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HIST 300: African American History (Slavery) > CH. 3 Culture > Flashcards

Flashcards in CH. 3 Culture Deck (60)
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1
Q

What is commonly misunderstood about most of the first Africans that arrived on ships?

A

weren’t completely newly exposed to white Europeans

  • most of first slaves were Atlantic Creoles (had knowledge of Atlantic trade + Euro languages + cultures)
  • some used this cultural knowledge to their advantage to fit more into Euro society
  • would have much easier adjustment to Euro rule than the Africans to come
    (MSW)
2
Q

How did the slave pop. change following the early 18th century?

A

No longer dominated by Atlantic creoles

  • now “outlandish” Africans made up majority (directly from Africa)
  • would have hard time adjusting to new life on new land
    (NW)
3
Q

What had become common among blacks by the 1770s?

A

most Africans Americans on mainland lived in extended family tie dwellings

  • were practicing own unique African American culture
  • set the basis for black life in America
    (WS)
4
Q

How were the early adjustments like for newly arrived slaves from Africa?

A

the hardest (adaptation came slowly)

  • tended to cling to own cultural traditions + ways of doing things
  • included sense of personal identity + own religion/language + social customs/traditions
  • slaves came from variety of places across West Africa (brought w/ them variety of customs)
  • relatively few of them could join w/ others + practice group survival on basis of common heritage
  • still most Africans held in common enough ideas they could intermingle certain aspects of their cultures
    (TISRS)
5
Q

How did the early intermingling of different African cultures begin?

A

on slave ships soon after capture

  • amalgamation continued once they arrived on the colonies
  • process of clinging to certain traditions + borrowing heavily from Euros/Natives birthed hybrid black culture
    (AP)
6
Q

What determined the rate of acculturation of newly arrived African individuals?

A
  • local circumstances
  • strength of their particular African traditions
  • personal willingness to change
    (LSP)
7
Q

What determined the rate of acculturation of newly arrived African groups?

A

process varied b/c individual survival didn’t require formation of a group culture

8
Q

What single process dominates consideration of the development of African American culture in colonial America?

A

blacks in US first had to have deep social contact w/ substantial # of other blacks before group values/beliefs could develop

  • they had to exist in black communities
9
Q

What was the conduit for passing down these early manifestations of black culture?

A

the black family

  • adults teach their children values considered important for survival/good living
10
Q

How important were family relationships to first generation arrivals?

A

very important

  • vital for cultural formation + transmission
  • family for first gen. arrivals didn’t always include only blood relation/marriage people
  • Euro law defined family as only blood relation/by marriage
    (VFE)
11
Q

What were some of the obstacles to African American community development + family formation in the first century of slavery (demography)?

A

simple demographic considerations affected social relations

  • # of blacks apportioned to whites determined by nature of economy + slave trade in a region
  • individuals also required certain amount of freedom to interact outside supervision of whites
    (NI)
12
Q

What were some of the obstacles to African American community development + family formation in the first century of slavery (proximity)?

A

proximity to white colonists

  • in many places blacks interacted daily w/ whites (both in North/South colonies)
  • even the wealthiest masters spent hours w/ slaves in Chesapeake colonies
  • African slaves w/ close relationships w/ whites learned English + practiced Euro-American customs quicker than others
  • those working w/ a lot of blacks + fewer whites in more isolated areas had more extensive social relations w/ themselves
  • retained African customs better as well (acculturation to anglo-American norm not as fast)
    (IEATR)
13
Q

How did the difference between slaves born in Africa vs those born in America affect African American cultural development?

A
  • those born in Africa tended to keep to themselves more/retain more of their African customs
  • areas w/ more Atlantic creoles/American born blacks had more unity among partly acculturated black pop.
  • had less adherence to unadulterated African customs
    (TAH)
14
Q

How did demographics and the slave trade play a role in the ability of the black pop. to naturally inc. + maintain families?

