Slavery in the 1840s Essay Example for Free

Slavery in the 1840s Essay Slavery was always a controversial issue in America. Many people saw slavery as an essential part of life in every aspect, while others saw it as immoral and an injustice to humanity. In the 1840s when Manifest Destiny started to thrive, things began to heat up. New territories meant a possibility for a new slave or free state in America. Because the new territories were allowed the right of popular sovereignty to determine whether they would have slaves or not, abolitionists and non-abolitionists were at a constant battle to gain a new state. Abolitionists wanted slavery diminished in America all together. They gave several arguments to prove their point on why slavery should be abolished. Firstly they stated that slavery was un-Christian. The book of Genesis stated that man was created in the image of God, so all men were created equal. Thus they claimed that anyone that owned slaves would go straight to hell for not adhering to the rules of God that all were equal. Another argument they came about was from a patriotic standpoint from which America was created. The Declaration of Independence states that all men are created equal, but with slavery and a flee for freedom in the nation, it was easily contradicted. As such, Abolitionists called slavery un-American. Another point made by the Abolitionists was that slavery gave unlimited power to slave holders. They could treat slaves however they chose because there were no laws protecting slaves. This is turn corrupted their moral values, according to Abolitionists. In economic viewpoints, slavery was still cruel and wicked to Abolitionists. They argued that free labor would be more beneficial because it would inspire competition and foreign investments and that it would appeal to immigrants. Abolitionists also said that it interfered with free and open trade to the north, which were anti-slavery states and businesses. Another point made was that slavery was politically dangerous because there was always a likelihood that salves could rebel. A massive slave rebellion would lead to a racial war in the United States that no one wanted. While Abolitionists argued their points, Pro-slavery groups gave very good rebuttals. Economically they argued that the end to slavery would kill the economy in the south. Without slaves in the fields collecting and caring for the produce, everything would collapse. Cotton, tobacco, and rice would all fail in the economy and the south would be in economic ruin. Another point pro-slavery people argued was what would happen if slaves were to be let free. They stated that if they were freed, unemployment would rise and there would be an abundance of chaos. All of this would lead to uprisings and bloodshed. Yet another argument that the defenders of slavery used was influenced with history. They claimed that slavery had been a part of history for so long and had become a natural state of mankind. History showed that Greeks, Romans, and English (until recently) had slaves and as such it was a part of human nature. Pro-slavery groups, like Abolitionists, also used religion and the bible as an argument. According to the bible Abraham had slaves, Paul returned a run-away slave in the New Testament, and Jesus never spoke out about slavery though it was widespread. Also non-Abolitionists argued that slaves were better cared for compared to factory workers in the North and the poor people of Europe. They indicated that slave owners would protect and help their slaves when they became sick or aged, unlike others who were left helplessly to fend for themselves once they were fired or released. The slave revolt of 1831 led by Nat Turner gave pro-slavery groups a lift in their arguments. It showed that slavery should be continued to keep the slaves in check and keep a watchful eye on them, to prevent any other chaotic events, which no one sought for. As is shown, slavery was a notorious issue that couldn’t be ignored and slowly spiraled out of control. The issue really started to get out of hand in the 1840s with new territories and the revival of religion in the Second Great Awakening. Both Abolitionists and Pro-slavery groups had arguments that caused a lot of uncertainty throughout the country, and especially in the new territories which were given the choice of slaves or no slaves. All of these arguments, issues and uncertainties that were widespread in the nation were the underlying cause of severe disunity between the North and South and eventually the Civil War.