Tag Archives: alphabet

by

Anti-Slavery Alphabet

At first glance, the Anti-Slavery Alphabet is definitely aesthetically pleasing and can intrigued children. The simplistic look to the Alphabet is what can draw children to the reading. For me, just by looking at it, I liked the way it looked. Children can be exposed to serious political topics in such a way that they can relate in a bit. The alphabet aspect to it brings it to entice the younger audience but the topic itself is a very strong serious topic.

As I was reading each line, I can tell this alphabet was intended for white children instead of all children. For the part of letter B, it states:

B is a Brother with a skin of somewhat darker hue, But in our Heavenly Father’s sight, He is as dear as you.

This is saying how that black slaves are just like the white in the eyes of God, which is showing equality to the younger audience. As the letters go on by, it gets a bit dark; for the letter D, it’s showing how a whip is used to punish the slaves who disobey or rest. While reading the letter H, I felt a bit uncomfortable because if this is meant for children, then this letter is definitely really dark:

H is the Hound his master trained, and called to scent the track of the unhappy Fugitive, and bring him trembling back.

The thing that struck me was “unhappy Fugitive,” because what fugitive would be happy. I feel like the use of the adjective was quite strange and really dark. As I kept reading more and more, it felt like the letters kept getting darker and darker.

by

THE ANTI SLAVERY ALPHABET- DONALD NG

It is really interesting how each alphabets resemble things that relate to slavery. What is more interesting that each letter resembles a different category within slavery. I feel that this book is entitled for kids whose parents are abolitionist (as discussed in class today). The reason why is because of the fact that a child whose parent that is not an abolitionist would think that this book is not relevant. This book is to spread the belief to families that are abolitionist and let their children know that it is wrong to enslave people. This book is from passionate abolitionist authors to make younger people feel that slavery is wrong and that it should end soon. The title and the first alphabet already gives the answer to who the author wants to express this to. For the age content I would believe that if would be for non adults because of the fact that the text would be hard for a very young children to understand. The last alphabet Z caught my attention as the author stated

    "Z is a Zealous man, sincere,
      Faithful, and just, and true;
    An earnest pleader for the slave--
      Will you not be so too?"

This message is to express that we are all not being faithful, we are no zealous, 
and we are not sincere. The author is appreciating the slaves for what they do.
by

The Anti-Slavery Alphabet

The Anti-Slavery Alphabet was very interesting to me. The fact that such a political piece was directed at children and attempting to catch their attention is interesting. The author seems to want to influence the younger generation, which is something many do now. By using language the author attempts to both entice the child reader as well as make sure they understand the basic principles of what an abolitionist is standing up for. The rhyming of the poem also makes the grim topic somewhat enjoyable for the child reader, which is important.

 

” ‘E’ is the eagle, soaring high; An emblem of the free; But while we chain our brother man; Our type he cannot be.”

” ‘I’ is the Infant, from the arms of its fond mother torn, And, at a public auction, sold with horses, cows and corn.”

” ‘L’ is the Lash, that brutally he swung around its head, threatening that “if it cried again, he’d whip it till ’twas dead.”

 

These quotes all stood out to me. The first seems to be calling upon the child’s sense of humanity. The fact that the symbol of the country is the symbol of hope and freedom, however there are people who are no different then themselves who are not able to enjoy this freedom. The next two were some that I found to be a very harsh reality to be in a children’s “alphabet” book, however it was probably quite effective. To bring up the selling of children from their families, mothers in particular, this puts the children reading this in the shoes of those who is living this. The power in these last two quotes makes it apparent how important and urgent the author felt this issue to be.

I would really love to learn more about this book, I never knew about it before this and would love to get more of a background on it.

by - 1 Comment

The Seeds of the Anti-Slavery Alphabet

While reading this alphabet, I definitely knew that children were the intended audience for this. The author used the alphabet as a method of connecting to the intended audience. Since language is one of the first things they learn, it makes sense to use it. The author uses poetry for each letter’s description, as well. I believe this is a good idea because it has such a lyrical feel to it. Personally, I had a bit of difficulty getting the rhythm of the poem down, but that’s besides the point. Another peculiar thing I found is that the author didn’t really sugarcoat the situation of the slaves. He used poetry and the alphabet to draw in the children, while also educating them about the ideas of anti-slavery.

When I went back towards the beginning, I noticed that I missed something. “In the morning, sow thy seed.” I think that’s when it finally clicked for me. This poetic alphabet wasn’t just about educating children about the unfair treatment of the slaves. It was also a way for the anti-slavery movement to gain power. Children are impressionable at their young age. If they can be convinced to accept a certain idea, they will grow up believing in it. Those people leading the anti-slavery movement discovered this and used Children’s Literature as a way of “sowing the seeds.” So when the children grew into adults, they would be more than likely to support the fair treatment of slaves.