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12 Years a Slave: Movie Review and Analysis

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Words: 1974 |

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Published: May 24, 2022

Words: 1974 | Pages: 4 | 10 min read

12 years a slave movie: essay, a brief summary of the main plot, the main conflict and how it is resolved, scenes that stand out in my mind, what does the film reflect, works cited.

Ebert, R. (2013, October 16). 12 Years a Slave. Roger Ebert.
Hahn, M. (2014). “The Most Interesting Character I Ever Met”: Solomon Northup in 12 Years a Slave and on Antebellum Stage. Journal of American Culture, 37(4), 579-589.
Hedges, C. (2013, October 18). 12 Years a Slave: A powerful story of one man’s endurance. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/oct/18/12-years-a-slave-review
Hornaday, A. (2013, October 17). 12 Years a Slave movie review. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/12-years-a-slave-movie-review/2013/10/17/249a5e8e-35d3-11e3-8a0e-4e2cf80831fc_story.html
McQueen, S. (2013). 12 Years a Slave (Film). Fox Searchlight Pictures.
Northup, S. (1853). Twelve Years a Slave. Derby and Miller.
Puchko, K. (2013, October 18). 12 Years A Slave: 8 Fascinating Facts About The Year’s Best Film. Cinema Blend. https://www.cinemablend.com/new/12-Years-Slave-8-Fascinating-Facts-About-Year-Best-Film-39987.html
Scott, A. O. (2013, October 17). The Blood and Tears, Bondage and Misery of 12 Years a Slave. The New York Times.
Solomon Northup Project. (n.d.). History & Archives.
Stuever, H. (2013, October 16). 12 Years a Slave: A raw, unrelenting, violent film. The Washington Post.

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12 Years a Slave

Solomon Northup

Literature Notes
Twelve Years a Slave At a Glance
Book Summary
Character List
Character Map
Summary and Analysis
Editor’s Preface
Critical Essays
Novel “versus” Film Adaptation
Cite this Literature Note

Solomon Northup’s 12 Years a Slave recounts the author’s life story as a free black man from the North who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in the pre-Civil War South.

The son of an emancipated slave, Northup was born free. He lived, worked, and married in upstate New York, where his family resided. He was a multifaceted laborer and also an accomplished violin player. In 1841, two con men offered him lucrative work playing fiddle in a circus, so he traveled with them to Washington, D.C., where he was drugged, kidnapped, and subsequently sold as a slave into the Red River region of Louisiana. For the next twelve years he survived as the human property of several different slave masters, with the bulk of his bondage lived under the cruel ownership of a southern planter named Edwin Epps. In January 1853, Northup was finally freed by Northern friends who came to his rescue. He returned home to his family in New York and there, with the help of editor David Wilson, wrote his account in 12 Years a Slave .

Written by: Solomon Northup (as told to editor David Wilson)

Type of Work: Slave narrative

Genre: Autobiography/Memoir

First Published: 1853

Setting (primary): The Red River region of Louisiana

Settings (secondary): Saratoga Springs, New York; Washington, D.C.; New Orleans, Louisiana

Main Characters: Solomon Northup (aka “Platt”), James H. Burch, William Ford, John M. Tibeats, Edwin Epps, Patsey, Mistress Epps, Mr. Bass, Henry B. Northup

Major Thematic Topics: Slavery as a moral cancer; freedom; injustice; the inherent dignity of all humanity; the place of women in society; religion and slavery; man’s inhumanity to man; slavery’s toll on servant and master alike

Major symbols: Chains; the whip; the Bible; water; the swamp

Movie Versions: 12 Years a Slave (2013)

The three most important aspects of 12 Years a Slave : 12 Years a Slave presents a startlingly accurate and verifiable account of the common slave experience in the United States in the antebellum (pre-Civil War) South. From start to finish, basic facts about the time, the places, the people, and the practices of the day are incorporated, sometimes in excessive detail, into Northup’s story. He speaks with authority on all subjects of his enslavement, naming names and pointing out landmarks along the way. In doing so, he dares skeptics to refute his story, knowing that public records and common knowledge would defend it. For example, when Northup accuses a wicked slave trader of keeping him captive in Washington, D.C., he not only names that slaver, he names the slaver’s accomplice, identifies exactly where the slave pen is hidden, and describes the physical structure of the slave pen in detail. The result? During the trial that took place after Northup had been freed, that slave trader couldn’t deny having kept Northup as his captive in that now-exposed slave pen. Additionally, the accuracy of and factual detail in 12 Years a Slave have kept this book prominent as a reliable historical reference on slavery for more than 150 years since it first debuted.

12 Years a Slave serves as a timeless indictment of the practice of “chattel bondage,” or human slavery. Northup’s detailing the abuses he endured—and those he was forced to inflict—provides a warning to all generations of the moral costs that slavery exacts from everyone involved. The slave himself or herself is degraded, made to suffer awful torments, and cruelly robbed of physical, emotional, and spiritual riches. Still, the slave is not the only one who suffers. By participating in slavery, the master is morally degraded and emotionally desensitized. His religion is made hypocrisy. His family legacy is robbed of basic human graces like love, justice, and integrity. In this respect, Northup’s 12 Years a Slave is notable for giving human faces to the evil that was once common practice, and for sounding a constant warning of the awful consequences of chattel bondage.

12 Years a Slave is a testimony to the power of the human spirit and the enduring determination of hope. Solomon Northup is deceived, kidnapped, abused, removed from family, deprived of identity, and beaten into a long, weary, unjustified submission. Yet he is never broken. Even in his worst days of sorrow lived under the cruelties of Edwin Epps, he never gives up hope that one day he will be free. He never loses faith in his friends, constantly assured that if he can only get word to the North then they will indeed come to his rescue. And they do. In the end, Solomon Northup’s heartbreaking journey uplifts because in his testimony is evidence that faith and hope can endure—and triumph.

Next Book Summary

12 Years a Slave: The Analysis of the Film

Introduction, historical accuracy, demographic, negative/positive aspects, works cited.

Reading history books is one way of learning about the past. However, many individuals need visual stimulation to be able to connect with a situation, person, or event that happened hundreds of years ago. Thus, movies based on memoirs or biographies are excellent ways for people to see and comprehend both physically and emotionally something that is challenging to imagine without the audio and video component. However, in order for the historical connotation to be truthful and close to reality, directors have to pay close attention to the source of information. On the other hand, the current trends create an environment in which the movie has to be honest yet captivating, so directors may add different effects or characters without changing the core of the story. An example of a movie that gives the audience the opportunity to percept history is 12 Years a Slave.

Steve McQueen’s film 12 Years of Slave is based on a memoir. The movie portrays the story of Solomon Northup, who is kidnapped as a free African-American living in New York (McQueen). He worked as a musician before two men offered him a job in another state. However, he ends up in a slave pen without anyone believing him about his status as a free man. Solomon is shipped to New Orleans before enduring torture and being sold again to another plantation owner. Edwin Epps is much more ruthless, making Solomon’s life an everyday struggle for survival. A Canadian worker who is a temporary worker at the plantation agrees to send a letter written by Northup to New York. Sometime later, the sheriff and two men, one of which was Solomon’s friend, arrive with the intention to take him home. Solomon reunites with his family and lives as a free man again, this time for the rest of his life. The movie highlights the nuances of slavery, racism, discrimination, and segregation in the 19th-century South.

Why 12 Years a Slave?

The movie was chosen because of the desire to understand the concept of slavery in the US from the perspective of a person who described his personal experiences. The contrast between being a free man and a property that can be sold or bought was the main reason why this particular film appeared to be most complex from a historical, social, and phycological perspective. Thus, 12 Years of Slavery was picked due to the topic that it touches upon, the events that it described, and the story behind the initial source.

The movie is historically accurate due to the fact that it was written by Solomon Northup himself, an African-American man who describes personal experiences in his memoirs. However, researchers point out that certain moments were slightly altered or enhanced to give the film a more contemporary overview as a way to create an emotional response from the viewers (Horton). However, the main events, the characters, and the overall storyline are close to the original book, which makes the film relatively accurate in terms of historical connotation. This enhances the movie because the audience can receive a first-hand experience of the horrendous circumstances which caused the book to be written. Furthermore, individuals who watch movies about such difficult topics as slavery may not make a link between what is shown on the screen and what actually happened. In the context of 12 Years a Slave , such conclusions are impossible to occur due to the reality factor.

