Band of brothers : enslaved men of the antebellum south
This thesis examines the world of enslaved men in the antebellum southern United States. Using oral interviews conducted with formerly enslaved people, full-length slave autobiographies, as well as enslaved folklore, plantation records, trial papers, and petitions, it underscores that the lives of enslaved men were intertwined with one another, and that male interdependence was a fact of enslaved life. It examines how pursuits such as drinking, gambling, wrestling, hunting, and evading the patrol gangs brought enslaved men together in an all-male subculture through which they constructed their own independent notions of masculinity, friendship, solidarity and resistance. The thesis argues that homosocial company was integral to the gendered identity and self-esteem of enslaved men. The emotional landscape they created with other men offered them a vital mutual support network through which to resist the dehumanising features of enslaved life. Through each other, they forged an oppositional masculine culture that defied and subverted the authority of the slaveholder that structured their everyday lives. Despite the controls designed to locate the enslaved in plantation space, enslaved men illicitly left plantations
Lussana, Sergio
E151 United States (General)
Band of brothers : enslaved men of the antebellum south. This thesis examines the world of enslaved men in the antebellum southern United States. Using oral interviews conducted with formerly enslaved people, full-length slave autobiographies, as well as enslaved folklore, plantation records, trial papers, and petitions, it underscores that the lives of enslaved men were intertwined with one another, and that male interdependence was a fact of enslaved life. It examines how pursuits such as drinking, gambling, wrestling, hunting, and evading the patrol gangs brought enslaved men together in an all-male subculture through which they constructed their own independent notions of masculinity, friendship, solidarity and resistance. The thesis argues that homosocial company was integral to the gendered identity and self-esteem of enslaved men. The emotional landscape they created with other men offered them a vital mutual support network through which to resist the dehumanising features of enslaved life. Through each other, they forged an oppositional masculine culture that defied and subverted the authority of the slaveholder that structured their everyday lives. Despite the controls designed to locate the enslaved in plantation space, enslaved men illicitly left plantations
band brother enslave men south examines world enslave men southern united_states using oral interview_conduct formerly enslave people full_length slave autobiography well enslave folklore plantation record trial paper petition underscore life enslave men intertwine one_another male interdependence fact enslave life examines pursuit drinking hunting evade gang bring enslave men together all male construct independent notion masculinity friendship solidarity resistance argues company integral gendered identity self_esteem enslave men emotional landscape create men offer vital mutual support network resist feature enslave life forge oppositional masculine culture subvert authority structure everyday_life despite control design locate enslave plantation space enslave men leave plantation