Theoretical Reading

“Time, Space, and the Evolution of Afro-American Society Afro-American Society on British Mainland North America.” by Ira berlin describes the three distinctive geographical slave systems that Affected African Americans, since their arrival in America. A Northern nonplantation system and two southern plantation systems in the Chesapeake Bay and the other in the Carolina and Georgia Lowcountry. When it comes to the northern system, it was very different from the southern system because in the North, due to the climate, slavemasters didn’t farm much. So they made enslaved African Americans work closely with them and make them perform other labors, which lead African Americans to move out and live independently. For illustration, it states, “Urban slavery moved steadily away from the household to the docks, warehouses, and shops, as demonstrated by the growing disproportion of slave men in the urban North. Aside from those skills associated with the maritime trades, however, few slaves entered artisan work. Only a handful could be found in the carriage trades that enjoyed higher status and that offered greater opportunity for an independent livelihood and perhaps the chance to buy freedom.” (Berlin, 49).  This reveals that the interaction with slaves and white gave blacks the opportunity to acquire knowledge about the world. However, some African Americans may have been forced into working in factories. Others were offered job opportunities to work on their own and eventually acquire their freedom, unlike in the southern systems, there was a high demand for cotton. So enslaved African Americans were forced to work long hours in plantations with harsh climates. They were forced to breed more offspring for more labor, which prevented their ability to create a family. The Southern African Americans were still able to preserve their African roots because they did not learn white rituals and practices like the Northern Blacks.