The movie appeals to a large demographic since it is excellent from two perspectives: historical and artistic. People who would like to learn about US history can watch it to see the state of the country in the 19 th century. On the other hand, those who enjoy good cinema go through an emotional roller-coaster even without being interested in the background. Either way, it can be an exceptional experience that cannot leave audience members indifferent.

Based on personal objective and subjective overviews, the film is undoubtedly exceptional. The complex story, the cast, music, decorations, costumes, and the ambiguous feeling left after watching it are among the things that have to be mentioned in regard to some of the best aspects of the movie. In terms of factors to dislike, there is a lack of resistance to the portrayal in contrast with the original novel. Perhaps, the director chose to avoid such emphasis on slave resistance to create an atmosphere of desperation and hopelessness to highlight the main character’s agony, which is an understandable omission from an artistic viewpoint. The film could have been improved if more screen time had been used to show the main character’s life before slavery. It would have emphasized the contrast between freedom and enslavement and highlighted the emotionally challenging shift from being a human to being treated like property. The movie itself also featured the surprising aspect of masters preventing slaves from being knowledgeable, literary, and intelligent when it comes to writing and reading. Although, it is clear that this was done because of the relationship between literacy and freedom. Still, this was a surprising factor that I had not paid attention to before watching the film.

12 Years a Slave is an excellent story that portrays terrible things. It is important to highlight the historical accuracy of the movie, which did not take away from the movie’s captivating, emotional, and heartbreaking nature. The movie is educational without being overly documentary-like, which is a remarkable effect that the director managed to achieve. Overall, I am pleased with the choice to analyze this movie since I had the opportunity to learn more about history while watching an interesting, captivating, dramatic, yet beautiful piece of art.

Horton, Dana Renee. “‘You Will Sell the Negress!”: Using the Post-Neo-Slave Narrative to Revise Representations of Women in Django Unchained and 12 Years a Slave.” Americana: The Journal of American Popular Culture (1900-Present) , vol. 17, no. 2, 2018.

McQueen, Steve, director. 12 Years a Slave . Fox Searchlight Pictures, 2013.

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12 Years a Slave

SUBJECTS — U.S./1812 – 1865; Literature/U.S. (Slave Narrative); Biography; Diversity/African-American;

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING — Human Rights;

MORAL-ETHICAL EMPHASIS — Respect.

AGE: 15+; MPAA Rating — R for violence/cruelty, some nudity, and brief sexuality;

Drama; 2013, 2 hrs. 14 minutes; Color. Available from Amazon.com .

Note to Teachers:

While TWM has created a useful Learning Guide for this film, it is very long for classroom use. As an alternative, teachers can assign the film for viewing at home and require students to fill out TWM’s Movie Worksheet for 12 Years a Slave . Reviewing responses to the worksheet can be a classroom activity. Watching the film at home can be supplemented with a shorter documentary, Unchained Memories (one hour, 15 minutes) in which actors read from interviews with the last generation of former slaves.

THE BEST OF TWM

One of the Best! This movie is on TWM’s short list of the best movies to supplement classes in United States History, High School Level.

Benefits of the Movie Parenting Points Selected Awards & Cast Helpful Background

Using the Movie in the Classroom Discussion Questions Social-Emotional Learning Moral-Ethical Emphasis

Assignments and Projects CCSS Anchor Standards Bridges to Reading Links to the Internet Bibliography

MOVIE WORKSHEETS & STUDENT HANDOUTS

TWM’s Movie Worksheet for 12 Years a Slave .

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.

SELECTED AWARDS & CAST

Selected Awards: 2014 Academy Awards: Best Picture of the Year; and numerous other awards.

Featured Actors: Chiwetel Ejiofor as Solomon Northup; Kelsey Scott as Anne Northup; Adepero Oduye as Eliza; Benedict Cumberbatch as Ford; Liza J. Bennett as Mistress Ford; J.D. Evermore as Chapin; Paul Dano as Tibeats; Michael Fassbender as Edwin Epps; Sarah Paulson as Mistress Epps; Lupita Nyong’o as Patsey; Alfre Woodard as Mistress Shaw; and Brad Pitt as Bass

Director: Steve McQueen

BENEFITS OF THE MOVIE

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 worldwide 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.

Students will have a vivid understanding of the lives endured by slaves in the American South. Students will be introduced to slavery as a worldwide 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.

POSSIBLE PROBLEMS

Problems Here.

PARENTING POINTS

Watch the movie with your child. When the film is over, tell him or her that the film is mostly historically accurate except that Solomon Northup was not as well-off or accepted by whites in Upstate New York in 1841 and that it is very unlikely that a black mistress was presiding over a plantation or that she would give tea to a slave from another plantation.

HELPFUL BACKGROUND

Essay on the historical accuracy of the movie 12 years a slave.

The book, Twelve Years a Slave, is a traditional American slave narrative told by Solomon Northup to ghostwriter David Wilson. It is one of the most important of the slave narratives because it was published shortly after Harriet Beecher Stowe’s immensely popular and influential novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Twelve Years a Slave validated the claims of slave-owner brutality made in the novel. In addition, Twelve Years a Slave was a best-seller in its own right when it was first published in 1853. The historical accuracy of the book has been exhaustively vetted by Professor Sue Eakin of Louisiana State University. The culmination of her efforts are contained in the recently republished Enhanced Edition of the book which contains more than 100 pages of notes and supplemental materials. With a few exceptions, Professor Eakin has found the Northup/Wilson narrative to be accurate.

The film is a work of historical fiction based on the events set out in Mr. Northup’s book. To create an entertaining story arc and to fit the tale into a two-hour film, a number of events described in the book have been eliminated and others have been telescoped together. On a few occasions actions by one person have been attributed to another or scenes have been added to support the story. Except for the prelude, the scenes before the kidnaping, the murder of a slave by a sailor on the Orleans, and the tea scene with Mistress Shaw, the scenes shown in the film were taken from the book or are reasonable approximations of events that could have happened given current-day understanding of the history of the era.

On the whole, the book and the film are reasonably accurate representations of what life was like for a slave in the American South under one of the best masters (Ford) and later under one of the worst (Epps, who was not only sexually predatory but also extremely violent). The terrible way in which slaves were treated by slave traders and the awful plight of some slave women is also shown.

Set out below are comments on selected scenes in the film. Citations to the slave narrative itself are referred to as “Northup”. Citations to Professor Eakin’s notes are referred to as “Eakin”. Other citations are to articles in the Links to the Internet Section below.