A

as long as Atlantic trade was bringing high #s to particular region black men continued to outpace women there

  • masters knew they could more cheaply purchase/train male laborer than rear one domestically
  • owners in these regions often did little to encourage marriage + procreation + family life among slaves
  • worked women as hard as men + allowed minimal time off for bearing children
    (MOW)
15
Q

How did disease keep the slave pop. between men/women unbalanced?

A

slaves died out quickly in new world due to disease

  • w/ replacements coming so cheaply many owners began caring little for slave livelihood
  • when slave trade was high mortality rate was too + birth rate was low
  • made slave society unable to replace its #s naturally
    (WWM)
16
Q

What effect did the uneven pop. between black men/women imports have on black families?

A

w/ more men than women + interracial marriage illegal it was impossible for most slaves to have normal family life

  • few males black or white able to marry due to unequal sex ratios + high mortality rates
  • once slave trade from Africa declined slave pop. began to balance out + family life emerged
    (FO)
17
Q

How did different working + living circumstances in the colonies affect the development of black culture?

A
  • slaves living on isolated plantations had less contact w/ anglo culture
  • slaves that lived in small farms had more contact w/ anglo culture going to market to sell crops
  • plantation slaves working under task system had more control over lives than those working under watchful eyes
  • degree of autonomy under task system allowed them to hold onto more of their African culture
    (SSPD)
18
Q

What happened to isolated plantations over time?

A

in certain regions plantation life grew settled + slaves enjoyed mobility among plantations

  • once this happened even black communities centered on one plantation could broaden to include others
19
Q

What was the difference between urban vs rural slaves?

A

urban slaves generally had greater autonomy than rural slaves

  • urban slaves lived closer to whites + some permitted to attain skills/live on their own/hire their own time
  • urban blacks mingled w/ whites at work + play (lax urban working requirements led to less control measures)
  • acculturation took place regularly in urban environments
    (UUA)
20
Q

What were some unique circumstances some blacks faced that affected the development of black culture?

A

African Americans working as seamen

  • worked river crafts that carried goods + served on civilian/military ships at sea by the 1740s
  • some had Atlantic creole heritage (most accustomed to whites but proud of own cultural traditions)
    (WS)
21
Q

How did black culture develop in the Chesapeake region?

A

for first 75 yrs MD/VA planters made distinctions more on basis of race

  • Chesapeake blacks (mostly Atlantic Creoles) suffered same hardships at white laborers
  • some of each group that lived long enough attained freedom + acquired land
- blacks interacted w/ whites of their class in work/play but more open racial society didn't last 
(CSB)
22
Q

What events after 1680 halted the rapid acculturation in the Chesapeake region between whites/blacks?

A

importation of large # of Africans

  • by 1710 3/4 of Chesapeake blacks were African (mostly men)
  • sexual imbalance made opportunities for black family life difficult (led to cutting of birth rates)
  • VA planters often sent new arrivals to Piedmont frontier (isolated from tidewater + most creoles)
  • smaller # of creoles enjoyed greater freedoms from their masters
  • through 1740s distinct African + creole slave societal difference emerged in Chesapeake
    (BSVST)
23
Q

What made the African-creole split short lived in the Chesapeake colonies?

A

in response to growing # of blacks planters in region formed unity w/ lower class whites

  • lumped all blacks together which stifled creole opportunities
24
Q

What began happening in the late 1740s Chesapeake colonies?

A

slave trade declined to the Chesapeake

  • saw long period of natural pop. inc. for blacks
  • blacks born in America soon predominated
  • at same time planters brought more slaves on larger plantations + turned over some ares to wheat production
  • gave blacks seasonal variety in their work + opportunities to learn new skills + make broader contacts
  • this + development of road network allowed blacks from different plantations to interact
  • eventually black families w/ links going back generations existed
    (SBAGTE)
25
Q

What was black culture like in some parts of the Chesapeake region by the American Revolution?

