Twelve Years a Slave

Who is Northup’s audience? How did he gear the lessons of the story to his intended audience? How did Northup convince his readers that his story was neither fabricated nor embellished but rather a verifiably true account of his experiences as a slave in the South? Based on Northup’s account of Theophilus Freeman’s slave auction in New Orleans, what kinds of qualities did it seem buyers were looking for in a slave? What does Northup’s [Platt’s] prolonged confrontation with his second master, Tibeats, reveal about slave-master relations in the antebellum South? For what reasons did Northup criticize Southern plantations as inefficient? What was an average day’s work like for Northup [Platt] on Master Epps’ plantation, where he spent ten years of his life as a slave? What did Northup [Platt] buy with the money he saved, and how did the practice of earning “Sunday money,” tips for playing the violin, and even free time during the holidays (e.g. Christmas) give rise to a distinct Southern slave culture? Discuss the various ways Solomon Northup [Platt] attempted to escape. Why was it nearly impossible for slaves to escape from the Southern interior to freedom in the North? Discuss several key ways in which southern whites practiced everyday slights designed to demean slaves and cow them into submission by denying their manhood or womanhood. Discuss several key ways in which southern white plantation owners, plantation mistresses, managers, and overseers, psychologically terrorized slaves into complete submission. How did Northup finally secure his liberty after twelve years in slavery?