Prelude: The orgasm scene. This is not referred to in the book and was made up by the screenwriters to show “a bit of tenderness … Then after she climaxes, she’s back . . . in hell.” However, it would seem that Solomon Northup, who claims to have been strictly faithful to his wife for 12 years, would have been scandalized by this scene. Berlatsky
Before the Kidnapping Northup was not in the middle class nor, in all probability, was he as well accepted by white society as shown in the early scenes of the film. His slave narrative makes no such claims. Northup lived in Saratoga Springs, a summer resort in upstate New York working as a carriage driver for a large boarding house during the summer season. He often had difficulty finding work during the rest of the year. Northup pp. 5 & 7. As shown in the film, he was a talented violinist and would get occasional jobs playing the violin for parties and dances. His wife had steady work as a cook although, as shown in the film, during the offseason she would have to work 20 miles from home, a long distance in those days when inland travel was by foot or by horse. Eakin 261 & 262. Northup himself comments about his life in Sarasota Springs: “Though always in comfortable circumstances, we had not prospered.” Northup pp. 5. Nor would people in New York and in Washington D.C. have been as accepting of a black man as to hail him strolling as an equal through a city park or to allow him to eat at fine restaurants, or shop as an equal without care for the cost in the stores. In the 1840s U.S. society, North and South were extremely prejudiced against blacks. Eakin p. 261. Northup, for example, reports that when he was with the two kidnappers in Washington, D.C., they would order drinks and occasionally hand them to him. He was not necessarily sitting at the table with them. Northup p. 12.
The Kidnapping: The kidnapping scenes do not follow Northup’s recollections in several ways. He doesn’t report, for example, being cared for in bed by the kidnappers, one of whom seems to regret what will happen to him. However, these scenes in the film add color to the bare historical facts of the narrative and, unlike the false prosperity and acceptance by whites shown in the scenes of Northup’s life in Saratoga Springs and his trip to D.C., these changes are appropriate poetic license in a work of historical fiction.
In the D.C. Slave Pen: These scenes are realistic enough with touches of details from the book. Northup was indeed put in a dark cell, beaten with a paddle-shaped piece of wood until it broke, and then whipped with a cat-nine-tails. He was stripped naked before the beating. The slave pen was in sight of the U.S. capital. One of the jailers appeared to try to be nicer, as a ploy. A woman name Eliza, her children and several men were held at the pen with him. What the movie omits for lack of time are the fascinating and touching stories of these people. See Northup pp. 16, 19 – 23 and Assignment #1.
The Trip to New Orleans: To shorten the narrative, the stop at a slave pen in Richmond is omitted. The facts of the aborted conspiracy are changed. Northup does not report that Eliza was taken to the upper deck for sex with a sailor as implied in the film. Robert dies from smallpox, not from a sailor’s knife; a sailor would not be so quick to kill such a valuable piece of property as shown in the film. Otherwise, the changes in the scene appear reasonable approximations of what could have happened and are true to Northup’s story.
The Rescue of a Slave: One of the slaves with Northup on the ship Orleans, a man named Arthur, was reclaimed by his master, much to his delight. This scene is based on that report from the book. Northup p. 38.
New Orleans: These scenes follow Northup’s recounting of what happened to him including: the scenes in which slaves are instructed to wash and are dressed up and offered for sale; the separation of Eliza from her children; Eliza’s protests and crying, Mr. Ford’s slight and ineffectual effort to convince Mr. Freeman (yes, that was the name of the New Orleans slave dealer) to sell him Eliza’s daughter at a reasonable price; and the characterization of Mr. Freeman the slave-trader.
Arrival at Ford’s Plantation: Mrs. Ford is not reported as saying, “Something to eat and some rest – your children will soon be forgotten.” but this is a fair representation of the attitude of most plantation owners to the miseries of their slaves.
The song Run Nigger Run: This is a Negro work song and if a white man ever sang it, it would be with the irony used by the character of Tibeats in the film. These scenes are not in the book but they are legitimate poetic license in a work of historical fiction.
A Slave Work Party meets the Indians: Northup recounts meeting Native Americans who lived in the woods and watching them dance. Northup pp. 54 & 55.
Northup Successfully Floats Logs Down the Bayou: This is from the book, including Northup’s success, Ford’s admiration, and Tibeat’s opposition and resentment when Northup is successful.
Ford gives Northup a violin: Actually, it was Epps, at the request of Mrs. Epps. Northup p. 106.
Northup’s Conversation with Eliza This is not reported in the book but it is a legitimate literary device to explore issues and develop themes. Eliza is still wailing about losing her children. Northup tells her to get over it. Eliza accuses Northup of being no better than prized live stock and laments that she has done dishonorable things to survive which ultimately did her no good. Northup’s position is that survival is everything.
The Sunday Religious Service at the Ford Plantation: Eliza cries throughout the service. Mrs. Ford comments that she cannot have that depression about the plantation. This scene is not in the book, but again it is consistent with the cold and heartless attitude of the plantation elite toward the miseries that they caused to their slaves.
Eliza taken away crying “Solomon”: This particular scene is not reported in the book. It is a dramatization of the fact that Northup was helpless to even protest the profound loss that Eliza was forced to endure. Northup reports that Eliza withered away and died of a broken heart. Northup p. 92.
Flashback of Eliza Talking: Again, not in the book, but again a legitimate device by writers of historical fiction to bring out themes. “When I say I had my master’s favor – you understand – and for 9 years he blessed me with every comfort.” . . . “Such was our life, and the life of this beautiful girl I bore for him. But Master Berry’s daughter . . . she always looked at me with an unkind nature. She hated Emily no matter she and Emily were flesh of flesh. As Master Berry’s health failed, she gained power in the household. Eventually, I was brought to the city on the false pretense of our free papers being executed. If I had known what waited; to be sent south? I swear I would not have come here alive.”
Fight With Tibeats – Northup Bound and Almost Hung: Northup reports a fight with Tibeats who was unhappy with nails Chapin had given to Northup. Northup thrashed Tibeats. Tibeats fled but returned with two other men. They bound Northup hands and feet and put a noose around his neck, but it was not strung up to a tree as in the movie. The tiptoes business is poetic license. Chapin, with pistols drawn, did chase off Tibeats and the two men, leaving Northup standing in the sun for hours, still bound hands and feet. Chapin sent for Ford who, as shown in the film, came and cut the cords. Solomon spent the night in the main house, guarded by Chapin, not by Ford. Northup pp.70 & 71. These scenes are basically true to the story. However, Northup relates two fights in which he thrashed Tibeats. Northup pp 63 – 72.
Sale to Epps: At this point in the narrative, the movie skips several incidents in Northup’s career as a slave, including the second fight with Tibeats and Northup being hired out to other plantations to cut sugar cane. It is Tibeats rather than Ford who sells Northup to Epps. Northup pp. 75 – 93. The conversation with Ford in which Northup tries to tell Ford that he is a free man but Ford wouldn’t listen did not occur. Northup never reports trying to tell Ford that he was a free man. While generally complimentary of Ford in the book, Northup never trusted him enough to tell him the truth. This scene, while it didn’t occur, rings true. No matter how good a slaveholder might be, he was still a slaveholder.
Epps preaching to the Slaves on Sunday “That servant which knew his Lord’s will and prepared not himself neither did according to his will shall be beaten with many stripes. . . . 150 lashes. That’s scripture.” This is an example of how religion was bent and perverted to support the interests of the slaveholders.
Scenes in the Fields Picking Cotton: These scenes, some of which are not specifically in the book, are consistent with Northup’s description of life on the Epps plantation. See e.g., Northup pp. 94 – 99, 105. The authenticity of some of these scenes are doubted by Professor Eakin, specifically (1) “It is doubtful that [Patsey] possessed the skill to pick 500 pounds [of cotton per day].” Eakin p. 301, note 127; (2) it is unlikely that slaves were whipped in the fields from morning till night because this would violate the the “Plantation Survival Code” and harm the property of the plantation owner, Eakin pp. 300 – 301, notes 125 & 126; see also Note 112, pp. 295 & 296 for more on the Plantation Survival Code; note however, that Northup states that Epps was, except for one other master, the most violent master on the Bayou Boeuf, p. 108, and the question is not whether this was usual but whether it would be tolerated by other slaveholders; (3) Northup complains of being given a foot-wide board to sleep on with wood blocks for pillows “seems to stretch credulity” according to Professor Eakin because scraps of cotton were always left in the fields and could be used to stuff mattresses and plantation owners would want their slave to get rest. Eakin, Note 130 p. 302. Professor Eakin also notes that no one could live on small portions of corn and pork as described by Northup. Ibid This is correct but in several places Northup states that slaves had access to other food, such as raccoon, possum and fish. (Northup pp. 117 & 118. Professor Eakin attributes these likely errors to Northup’s ghost writer, David Wilson.
Patsey making dolls and singing to herself: This scene, again not in the book, is to show that Patsey was still just a child in her development despite the fact that she was in her twenties during the years when Northup knew her.
Epps Making Slaves Dance at Night: This is reported by Northup. Northup p. 107.
Patsey’s Sexual Abuse by Epps/Jealousy by Mrs. and Mr. Epps:
Northup also describes the fact that Epps required Patsey to submit to his sexual advances as well as the jealousy of Mrs. Epps and her general persecution of Patsey. He also described the jealousy of Mr. Epps when Patsey went to the Shaw plantation, for what he imagined was sex with Mr. Shaw. The abuse of Patsey shown in the film, including the whippings, the bottle hurled at Patsey, Epps’ refusal to sell Patsey, and Mrs. Epps’ humiliation are all derived from episodes in the book. See pp. 111, 116, 117 and 151 — 154.
Getting paper: When sent to purchase goods at the store, Northup appropriates a piece of paper on which to write a letter home. This is in the book. Northup p. 136.
Run-in with a Gang of Patrollers: Called Pattys or Patty Rollers by the slaves. See generally Northup pp. 130 & 131. The hanging by a patrol is not mentioned in the book, however, hangings of slaves planning an insurrection is mentioned.
Northup Running Away to the Swamp The time when Northup ran away from Tibeats through the swamps is related at pp. 77 — 83.
Northup is Sent to Retrieve Patsey from her Visit to Mistress Shaw, a Black Woman This scene is not realistic and is a bit of tongue-in-cheek to provide comic relief. However, the scene is not quite as unrealistic as it may at first seem. Plantation owners, with a few limitations, were seen as the lords of their manor and had complete discretion about how the ran their plantations. A few white plantation owners lived openly with their black concubines. On occasion, these men acknowledged their mulatto children, freed them, sent them north to be educated, and left them property. See Eakin Note 115, second paragraph, page 297. However, much more often than not, children of Master/Slave unions were treated as slaves. For an example of the unnatural lack of fatherly feeling of slave owners for their children, see the second anecdote taken from the life of Thaddeus Stevens in TWM’s Lesson Plan on the End of America’s Nightmare Dance With Slavery Using Spielberg’s Lincoln . It is hard to believe that other plantation owners would allow one of their fellow slave owners to install a black woman as the mistress of a plantation as shown in the tea scene in this film.
Patsey asks Northup to Kill Her: – She says, “I ain’t got no comfort in this life.” He turns his back; she cries. This is apparently based on a misreading of the book at page 111, although with all that Patsey endured, a wish to end it all seems understandable. However, it was Mistress Epps who tried to bribe Northup to murder Patsey.
The Caterpillars Eating the Cotton and Slaves Being Hired Out This comes from the book at pages 112, et seq.
Armsby Incident: Northup did ask a white man who was working in the fields to help him, gave the man his savings, and was betrayed. Northup saved himself by lying to Epps, claiming Armsby just wanted to be his overseer, stressing that Northup had no one to write to, etc. Northup then burned the letter to avoid his lie being found out. The film’s rendition is reasonably accurate. Northup pp. 136 – 139.
Death of a Slave — & “Roll Jordan, Roll”: This is fictional but realistic. Northup begins to sing accepting the fact that he is going to be a slave for a long time, perhaps forever.
Northup Asks Bass for Help: This is a reasonable approximation of what occurred as reported by Northup. For more on Bass, see pp. 325 & 326.
Liberation from the Field: This is a reasonable approximation of what occurred. Patsey’s Last Word to Northup “Oh! Platt,” she cried, tears streaming down her face, “you’re goin to be free — you’re goin way off yonder where we’ll neber see ye any more. You’ve saved me a good many whippins, Platt; I’m glad you’re goin’ to be free. — but oh! de Lod, de Lord! What’ll become of me?” Northup p. 187.
Omitted from the film: No movie of reasonable length can include everything in a book of 200+ pages. Some of the incidents and scenes omitted include