A

existed African American community w/ its own way of life + time/space to practice it

  • race still remained restrictive in their ability to pursue certain personal actions
  • many blacks lived near masters + under watchful eye of white majority
  • were more like Anglo Americans in language + formal religion + family structure
  • many blacks still had broad kinship relationships by this time + had incorporated African elements into cultural practices
    (RMWM)
26
Q

How did black culture develop in the Low Country?

A

first 30 yrs Atlantic creoles worked closely w/ white owners + seemingly mutual cultural exchange transpired

  • early SC saw maybe most reciprocal + symbiotic cultural exchange between blacks/whites than any other colony
27
Q

Why was the cultural exchange in the Low Country so short lived?

A

massive African imports changed direction of cultural evolution

  • creole slave community emerged in Charleston (largely mulatto people living close to whites)
  • creoles more privileged + acculturated than rural counterparts
  • in rural areas slave trade continually renewing growing black community (African imports not Atlantic creoles)
    (CCI)
28
Q

What did the rural rice plantation system in the Low Country produce?

A

slaves were independent + self reliant

  • task system gave them more time to socialize w/ fellow blacks away from white authority
  • relative isolation enabled them to hold onto more African cultural practices more so than any other blacks on the mainland
  • by 1770 rural plantation slaves + urban creoles more separated than even most black/whites societies in Chesapeake
    (TRB)
29
Q

What do some researchers argue about Lower MS?

A

where longest term of cultural intermingling occurred in colonial America

  • Euros had difficulty controlling large region thus allowing for mass intermingling of blacks + whites + natives
  • even in more controlled societies like New Orleans an openness existed that provided the enslaved greater opportunities
  • such blending of cultures resulted in a shared creole culture throughout region + identifiable African element at the heart of it
30
Q

Where were the seeds of the black community fostered?

A

in the black family

  • unit for educating/socializing the young
  • passing down set of common values + customs
    (UP)
31
Q

How was a family a central unit in black culture even before arriving in America?

A

kinship was basis of social organization in West Africa

  • extended family in village + kinship links across wider areas gave Africans individual/collective identities
  • institutions united people separated by space + provided material/psychological support essential for daily living
  • loss of kinship network probably most disruptive force in the Africans enslavement
  • made recreating family unit in America especially important
    (EILM)
32
Q

How were African American families destined to be different than the ones formed in Africa?

A

West African families tended to follow one line of descent through males/females (not both)

  • enabled even distant family members who shared common ancestor to identify w/ large group of kin
  • marriage united these kin networks in relationships of obligation
  • marriages arranged + bound w/ family pressures/payments of bride wealth
  • kinship held these people together more tightly than political authority/national loyalty
    (EMMK)
33
Q

Why was it impossible for African Americans to recreate the type of kinship networks they formed in Africa?

A

would’ve taken generations + required complete freedom in marriage/residence

  • made attempts to seek out relatives (like on slave ships)
  • slave children began addressing older slaves w/ kinship titles on plantations on the mainland
  • younger children respected their elders in the African fashion
  • children who developed bonds w/ fictive kins better able to cope w/ death/sale of their blood relatives
    (MSYC)
34
Q

When did black family units began to come into existence in North America?

A

during 18th century

  • once gender ration between black males/females began to even out
  • English type of nuclear family emerged
  • monogamous marital relationships that traced descent through both parents
  • occurred earliest in the Chesapeake than later in Low Country + Lower MS
    (OEMO)
35
Q

What were the obstacles that black slave families had to overcome in North America?

A

greatest was regular movement of slaves by owners

  • separated married adults from one another + parents from children
  • black families only partially resembled English nuclear families due to circumstances
    (SB)
36
Q

What was a common occurrence in the Chesapeake region for black families?

A

common for them to live apart

  • men often lived in separate housing out of necessity
  • “marrying abroad” became a common term in VA to describe marrying someone off the plantation
  • women thus did much of the child rearing
    (MMW)
37
Q

What were some characteristics of black marriages during the slave times?

