The Hypocrisy of American Heroes Essay examples

Submitted By appstateguy
Words: 622
Pages: 3
Open Document
The hypocrisy of American heroes
An Analysis of Slavery and Freedom: The American Paradox
UCO 1200: Mr. Franklin’s World
Bly
The reading “Slavery and Freedom: The American Paradox” was written by Edmund S. Morgan for the Journal of American History, in June of 1972. The reading covers the history of slavery by whites in England, as well as the American colonies, from 1500, into the eighteenth century. The reading also covers American forefathers George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison and the role they played in a “free” America (Morgan 1972, 6-14). Outlining the inconsistency of liberty in the United States, the reading shows American leaders (Washington, Jefferson and Madison) in a darker form than is shown in the history books found in American classrooms today. It sheds light on the distasteful history of slavery in the American colonies, and their battle with hypocrisy as they advertised a “free” America.
A positive point in this reading is the depth in which the author tells the stories of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. The article dedicates eight pages to showing how three of the most influential founding fathers in American history spent their lives speaking for freedom and liberation, also spent their lives as slaveholders, much like their fellow whites males. Jefferson, above all, is known most for his advocacy of republican freedom (Morgan 1972, 6). But it should also be remembered that while his life’s work was the freedom of all men created equal, he also pushed for denying these rights to the black community (Morgan 1972, 6). Ironically it was Jefferson’s distaste for a lack of freedom that made him keep his slaves, citing that his debt to others required him to keep his slaves, for they were far cheaper labor (Morgan 1972, 8).
A negative point in this reading is the lack of history shown after the eighteenth century. America made huge steps towards a truly free nation during the nineteenth century with the freeing of slaves during the 1860s, all the way up through the twentieth century, when the Civil Rights Act was put in place in the 1960s. The Paradox that Morgan explains throughout his work, and the evidence he cites to support it, can be put into even more depth by covering the over 100 years of history that are omitted. While many would argue that America is still
Show More

Related Documents: The Hypocrisy of American Heroes Essay examples

Heroism: Martin Luther King Jr.

given to people who sacrifice and fight for someone or something. Like in B?efore I Go To Sleep even though Christine was looked down on and treated like a small child, she still has hope in her heart. W?hile stereotypical heroes are strong men usually with super powers, real heroes can be anyone, they don’t have to be strong or any of that. A hero can be somebody that you look up to, someone that has admirable qualities. Many people in 1963 looked up to Martin Luther King Jr. for his heroism in expressing…

Words 502 - Pages 3

The Death Penatly Essay

fail to realize however, is that taking an eye for an eye will leave to whole world blind. Although blinded, stubborn Americans still prefer to use Wild West tactics like the death penalty for murders. The death penalty is a crime, not a solution. The death penalty should be eradicated because it is immoral, hypocritical and an inefficient form of punishment. Yet, millions of Americans would agree to disagree. The death penalty is simply immoral. One reason why the death penalty is so wrong is that…

Words 867 - Pages 4

Incarceration, Torture And War In The US

The majority of Americans twenty years ago would agree that unwarranted, mass incarceration, torture and perpetual war are products of a morally corrupt society. The view of this in our society has changed drastically since. A façade has been set up to cultivate false fear in the minds of our population. We are indoctrinated to unquestioningly fear what our government deems as terrorism, mass drug addiction, and the crumbling of our holy capitalistic system which every American schoolchild is taught repeatedly to hold dear to their heart…

Words 1058 - Pages 5

Al Capone Hypocrisy

The government became the epitome of hypocrisy and corruption. Bribes and gifts were frequently exchanged between gangsters and smugglers and agents officials. Many officials drank alcohol, even in the highest levels of the government. According to Alice Roosevelt Longworth, “No rumor could have exceeded the reality;... trays with bottles containing every imaginable whiskey stood about.” The director of Prohibition enforcement in Pennsylvania had over four million dollars to bribe his own men, and…

Words 417 - Pages 2

Social Justice Warriors Research Paper

just earn 78 cents on the dollar a man earns.”, which is likely accurate information unless the illuminati is running the website. What social progress advocates do is manipulate the data by leaving parts of it out(Agness, 2016). For example, the American Association of University Women asked the question, “Did you know that in 2014, Women working full time in the United States were typically paid 79 percent of what men were paid, a gap of 21 percent?” This statement clearly alters the statistic making…

Words 479 - Pages 2

Fences Monologue

garbage trucks. I hate these things they do against us African-American. We are human, but the racism between Black and White pushes our life to the bad side. So, I tell this to my friend, Jim. I keeping my family from the problems of this society and everyone think I am selfish. In this play, I definitely wouldn't win any awards for congeniality. I am widely considered to be a antagonist, the perfect evolutionary character of the American stage in Fence play. I often cite as a perfect example of a…

Words 809 - Pages 4

John Proctor Dynamic Character

for the reason that others do not care for them. These characters are common in literature today and there are real life Proctors as well. As a matter of fact, the traits of John Proctor are so profound and well-known that other characters from American literature share similarities and are classified as a “Proctor”. One example of this kind of character is Hawkeye from The Last of…

Words 678 - Pages 3

Gardner: Sir Walter Scott Essay

satire is used to portray the flaws of a society. In “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”, Mark Twain uses satire to critique the antebellum South. Mark Twain uses satire to critique the antebellum South by having Huck’s father, Pap, criticize an African American being able to vote . As Pap encounters a free black, he claims, “They said he was a p’fessor in a college, and could talk all kinds of languages, and knowed everything. And that ain’t the wust. They said he could vote when he was at home” (35)…

Words 740 - Pages 3

Martin Luther King's Ethos In Letter From Birmingham Jail

King appealed to patriotism as a form of pathos to argue that people needed to take action and fix the race issues that America was facing and to defend his strategy for change. First, he subtly reminded Americans of how their own country was formed when he explained how the laws that African Americans have to endure are unfair: “A law is unjust if it is inflicted on a minority that, as a result of being denied the right to vote, had no part in enacting or devising the law” (178). The reason why the…

Words 1172 - Pages 5

Huckleberry Finn And Maggie: A Girl Of The Streets

novels and characters have a lot in common, they also are really dissimilar on countless very significant issues. Both Mark Twain and Stephen Crane use realism and local color to reveal their American worlds in the nineteenth century, using colloquial language, realistic details, and the perspective of young heroes to express their observations and thoughts about society. Both agree on the conflict between civilization and freedom, Huck being happy in the wild, living on the island, far from civilization…

Words 1185 - Pages 5