The smallpox outbreak on the boat, Northup’s illness when he contracted smallpox, his stay in the hospital and recovery; Chapters V and VI;

Ford’s financial embarrassment which caused Ford to sell Northup to Tibeats; Chapter VIII;

Northup’s flight from Tibeats through the swamps back to Ford’s plantation; Chapter X;

The New Years celebrations and the few days that slaves didn’t have to work; XV;

The months’ long wait for Bass’ efforts to bring someone down from the North; Chapters XIX and XX;

The careful groundwork laid by Henry Northup to make his rescue of Solomon a success; for example, Henry Northup secured declarations from people who knew Solomon and took them to the governor of New York; as a result, under the authority of a ten-year-old law designed for the retrieval of kidnapped free blacks, Henry secured an appointment as an official agent of the state to reclaim Solomon; he then went to Washington D.C. and convinced a senator from Louisiana to write letters of recommendation to local officials; Northup p. 177; once in Louisiana, Henry hired a highly respected attorney to represent him; Ibid; they secured a court order and the cooperation of the sheriff before going to the Epps plantation. Northup pp. 181 & 182.

Henry Northup’s search for Solomon and the lucky chance that he found Mr. Bass who directed him to Northup’s location; the rush to liberate Northup before word of the rescue effort got to Epps who would have hidden Northup so that he could not be liberated.

USING THE MOVIE IN THE CLASSROOM

Before Showing the Film:

Consider distributing and having students review, TWM’s Movie Worksheet for 12 Years a Slave . Modify the worksheet as appropriate.

Information Helpful to Students:

Relate the following information to students to give them a better understanding of the movie.

The terms “paddy” and “pattyrollers” or “paddy rollers” were names given by slaves to patrols of whites who were paid to be on the lookout for fugitive slaves and to hunt down runaways. Paddy’s were armed and often brutal.

The culture of the people living in what is now the U.S. has been a slave culture or has tolerated slavery from 1619 when the first slaves were brought to Jamestown, Virginia until 1865. That is a period of 245 years, almost a century longer than the period since slavery has been abolished. Slavery was so intertwined with the culture of the American South that it took the bloodiest war in U.S. history to make it illegal. Even then substantial portions of the slave society survived for another hundred years in Jim Crow laws and customs. The country is still not completely free of the racism that aided and abetted slavery.

Solomon Northup’s book Twelve Years a Slave is one of the most important examples of a genre of American literature called the slave narrative. In fact, African-American literature in the U.S. begins with the slave narrative, most of which were told to white abolitionist ghost writers after slave had escaped from the South. Solomon Northup’s Twelve Years a Slave became a best-seller in 1853 and then a major motion picture 160 years later.

Test Your Historical Instincts Exercise:

Tell students the following: (1) It’s time to test your historical instincts. (2) The movie is reasonably historically accurate except for a few scenes. (3) As you watch the film, look for these scenes. After watching the movie, there will be a class discussion in which you may be asked to identify an inaccurate scene or set of scenes.

Note to Teachers: The heart of this exercise is the discussion after the film. Teachers can prepare for this discussion in about five minutes by reviewing the highlighted sections of TWM’s Essay on Historical Accuracy.

As an alternative to class discussion, students can be asked to write a paragraph on a scene or a set of scenes that their instinct tells them are inaccurate and why. The paragraphs will be graded only on the quality of the writing.

After Showing the Movie:

Complete the Test Your Historical Instincts Exercise:

Suggested Responses:

There are three substantial inaccuracies in the film: (a) the set of scenes before the kidnapping showing Northup as a prosperous individual fully accepted by white society; (b) the scene in which a lone sailor comes into the hold of the Orleans to take Eliza up to the deck and then knifes a slave who tries to protect her; and (c) Mistress Shaw giving Patsey tea.

There are no specifically correct answers to the questions about why the filmmakers chose to include these obviously incorrect scenes. A good discussion will raise the following issues.

As to the first scenes of the wealth and acceptance of Solomon Northup, one possible explanation is that the people who made the movie wanted to draw a contrast between the life that free blacks lived in the North and the life they lived as slaves in the South. A second possible reason is that the filmmakers didn’t want to alienate their audience by showing that blacks were discriminated against in the North before the Civil War and did not have equal rights. Another possibility is that the filmmakers wanted generally affluent filmgoers to be able to identify with the character of Solomon Northup. Whatever the reason, the filmmakers vastly underestimated their audience. Scenes showing Northup having a poor and struggling but intact family in New York would have been more accurate historically and also true to the tale told in Northup’s slave narrative. Properly presented, it would still have provided a stark contrast to Northup’s life as a slave in which families were routinely broken up and family values were routinely ignored by most slave masters.

On the trip, the New Orleans the movie shows the slave being stabbed to death by a sailor when the slave tries to protect Eliza from being taken up to the deck, presumably for sex. This scene didn’t occur. A slave did die on board the ship, but he died from smallpox. The historical record was altered and this incident was added because it’s very dramatic for Robert to be murdered while trying to protect Eliza. However, in 1841 a healthy male slave was worth $650 (estimated to be about $18,000 in 2014 dollars using an adaptation of the Consumer Price Index. It is unlikely that a sailor would so quickly kill such a valuable piece of property. In addition, it is unlikely that a sailor would have gone alone into the hold of a ship containing a number of unchained male slaves.