A
  • men tended to be older + domineering in their relationships (common in African culture too)
  • pre-marital sex + polygamy in limited practice was a norm
  • blacks that clung to African marriage customs angered whites around them (supported white ideas blacks were sexual deviants)
    (MPB)
38
Q

What were wedding ceremonies like for slaves in the New World?

A

ceremonies for marriage were held even if not technically legally binding

  • Christian marriages occasionally took place in New England
  • “negro marriages” were more the norm in the South
  • “jumping the broom” thought to be popularized in negro marriages
    (CNJ)
39
Q

What did slaves recognize about their family units?

A

knew how tenuous family security was

  • economic downturn + death of master could mean sale of loved ones
  • slave master relationship began moving in direction f paternalism in late 18th century
  • meant slave masters more concerned w/ keeping slave family units together
  • some masters still broke families apart w/ no remorse
    (ESMS)
40
Q

What are some arguments made concerning the stability of black families?

A

not necessarily any less stable than white families

  • the more established the black community became the more black husbands lived w/ the rest of their families
  • distance between man + his family isn’t a measurement for how much they care
    (TD)
41
Q

How important was motherhood in the black family?

A

potent institution

  • provided for their children when absence of father made their jobs twice as hard
42
Q

What was considered the heart of black culture in colonial America?

A

religion

  • through most of religion forming period what practiced was rarely Christian
  • African slaves arrived w/ strong religious/spiritual beliefs + thoughts of the afterlife
  • encountered Puritans/Christians/other Euro religions (w/ some intent on turning slaves into Christians)
  • religions that couldn’t accomodate their African customs were of little interest
    (TAER)
43
Q

What made religion an important aspect of slave life?

A

religious belief is personal

  • often developed individually
  • was sanctuary that slaves could turn to in times of anxiety
  • was source of individual strength + collective security
    (OWW)
44
Q

What was slaves attitude toward Christianity during the colonial period?

A

mostly kept their distance from it

  • when practiced they did so by blending it into African religious beliefs
45
Q

What were some of the tenets of West African religion that slaves clung to during colonial period?

A
  • believed in a spiritual afterlife much like Christians
  • but also believed spirits existed in inanimate objects + these forces controlled much of working world
  • spirits of ancestors interfered in world of living w/ magic acts important in controlling spirits
  • many Africans believed in one/more hegemonic deities involved w/ the creation + events of the world
    (BBSM)
46
Q

How was Christian teaching to slaves practiced?

A

some masters refused to teach Christianity to slaves

  • feared losing control by forcing religion + argued slaves lacked intellect to appreciate scripture
  • following lead of New England religious leaders some masters thought slavery part of God’s plan
  • to bringing the “heathens” out of Africa giving them knowledge about God
  • Protestant evangelicals began filtering through colonies in early 18th century attempting to instruct slaves
  • teachings stressed humility + obedience + work (traits of a “good slave”)
    (FFTPT)
47
Q

What was an ironic event that occurred once slave conversion to Christianity began in the early 18th century?

A

more closely blacks worshipped w/ whites the less they wanted to become Christians

  • those that did convert + worship w/ whites practice Christianity that paralleled closely w/ Anglo Christianity
  • where there was greater distance between master/slave religious practices blacks were more eager to become Christian
  • distant black Christianity more combination of African beliefs + Euro beliefs
    (TWD)
48
Q

What region was strongest in Christian proselytizing?

A

New England

  • majority of blacks still remained outside the white church
  • b/c in spite of proselytizing intentions New England churches segregated blacks + treated them like second class Christians
  • baptism requirements for blacks especially rigorous
  • sermons to black congregations justified the slave-master relationship
  • slave owners refused to allow slaves to worship by themselves (feared “mongrelization” of Christianity)
  • meant Africans mostly refused Christianity + kept to themselves to practice own beliefs
    (MBBSSM)
49
Q

How was Christianity for blacks in the Middle Colonies?

