Slaves
Definition
Slaves are individuals who are owned by other people, known as slave owners. They are forced to work without consent and without any personal rights or freedoms.
Analogy
Imagine being a character in a video game that's controlled by someone else. You can't make your own decisions or have any freedom; you're completely at the mercy of the player controlling you. That's similar to how slaves lived - they were controlled by their owners and had no personal freedoms.
Related terms
Middle Passage: The sea journey undertaken by slave ships from West Africa to the West Indies.
Abolitionism: The movement to end slavery, which gained momentum in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Emancipation Proclamation: An executive order issued by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862 declaring all slaves in Confederate territory free (effective as of January 1, 1863).
"Slaves" appears in:
Subjects (2)
Study guides (1)
Practice Questions (7)
What helped minority and religious groups like slaves, women, and Quakers flourish with new reforms?
Which President issued the Emancipation Proclamation freeing slaves in Confederate-held territory?
What was the primary cause of death for slaves during the Middle Passage?
How might colonial history have changed if slaves were granted equal rights as citizens within the same timeframe as indentured servants?
What compromise at the Constitutional Convention resulted in slaves being counted as three-fifths for population representation purposes?
Which Supreme Court case ruled that slaves were property, not citizens?
What may have occurred if slaves in Spanish colonies had successfully rebelled against their masters early in colonization?
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