The scenes of the black Mistress Shaw taking tea with Patsey could have been placed in the film to show that there were a very few slaveholders who honored their slave concubines and freed them or their children. The scene is played “tongue-in-cheek” and could have been placed in the film solely for comic relief.

Additional Information for Students

Uncle Tom’s Cabin, the novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, was published in 1852, a year before Northup’s Twelve Years a Slave. The novel was one of the most popular books ever published and historians say that it was an important factor in turning the North against any expansion of slavery into the Western Territories. Twelve Years a Slave was published the next year and confirmed the indictment of slavery contained in Stowe’s novel. The connection between the two books was not lost on the Northern Press. Eakin, pp. 262 – 265.

Twelve Years a Slave was ghostwritten for Northup by David Wilson, a lawyer/author. Wilson wrote the book and had it published in a period of three months. a very short period of time. He was spurred on by attorney Henry Northup, the family friend who went to Louisiana to free Solomon. Attorney Northup “figured that information from the forthcoming book would reach readers who could and would identify the kidnappers. Attorney Northup was correct.” Eakin p. 263 at note 3. While the kidnapers were found and prosecuted, they were not convicted because the proceedings were delayed by appeals and before the case could come to trial, Solomon Northup had disappeared again, this time for good. No one knows what happened to him or how he died.

People are still kidnapped and sold into slavery all over the world. Most current-day slavery in the U.S. is sexual slavery in which girls and young women are forced to be prostitutes.

Grave Suspicions about the Death of Solomon Northup: After he returned to freedom, Northup gave lectures to spur sales of his book, assisted in the Underground Railroad, and addressed abolitionist rallies.

He also pursued the criminal prosecution of the kidnappers who claimed that they hadn’t kidnapped Northup at all, but that it was a scheme that he had participated in to cheat Burch out of the money he paid to the kidnappers. They claimed to have done this before with a free black man from the North. Northup steadfastly denied this charge. Eakin pp. 215 & 216.

The criminal prosecution of the kidnappers ended when, after many years of delays in the Court proceedings, Northup disappeared and the case was dropped. Eakin pp. 210 – 214. Many who knew Solomon Northup believed that he was murdered by his kidnappers or kidnapped again and sold into slavery a second time.

The following is from the ending of Dr. Eakin’s study of Solomon Northup’s life at pages 217 & 217:

John Henry Northup, born in Sandy Hill [New York] in 1822, a nephew of Henry Northup, was well acquainted with both Solomon and Henry Northup. [He would have been 19 at the time of the kidnapping and 31 when Solomon Northup returned to New York.] He wrote his version of the story in 1909 in a letter to his cousin . . . who recounted it:

John Henry Northup said not long after they came home, Henry B. “got a lawyer to hear Sol’s story. Soon by questions he got enough to write a book.” According to John Henry, Solomon Northup: 12 Years in Slavery, written quickly and published in 1853, “created a sensation for it came out a short time after Uncle Tom’s Cabin . . . by Mrs. Stowe. The last I heard of him,” said John Henry in 1909, Sol “was lecturing in Boston to help sell his book . . . All at once said John Henry, “he disappeared . . . We believed that he was kidnapped and taken away or killed or both.”

Additional Curriculum Materials:

Teachers may want to provide students with the following handouts prepared by TWM. (1) The Slave Narrative as Literature and (2) Slavery: A World-Wide View, Then and Now (placing American slavery into a global and historical context). As to the latter TWM has prepared a homework assignment to test comprehension of the materials in the essay.

Turning Students Toward the Written Slave Narratives:

After students have seen the movie, turn their minds back to the written slave narratives by having them read all or a portion of Northup’s Twelve years a Slave (see assignments 1, 3 & 4 below) or by having them read all or a portion or another slave narrative, such as Frederick Douglass’ The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written by Himself. Set out below are several excerpts and one abridgment of slave narratives prepared by TWM for shorter student reading assignments.

Chapters I – III of The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, The African, Written by Himself;
Short excerpt from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written by Himself describing Mr. Douglass’ decision to learn to read at whatever cost;
Booker T. Washington’s Up from Slavery chapters I – VI describing his experiences as a boy during slavery and just after Emancipation;
Sojourner Truth’s speech “Ain’t I A Woman?” delivered in 1851 at the Women’s Convention in Akron, Ohio; the link is to a web page setting out the best version of the speech in the vernacular and also a translation to standard English;
Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself by Harriet Jacobs; (TWM has prepared a six-page handout intended to capture the imagination of students and interest them in reading Ms. Jacobs’ narrative (this document alone will convey many of the lessons contained in Ms. Jacobs’ narrative); for teachers who don’t want to assign the entire book, TWM has abridged this work and cut it to about 1/3rd its original size; see TWM’s Abridged Version of “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Written by Herself”).

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

After watching the film, teachers can engage the class in a discussion about the movie.

1. Have the class read the following excerpt from pages 48 & 49 of Northup’s book. Then ask the class to evaluate the character of William Ford.

Our master’s name was William Ford. He resided then in the “Great Pine Woods,” in the parish of Avoyelles, situated on the right bank of Red River, in the heart of Louisiana. He is now a Baptist preacher. Throughout the whole parish of Avoyelles, and especially along both shores of Bayou Boeuf, where he is more intimately known, he is accounted by his fellow-citizens as a worthy minister of God. In many northern minds, perhaps, the idea of a man holding his brother man in servitude, and the traffic in human flesh, may seem altogether incompatible with their conceptions of a moral or religious life. From descriptions of such men as Burch and Freeman, and others hereinafter mentioned, they are led to despise and execrate the whole class of slaveholders, indiscriminately. But I was sometime his slave, and had an opportunity of learning well his character and disposition, and it is but simple justice to him when I say, in my opinion, there never was a more kind, noble, candid, Christian man than William Ford. The influences and associations that had always surrounded him, blinded him to the inherent wrong at the bottom of the system of Slavery. He never doubted the moral right of one man holding another in subjection. Looking through the same medium with his fathers before him, he saw things in the same light. Brought up under other circumstances and other influences, his notions would undoubtedly have been different. Nevertheless, he was a model master, walking uprightly, according to the light of his understanding, and fortunate was the slave who came to his possession. Were all men such as he, Slavery would be deprived of more than half its bitterness.

Suggested Response:

Make sure that all sides are represented. If there is a consensus in the class for one side or the other, the teacher should make the contrary argument.

2. What factors both within Northup and in his situation allowed him to survive the ordeal of being kidnaped and enslaved?

They include a) Tremendous patience and perseverance. Northup waited years for opportunities to attempt to regain his freedom. During the interim periods, he kept silent about his kidnapping and his right to be free. b) While the kidnapping was very bad luck, there were many instances in which Northup had good luck. These included: (1) encountering Mr. Bass — people like Bass were hard to come by in the South because the Slave Power didn’t generally allow dissent and abolitionists were expelled or lynched; (2) having a friend in the North like Henry Northup who had the capacity and willingness to secure Solomon Northup’s liberation; and (3) the way in which Henry Northup found Bass before Bass left the state. c) The ability to make Epps believe that Armsby was lying about the letter. d) The fact that the U.S. is a nation of laws in which the State of Louisiana would honor an order from the governor of the State of New York which caused a substantial financial loss to a Louisiana citizen.

3. During WWII the Germans established slave labor camps that were strikingly similar to plantations in the Southern U.S. The Germans imprisoned Jews, Poles, Russians, political dissidents and other people, fed them very little, and compelled them to work hard — all without pay. In the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials the U.S. accused some of the managers of those camps with crimes against humanity. This occurred just 80 years after the slaves on the last Southern Plantation were set free. What does this juxtaposition of facts indicate to you?

There is no one correct response. Some good ideas are: (1) Human society has advanced in some important ways or, in other words, the arc of history bends toward justice. (2) Like other nations, unless the U.S. is careful, it can act in ways that are oppressive and wrong. George Washington said, “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.” — this applies to monitoring your own actions as well as to being vigilant to protect your country from others.