A

blacks followed New England counterparts + kept to themselves

  • began to manifest a new respect for traditional African ways
  • held religious ceremonies + funerals w/ own African customs
    (BH)
50
Q

How was Christian teaching in the Chesapeake?

A

blacks learned Christianity most frequently from fellow slaves + worshipped often w/ lower class whites

  • southern whites allowed blacks more freedom to worship alone in way they chose
  • in Chesapeake they accepted degree of African teachings themselves to form blend of Christianity good to both blacks/whites
  • MD/VA mid 18th century saw large portion of black/whites Christian melding + conversion
    (SIM)
51
Q

What was the Great Awakening in the southern colonies?

A

religious movement that spread through lands of southern slaveholders in mid 18th century

  • poor blacks/whites inspired by inclusive public preaching joined in worship + song in small prayer houses in rural VA
  • burst of black conversion occurred between 1785-1790 in the Chesapeake
  • inc. in black acceptance of Christian doctrine didn’t result in rising Church membership among slaves
  • even smaller proportion of blacks joined Church denominations in the Low Country
    (PBIE)
52
Q

What was the norm Christian practices by southern slaves?

A

blended religion like African American folk variety extant in New England

  • one especially important blending was Afro-Catholicism in New Orleans
  • West African women in 1730s/40s responded positively to female ministry in New Orleans
  • resulted in very large # of enslaved women being baptized in New Orleans
  • offspring would later become leaders of Afro-Catholic faith in the city
    (OWRO)
53
Q

What were some of the beliefs that blacks held onto even after accepting Christian teachings?

A
  • believed one’s soul returned to the ground not the sky
  • funerals were more celebrations than somber moments
  • soft singling was also common in black worship
  • took stories from Old Testament that made them feel like the chosen people + could relate to struggles
    (BFST)
54
Q

How was African folk culture incorporated into medicine?

A

most Africans relied on folk medicine instead of Euro medicinal techniques

  • made them better off then “professional medical advice” from licensed doctors in colonial era
  • root doctors served as healers in the plantation (mixed knowledge of herbal remedies + ritual skills)
  • psychological belief Africans had in the root doctors also played a large part in their success over traditional medicine
    (MRP)
55
Q

How was witchcraft important to the development of black culture?

A

witch doctors widespread in West Africa

  • would develop into voodoo culture on plantations
  • frequent use of talismans/amulets to ward off dangerous spirits
  • some witch doctors practiced divining/predicting the future
  • beliefs in ghosts very common
    (WFSB)
56
Q

How did slaves use elements of African culture in their language?

A

mostly incorporated it heavily into Euro languages

  • Low Country blacks had difficultly conversing in complete English w/ such little interaction w/ whites on a daily basis
  • situation slightly different in the northern colonies where blacks were more exposed to Euro languages
    (LS)
57
Q

Why was it so hard for slaves to communicate w/ one another at first?

A

West Africans spoke variety of unintelligible languages

  • slaves very dispersed so chances of finding someone that spoke same language were very slim
  • blacks developed own way to communicate over several generations
    (SB)
58
Q

What was the language developed by black slaves over generations?

A

varied by region

  • language in the North resembled more Anglo English
  • more South resembled a creole-English
  • those in very remote areas spoke completely different languages like Gullah in the Low Country
  • all took elements of African speech + melded it
    (LMTA)
59
Q

How was music important to black slave culture?

A

both voice + instruments highly utilized on plantations

  • host of string instruments can be owed to black technology
  • songs used for celebration + entertainment + even education
    (HS)
60
Q

What were some celebrations held by slaves on the mainland?

A
  • Low Country slaves enjoyed boat races
  • coastal city slaves were known for drinking + gambling
  • multiracial tavern culture existed in just about every major city
  • New England slaves held “Election Day” to elect governors + kings as a satire of white people
  • Christmas festivals known as John Canoe festivals common in the Low Country