Description: This movie is a cinematic representation of the best selling slave narrative of Solomon Northup, a free black man living in upstate New York who was kidnapped in 1841 and sold into slavery. The film shows the life of a slave in the American South primarily on two plantations: one governed by a relatively benevolent master and the other subject to a brutal tyrant. They also expose the particularly hard lot of slave women and the operation of the slave trade. The movie is an excellent resource for 12th grade and college classes in U.S. History and for ELA units on the slave narrative genre.
Rationale: It is important for students to understand the brutality and thoroughness of slavery as practiced in the American South and which was eradicated only a brutal and bloody civil war. It is also helpful for students to understand the world-wide dimensions of slavery, the current status of slavery, and to read at least parts of a slave narrative, the first genre of African-American literature.
Objectives/Student Outcomes Using this Learning Guide: Students will have a vivid understanding of the lives endured by slaves in the American South. Students will be introduced to slavery as a world-wide phenomenon that has existed for millennia and which continues to exist. Students will be introduced to the slave narrative, the first genre of African-American literature
edsitement.neh.gov/sites/edsitement.neh.gov/files/worksheets/solomon_northup_cpedit.pdf
Rationale: It is important for students to understand the brutality and thoroughness of slavery as practiced in the American South and which was eradicated only a brutal and bloody civil war. It is also helpful for students to understand the world-wide dimensions of slavery, the current status of slavery, and to read at least parts of a slave narrative, the first genre of African-American literature.
Objectives/Student Outcomes Using this Learning Guide: Students will have a vivid understanding of the lives endured by slaves in the American South. Students will be introduced to slavery as a world-wide phenomenon that has existed for millennia and which continues to exist. Students will be introduced to the slave narrative, the first genre of African-American literature
edsitement.neh.gov/sites/edsitement.neh.gov/files/worksheets/solomon_northup_cpedit.pdf