4. Describe some of the effects of slavery, as practiced in the American South, on the slave and on the slave owner that are exemplified by the characters in this movie.

The slaves lost their right to be free, to enjoy the fruits of their labor, sometimes to choose their spouses, to keep their families intact and see their children grow up, to choose their profession, and, for the women, to choose their sexual partners. The slave masters may have profited financially but they suffered personally becoming hypocrites (Mr. Ford), becoming callous to the suffering of others (all of the plantation owners and overseers, including the Fords, the Epps, Chapin and Tibbeats) or by becoming a torturer and abuser of their fellow human beings (Epps and Tibbeats).

HUMAN RIGHTS

See Discussion Question #4.

MORAL-ETHICAL EMPHASIS (CHARACTER COUNTS)

(Treat others with respect; follow the Golden Rule; Be tolerant of differences; Use good manners, not bad language; Be considerate of the feelings of others; Don’t threaten, hit or hurt anyone; Deal peacefully with anger, insults, and disagreements)

See Discussion Questions 1 & 3.

See also Discussion Questions which Explore Ethical Issues Raised by Any Film .

ASSIGNMENTS, PROJECTS & ACTIVITIES

Any of the discussion questions can serve as a writing prompt. Additional assignments include:

1. Additional Assignments to Turn Students Toward the Written Slave Narrative

These assignments will require students to read sections of Northup’s book and give reports to the class or write short essays on some of the details in the book that are omitted from the movie. They can also be asked to evaluate whether various scenes accurately reflect what is set out in the book. This assignment will also enhance students’ understanding of the history of slavery. Suggestions for assignments are:

Describe in your own words the people Solomon met in the various slave pens in which he was confined before being sent to the plantation of John Ford. They include: Eliza and her children, Clemens Ray, John Williams, and a man identified only as Robert. Read Chapters III and IV and page 92 to get the information for this project. [This assignment can be divided and each student can be given one person to describe.]
Describe in your own words the aborted conspiracy on the boat. Describe how the movie differs from the book in the depiction of this episode. Speculate on why the filmmakers made this change. Read Chapter V to obtain the information for this project.
Describe in your own words how it came about that Northup sent a letter home. Speculate on why the filmmakers omitted this scene. Read Chapter V to obtain the information for this project.
Write an essay on whether the movie portrays what really happened at Freeman’s Slave Pen in New Orleans. Read Chapter V to get the information for this project.
Write an essay on whether the movie portrays what really happened to Patsey. Read pages 96, 109 – 111, 116, 117, & 151 – 154 to get the information for this project.

2. Assignments for Research On Topics Relating to Solomon Northup

Retrieve and describe documents in the national archive documenting Solomon Northup’s life [Note to Teachers: see The Documents Behind Twelve Years a Slave The National Archives, November 5, 2013];
Describe the relationship between Solomon Northup’s book and the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin [Note to Teachers: see Eakin pp.262 – 265.];
Write a report on what happened when Solomon Northup returned to Washington, D.C.; [Note to Teachers: see N.Y. Times Article from January 20, 1853 , and Eakin pp. 198 — 217 .]
Describe the origin and meaning of the song “Run Nigger, Run”
Write a short biographical sketch of Henry B. Northup, the attorney who rescued Solomon Northup, and the relationship between the white and the black Northups.[Note to Teachers: see Eakin, note 6, pp. 266 & 267.]
The relationship of Dr. Sue Eakin with the book and her contribution to the story of Solomon Northup [Note to Teachers: see the first few unnumbered pages of the Enhanced Edition published by Eakin Films & Publishing.]

3. Students can be asked to create a drawing or write a poem about key scenes from the book. Instruct students to read the indicated pages of the book as they begin the assignment.

The scene in the Washington slave pen when Northup realizes that he had been kidnapped; read Northup chapters II & III;
The scene when Eliza’s daughter is taken from her in Freeman’s New Orleans slave showroom; read Northup Chapter VI.;
The whipping of Patsey — read Northup pp. 96, 109 – 111, 116, 117, & 151 – 154;
The scene when Northup is working in the field and is freed by the sheriff and Henry Northup; read Northup pp. 182 – 187;
Northup’s reunion with his family, pp. 195 & 196.

4. Write a work of historical fiction, either a screenplay or a short story, describing what happened when Attorney Henry Northup went to Louisiana to free Solomon Northup. You may add or delete scenes but keep your story primarily true to the historical narrative and make it exciting. There is the stuff of drama in this incident!@ Read Northup pp. 168 – 186 to get the information for this project.

5. Research the usual elements of a 19th-century American slave narrative and write an essay describing how the story told by the movie conforms to or departs from those elements.

CCSS ANCHOR STANDARDS

Multimedia:

Anchor Standard #7 for Reading (for both ELA classes and for History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Classes). (The three Anchor Standards read: “Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media, including visually and quantitatively as well as in words.”) CCSS pp. 35 & 60. See also Anchor Standard # 2 for ELA Speaking and Listening, CCSS pg. 48.

Anchor Standards #s 1, 2, 7 and 8 for Reading and related standards (for both ELA classes and for History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Classes). CCSS pp. 35 & 60.

Anchor Standards #s 1 – 5 and 7- 10 for Writing and related standards (for both ELA classes and for History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Classes). CCSS pp. 41 & 63.

Speaking and Listening:

Anchor Standards #s 1 – 3 (for ELA classes). CCSS pg. 48.

Not all assignments reach all Anchor Standards. Teachers are encouraged to review the specific standards to make sure that over the term all standards are met.

BRIDGES TO READING

The book itself is remarkably well written for a work that was pulled together in three months. See the books and materials listed in the Section on Turning Students to the Written Slave Narratives in Helpful Background.

LINKS TO THE INTERNET

How 12 Years a Slave Gets History Right: By Getting It Wrong by Noah Berlatsky , The Atlantic, Oct. 28 2013.
Historian at the Movies: 12 Years a Slave reviewed interview of Dr. Emily West in History Extra, January 13, 2014; “I have never seen a film represent slavery so accurately.”
The Documents Behind Twelve Years a Slave The National Archives, by Stephanie on November 5, 2013; (includes census records and slave manifests);
DocsTeach activity “Twelve Years a Slave” from the National Archive; (See Teacher Instructions for this activity;
N.Y. Times Article from January 20, 1853 or another version ;
Run Nigger Run recorded song and lyrics – The John Quincy Wolf Folklore Collection, Lyon College, Batesville, Arkansas
Run Nigger Run also from the John Quincy Wolf Folklore Collection;
Nigger Run , Wikimedia Commons;

Other lesson plans: Text to Text: ‘Twelve Years a Slave,’ and ‘An Escape That Has Long Intrigued Historians’ By Michael Gonchar and Tom Marshall, October 22, 2013

BIBLIOGRAPHY

The works cited in this Learning Guide are the Enhanced Edition of Twelve Years a Slave published by Eakin Films & Publishing, the websites which may be linked in the Guide and the sites listed in the Links to the Internet section.

This Learning Guide was written by James Frieden and first published on July 29, 2014.

LEARNING GUIDE MENU:

Benefits of the Movie Parenting Points Selected Awards & Cast Helpful Background Using the Movie in the Classroom Discussion Questions Social-Emotional Learning Moral-Ethical Emphasis Assignments and Projects CCSS Anchor Standards Bridges to Reading Links to the Internet Bibliography

MOVIE WORKSHEETS:

Citations in this Learning Guide are to the Enhanced Edition published by Eakin Films & Publishing. Citations to the slave narrative itself are referred to as “ Northup “. Citations to Professor Eakin’s notes and supplemental materials, beginning on page 198 are referred to as “ Eakin “.

BUILDING VOCABULARY:

Click here for interesting quotes from the film at the Internet Movie Database. The entire script can be found on Internet Movie Script Database .

Slavery: the Nation’s “Peculiar Institution”:

RANDALL KENNEDY, Professor, Harvard Law School on the two alternative traditions relating to racism in America:

“I say that the best way to address this issue is to address it forthrightly, and straightforwardly, and embrace the complicated history and the complicated presence of America. On the one hand, that’s right, slavery, and segregation, and racism, and white supremacy is deeply entrenched in America. At the same time, there has been a tremendous alternative tradition, a tradition against slavery, a tradition against segregation, a tradition against racism.

