Jefferson's Personal Views
Thomas Jefferson has been known to be an opponent of slavery, but he also believed that slavery was against the law of nature (Monticello). The law of nature states that everyone should be granted the right of personal liberty (Monticello). Jefferson was involved in legislation, at the time of the Revolution, that would hopefully end slavery once for all. According to the Thomas Jefferson Monticello, "In 1778, he drafted a Virginia law that prohibited the importation of enslaved Africans" (Monticello). Then in 1784, an ordinance was proposed by Jefferson that prohibited slavery in the Northwest territories (Monticello). Although he was an opponent of slavery, he did advocate for gradual emancipation until his death (Monticello). His vision of gradual emancipation included the follow steps:
Even though Jefferson was advocating for gradual emancipation, slavery was in fact becoming more popular in the South. In 1830 the slave population in Virginia rose to 469,757 (Monticello). Thomas Jefferson just assumed that if the transatlantic slave trade no longer existed then slavery in the United States would eventually the support of slavery would weaken and end (Monticello). However, with the slave population rising it is easy to tell that slavery was actually becoming very profitable in the south (Monticello).
Jefferson tried to lessen Virginia's support for slavery by discouraging the crops that depended on the labor of slaves He tried doing so by encouraging the introduction of crops that needed little to no slave labor. He tried introducing crops like wheat, sugar, maples, short-grained rice, olive trees, and wine grapes (Monticello). According to the Thomas Jefferson Monticello, "by the 1880s Virginia's most valuable commodity and export was neither crops nor land, but slaves" (Monticello).
However, not only money and status shaped Jefferson's proslavery views, but they were also shaped by his deeply racist views (Finkelman). Jefferson was also quite open about these feelings. In his mind, Jefferson truly believed that slavery was the a great threat to the newly developed United States (Finkelman). Being a scientist, Jefferson thought that blackness came from slaves blood color. Therefore, they were inferior to white because of their endowments of body and mind (Finkelman). Even though Jefferson was pushing for gradual emancipation, he still had proslavery opinions and views embedded in his mind.
Jefferson would not be viewed as a necessarily kind master either (Finkelman). He punished his slaves by selling them away from their families and friends. Retaliation was seen as being greatly cruel even during this period of time (Finkelman). Although he was an advocate for human criminal codes surrounding whites, Jefferson enforced barbarically harsh punishments to all slaves (Finkelman). However, he was trying to push the country for gradual emancipation. One could say he is a hero because he was trying to push the United States into a great nation, but hypocritical because of his harsh treatment slaves that thought should be declared free.
- The transatlantic slave trade would no longer exist
- Slave owners would have to correct and improve upon some of violent features of slavery
- All slaves born after a certain period in time would be born free, and this would lead to total abolition (Monticello)
Even though Jefferson was advocating for gradual emancipation, slavery was in fact becoming more popular in the South. In 1830 the slave population in Virginia rose to 469,757 (Monticello). Thomas Jefferson just assumed that if the transatlantic slave trade no longer existed then slavery in the United States would eventually the support of slavery would weaken and end (Monticello). However, with the slave population rising it is easy to tell that slavery was actually becoming very profitable in the south (Monticello).
Jefferson tried to lessen Virginia's support for slavery by discouraging the crops that depended on the labor of slaves He tried doing so by encouraging the introduction of crops that needed little to no slave labor. He tried introducing crops like wheat, sugar, maples, short-grained rice, olive trees, and wine grapes (Monticello). According to the Thomas Jefferson Monticello, "by the 1880s Virginia's most valuable commodity and export was neither crops nor land, but slaves" (Monticello).
However, not only money and status shaped Jefferson's proslavery views, but they were also shaped by his deeply racist views (Finkelman). Jefferson was also quite open about these feelings. In his mind, Jefferson truly believed that slavery was the a great threat to the newly developed United States (Finkelman). Being a scientist, Jefferson thought that blackness came from slaves blood color. Therefore, they were inferior to white because of their endowments of body and mind (Finkelman). Even though Jefferson was pushing for gradual emancipation, he still had proslavery opinions and views embedded in his mind.
Jefferson would not be viewed as a necessarily kind master either (Finkelman). He punished his slaves by selling them away from their families and friends. Retaliation was seen as being greatly cruel even during this period of time (Finkelman). Although he was an advocate for human criminal codes surrounding whites, Jefferson enforced barbarically harsh punishments to all slaves (Finkelman). However, he was trying to push the country for gradual emancipation. One could say he is a hero because he was trying to push the United States into a great nation, but hypocritical because of his harsh treatment slaves that thought should be declared free.
Image Above: "Thomas Jefferson" by Rembrandt Peale (1805)
How could a man believe that his gradual push for emancipation would pass when he is openly racist himself?