/>.
Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. New York: Penguin, 2014. Print.
The placement of the middle image and its size draw the audience's attention to the image. By doing so, the paper emphasizes that slavery is immoral because of the harm it causes. The third image on the right, captioned "Gordon in his uniform as a U.S. Soldier," encapsulates Gordon when he is at a great state in his life and has fully welcomed the abolitionist movement. The man's name helps portray him as a human being rather than a "contraband," a concept Professor Fahs' mentioned during lecture.
Even Gordon's position in the three images reflects his progression and the abolitionist movement's progression during this time. In the left and middle image, one can see that Gordon is sitting down. This shows his helplessness at the time. He had become weakened by the brutality and hardship he had faced in the south. The middle image still displays Gordon seated as he shares his scarred back. This further proves that slavery had caused him to become helpless to the point where he is not standing on his own. In contrast to these images, the drawing farthest to the right provides a standing photo of Gordon, which not only displays he can stand on his own but he has also joined with others that have learned to stand on their own in battle for the abolitionist cause. Gordon acts as a symbol for the abolitionist movement in this image. One can clearly see this progression of Gordon's feelings at the time throughout the left and right image portrayed in the news article. The left image where "Gordon ... entered our lines" implies that Gordon was unhappy with the treatment he received as a slave in the south. In the photo on the right, Gordon's expression displays a smile. This disproves the idea that many people at the time believed that slaves were happy being slaves and that they were meant to be in slavery because they were predisposed to being so. As mentioned in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass an American Slave, people of the "slave-holding religion" (Douglass 109) believed the biblical story of Ham. Ham had seen his father in the nude and for doing so was forced to move himself and his decedents to Africa, meaning that all African Americans are to be punished because of this single religious idea (Douglass19-20).
Reflecting on the abolitionist movement during that time period tells us to think about how race and racism are handled in our world. With movements like Black Lives Matter, we are reminded to not forget that although we no longer have slavery there is still racism in America. How should we handle this racism and who is to blame?
Work Cited:
Gordon as He Entered Our Lines. Gordon under Medical Inspection. Gordon in His Uniform as a U.S. Soldier. 1863. Library of Congress, Washington D.C. Library of Congress. Web. 8 Jan. 2016. <http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/89716298/>.
Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. New York: Penguin, 2014. Print.
Fahs, Alice. "The Civil War and Historical Contingency: Emancipation and Black Soldiers." University of California, Irvine. Biological Sciences three, Irvine, CA, 6 Jan. 2016.
Lecture.
Lecture.
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