I mean, after all in the past 25 years, the United States of America has seen an African-American presence. As we speak, there is an African-American vice president. As we speak, there’s an African- American who is in charge of the Department of Defense. So we have a complicated situation. And I think the best way of addressing our race question is to just be straightforward, and be clear, and embrace the tensions, the contradictions, the complexities of race in American life. I think we need actually a new vocabulary.

So many of the terms we use, we use these terms over and over, starting with racism, structural racism, critical race theory. These words actually have been weaponized. They are vehicles for propaganda. I think we would be better off if we were more concrete, we talked about real problems, and we actually used a language that got us away from these overused terms that actually don’t mean that much. From Fahreed Zakaria, Global Public Square, CNN, December 26, 2021

Give your students new perspectives on race relations, on the history of the American Revolution, and on the contribution of the Founding Fathers to the cause of representative democracy. Check out TWM’s Guide: TWO CONTRASTING TRADITIONS RELATING TO RACISM IN AMERICA and a Tragic Irony of the American Revolution: the Sacrifice of Freedom for the African-American Slaves on the Altar of Representative Democracy.

A Great Lincoln Saying

Illustrations from the original edition:.

Kidnapping was a very real fear of free blacks in the North.

Very few kidnapped blacks were ever heard from again.

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12 Years a Slave

Solomon northup, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on Solomon Northup's 12 Years a Slave . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

12 Years a Slave: Introduction

12 years a slave: plot summary, 12 years a slave: detailed summary & analysis, 12 years a slave: themes, 12 years a slave: quotes, 12 years a slave: characters, 12 years a slave: symbols, 12 years a slave: literary devices, 12 years a slave: theme wheel, brief biography of solomon northup.

Historical Context of 12 Years a Slave

Other books related to 12 years a slave.

Full Title: 12 Years a Slave
When Written: 1853
Where Written: New York
When Published: 1853
Literary Period: Abolitionist literature
Genre: Slave narrative; memoir
Setting: Central Louisiana (Red River region); New York; Washington D.C.
Climax: Solomon befriends Bass and convinces him to send three letters on his behalf
Antagonist: Solomon’s cruel masters (James Burch, John Tibeats, and Edwin Epps)
Point of View: First person

Extra Credit for 12 Years a Slave

On the Big Screen. 12 Years a Slave was adapted into a film in 2013, which won three Academy Awards and was nominated for another six.

Page One. The original title page of 12 Years a Slave gives a brief summary of the book. It reads, “Twelve Years a Slave Narrative of Solomon Northup, a Citizen of New York, Kidnapped in Washington City in 1841, and Rescued in 1853, from a Cotton Plantation Near the Red River, in Louisiana.”

A Critical Introduction to 12 Years a Slave

Kathryn Hampshire
Bryce Longenberger
Ramona Simmons
Esther Wolfe

In this critical anthology of essays, the authors examine Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave from a variety of analytic frameworks, including feminist theory, trauma studies, film theory, and deconstruction. The authors explore critical questions concerning the politics of representing trauma and violence, the politics of slave suicide, and the intersections of race and gender in the experiences of slave women.

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Twelve Years a Slave : Analyzing Slave Narratives

Engraving of Solomon Northup "in his plantation suit," circa 1853.

Wikimedia Commons

"Although often dismissed as mere antislavery propaganda, the widespread consumption of slave narratives in the nineteenth-century U.S. and Great Britain and their continuing prominence today testify to the power of these texts to provoke reflection and debate." —William L. Andrews, Professor of English, University of North Carolina

Twelve Years a Slave: Narrative of Solomon Northup, a Citizen of New York, Kidnapped in Washington City in 1841 and Rescued in 1853 (to be referred to as Twelve Years a Slave ) is the focus of this lesson on analyzing messages in slave narratives. In this unique literary tradition, formerly enslaved men and women report what they experienced and witnessed during their enslavement. Slave narratives had a mission: to convert readers’ hearts and minds to the antislavery cause by revealing how slavery undermined and perverted the principal institutions upon which America was founded: representative democracy, Protestant Christianity, capitalism, and marriage and the family.

The corrupting influence of slavery on marriage and the family is a predominant theme in Northup’s narrative. In this lesson, students are asked to identify and analyze narrative passages that provide evidence for how slavery undermined and perverted marriage and the family. They will be challenged to go beyond the literal meaning of the text and to make inferences using their prior knowledge, including knowledge of narratives’ antislavery mission.

Northup collaborated with a white ghostwriter, David Wilson . Students will read the preface and identify and analyze statements Wilson makes to prove the narrative is true. Students are encouraged to go beyond the literal meaning of the text and to make inferences about Wilson’s purposes for writing the preface.

Guiding Questions

What does Solomon Northup’s narrative reveal about the relation between slavery and social institutions such as marriage and the family?

Why are slave narratives’ authenticity and truthfulness questioned?

What do slave narratives reveal about how history is recorded in the United States?

Learning Objectives

Describe the slave narrative tradition and evaluate its purpose.

Analyze how the relationships Northup describes explicitly illustrate or imply how slavery corrupted the social institutions of marriage and the family.

Analyze statements the ghostwriter makes to prove the narrative’s truth and infer why he made the statements.

Lesson Plan Details

Of the institutions that define the American identity, these come to mind:

In the political sphere, Representative Democracy
In the religious sphere, Protestant Christianity
In the economic sphere, Capitalism
In the social sphere, Marriage.

The fifth institution, however, may not be as readily apparent:

Human Bondage or Chattel Slavery

Why? The institution of slavery threatened the nation’s dedication to each of the four other key institutions in our history.

More than any other literary form, the American slave narrative dramatized how slavery corrupted America’s greatest institutions and thereby threatened to destroy the very social, economic, religious, and political bedrock upon which the country was founded. Twelve Years a Slave , in particular, supports the antislavery argument that the institution of slavery undermined and perverted the institutions of marriage and the family.

Solomon Northup was a free black man who was kidnapped from his home in the North and sold into slavery in the South. His steadfast love for his wife and children fortified him to endure slavery and to devise a means to be rescued. Northup’s commitment to his family stands in stark contrast to behaviors he witnessed among slave owners. He saw them desecrate their marriage vows; he saw the natural bonds between enslaved parents and their children sundered for slaveholders’ profit; he saw enslaved women’s lives devastated by their owners’ sexual exploitation; and he witnessed the jealousy and violence of slave owners’ legal wives toward the enslaved women their husbands had extra-marital relationships with and often fathered enslaved children by.

Northup’s narrative is unique because most slave narratives were written by individuals who were born into slavery and escaped to freedom. Northup was a kidnap victim, not a fugitive. Moreover, his was a rarity among slave narratives because it was authored by a white ghostwriter, David Wilson. Wilson took the facts Northup provided him and rendered them into an “as told to the writer” narrative. Because Wilson penned the narrative credibility issues have been raised; however, scholars agree that Twelve Years a Slave is historically accurate and verifiable regarding Northup’s life before, during, and after his enslavement.

In the summer of 1853, Twelve Years a Slave was published in Auburn and Buffalo, New York, as well as in London, England. By 1856 it had sold 30,000 copies, a sales record rivaling that of Frederick Douglass’s 1845 Narrative in its first five years of publication. In the fall of 2013, weeks after 12 Years a Slave, a major motion picture based on the narrative, was released to great acclaim, the narrative was on the New York Times Best Seller List. Its renewed popularity as a book and a film underscores how America’s greatest human tragedy, chattel slavery and the legacy of racism and discrimination, remain compelling themes for the American people.

For a framework for teaching this material, review the PDF/PowerPoint Solomon Northup, Twelve Years a Slave , and Analyzing Slave Narratives . This presentation draws from the Biography of Solomon Northup and the longer resource essay, “ Solomon Northup’s 12 Years a Slave , and the Slave Narrative Tradition ."

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.1. Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.2. Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.8. Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a text.

Power Point : Solomon Northup and Twelve Years a Slave: How to Analyze Slave Narratives
Solomon Northup’s Twelve Years a Slave and the Slave Narrative Tradition
Biography of Solomon Northup
Analyzing the Text: Eliza Loses Her Children
Analyzing the Text: Answer Sheet: Eliza
Analyzing the Text: The Soul Murder of Patsey
Analyzing the Text: Answer Sheet: Patsey
Editor’s Preface
Editor’s Preface: Responses for Discussion
Editor’s Preface: Assessment
Editor’s Preface: Assessment Answer Sheet
Final Quiz Assessment
Final Quiz Assessment: Answer Key

Note to Teachers: The complete text of Twelve Years a Slave can be found at the EDSITEment-reviewed digital archive Documenting the American South . First, read the " Introduction to the North American Slave Narrative ,” also on the site. In addition to readings excerpted for analysis activities below, the important readings are:

pp. 17–27 (Chapter I)
pp. 35–39 (drinking in Washington, D.C., discovering himself in chains)
pp. 75–80 (arrival at the New Orleans slave market)
pp. 89–99 (Ford and Northup’s early successes as a slave)
pp. 105–117 (a fight with Tibeats and aftermath)
pp. 162–163 (introduction to Epps)
pp. 180–185 (life under Epps); pp.188–189 (Patsey)
pp. 223–227 (Northup as slave driver)
pp. 230–235 (foiled in writing a letter)
pp. 312–318 (frustration with the case against Burch)
pp. 319–321 (Northup family reunion)

These comprise 65 pages of the 336-page narrative.

View the brief trailer from 12 Years a Slave (2013) Link to film trailer here . An earlier, NEH-funded film based on Northup’s narrative and directed by Gordon Parks, Solomon Northup’s Odyssey (1984) is also worthy of note. By being familiar with both, you can decide which one to use with your students.

Activity 1. Analyzing the Text: Eliza Loses Her Children

Ask students: What is a slave narrative? Reinforce the correct answers and redefine.
Show the short video trailer for 12 Years a Slave . Inquire about students’ prior knowledge: “Who has read Solomon Northup’s slave narrative?” or “Who has seen the movie 12 Years a Slave directed by Stephen McQueen or Solomon Northup’s Odyssey directed by Gordon Parks?” In the discussion make sure students understand the narrative’s storyline. (Time permitting, have students read as homework before the lesson the 65 pages in the narrative listed under Preparation and Resources.)
Using “ Power Point : Solomon Northup, Twelve Years a Slave , and Analyzing Slave Narratives ” which draws from the Biography and Background sections of this lesson and from the essay: " Solomon Northup’s 12 Years a Slave and the Slave Narrative Tradition" give students a short (1–15 minute) background for the lesson.
Divide the class into pairs and distribute “ Analyzing the Text: Eliza Loses Her Children .” Ask each pair to read and determine at least four ways the excerpt illustrates or implies how slavery undermined and perverted the institutions of marriage and the family.
Challenge pairs to go beyond the literal meaning of the text and to make inferences from their prior knowledge, especially 1) knowledge of slave narratives’ antislavery mission; and 2) knowledge of principles and tenets undergirding the institutions of marriage and the family. Stress that responses must be substantiated by evidence from the text.
Review how to approach analysis of the text excerpt with the class. Let each student read silently and highlight relevant text. After reading the whole excerpt, have the pairs review their highlighted segments together. Ask “reading between the lines” probing questions to help them make inferences (see: page 4 of “ Analyzing the Text: Eliza Loses her Children. ”). Then respond by identifying four examples representing corruption of marriage and the family by the institution of slavery
Ask several pairs of students to stand and present their responses to “Analyzing the Text Eliza Loses Her Children” and also to share other observations or inferences they made. Lead a discussion with the whole class referring to “ Analyzing the Text: Answer Sheet ."

Note to Teacher: The following excerpt, a graphic description of slave whipping, may not be suitable for all students. We recommend that teachers review carefully before assigning.

Distribute “ Analyzing the Text: The Soul Murder of Patsey .” Advise students that the excerpt contains emotionally disturbing and graphically violent content.
Inform students that they are to work independently to identify and analyze the text that conveys how slavery undermined and perverted the institutions of marriage and the family. Advise that they will need to go beyond the literal meaning of the text and to make inferences using their prior knowledge, especially their knowledge of slave narratives’ antislavery mission.

Activity 2. Editor's Preface

Steps 1–4 are the same as for Activity 1
Distribute the PDF, Editor’s Preface and have a student read this to the whole class. Ask students independently to underline the statements in the Editor’s Preface in which the editor is trying to convince the reader of the truthfulness of the narrative.
Using the PDF, Activity 2. Editor’s Preface: Responses for Discussion , lead a discussion about the statements identified. Reinforce learning objective 3.
Distribute the PDF, Activity 2. Editor’s Preface: Assessment . In this exercise, students will identify statements which are intended to convince the reader that the narrative is true.
To assess student work, see the PDF, Activity 2. Editor’s Preface: Assessment Answer Sheet to Editor’s Preface.

In the event that teachers have implemented both Activity 1 and Activity 2, the quiz will enable them to assess student accomplishment of the learning outcomes for both activities. Distribute the quiz . Ask students to complete it.

Students write a paper comparing and contrasting Northup’s narrative to that of Frederick Douglass and/or Harriet Jacobs or another individual, using the appropriate sections of William L. Andrews’s essay “Solomon Northup’s 12 Years a Slave and the Slave Narrative Tradition ” as one of the reference documents.
Students review and summarize contemporaneous newspaper articles about Northup’s efforts to obtain justice. Direct students to the EDSITEment Closer Reading blog entry " Searching for Solomon Northup in Chronicling America " for helpful suggestions about how to search in Chronicling America's database of historic digital newspapers.
Students compare and contrast interpretations of Solomon Northrup’s narrative in the two films: Solomon Northup’s Odyssey (1984), directed by Gordon Parks and 12 Years a Slave (2013), directed by Stephen McQueen. Remind them to be sure to indicate where the film(s) were faithful to the narrative and where they were not, and. using prior knowledge and reason, analyze why they think these departures from the Northup’s slave narrative may have been made.

Materials & Media

“twelve years a slave”: activity 1. analyzing the text: eliza loses her children, “twelve years a slave”: activity 1. analyzing the text: the soul murder of patsey, “twelve years a slave”: activity 1.1. analyzing the text: answer sheet: eliza, “twelve years a slave”: activity 1.2. analyzing the text: answer sheet: patsey, “twelve years a slave”: activity 2. editor's preface, “twelve years a slave”: activity 2. editor's preface answer sheet, “twelve years a slave”: activity 2. editor's preface: assessment, “twelve years a slave”: activity 2. editor's preface: responses for discussion, “twelve years a slave”: final assessment quiz, “twelve years a slave”: final quiz answer key, related on edsitement, harriet jacobs and elizabeth keckly: the material and emotional realities of childhood in slavery, slavery and the american founding: the "inconsistency not to be excused", frederick douglass's, “what to the slave is the fourth of july”, lesson 2: from courage to freedom: slavery's dehumanizing effects, twelve years a slave : was the case of solomon northup exceptional, harriet tubman and the underground railroad.

The Movie “12 Years a Slave” Critical Essay

To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
As a template for you assignment

Introduction

Review of the movie, works cited.

The American society has encountered many upheavals and changes within the past three centuries. Such developments have resulted in different social and political relationships in the country.

Different conflict theories examine the origin of social struggles and disagreements. Such theories also explain why many people disagree with their leaders. Human beings require specific rights and needs. The denial of such needs will eventually result in violence.

The film “12 Years a Slave” gives a clear picture of slavery in the United States. This dark history created complex socio-economic and political developments in the country. Such issues also continue to affect the lives of many Americans. This paper examines the movie “12 Years a Slave” using different conflict resolution theories.

The history of America explains why many human beings fight for power. Hans Morgenthau offers a powerful analysis of human conflict using his Realism Theory. According to Morgenthau, human beings tend “to have insatiable lust for control and power” (Molly 12).

This situation produces social disagreements and conflicts. This argument also explores the actions and behaviors of many political leaders (Molly 13). Many landowners in the film such as Edwin Epps oppress their slaves. Many “whites believed that it was right for them to oppress their slaves” (Burton 41).

Northup finds it hard to cooperate with individuals such as John Tibeats. This situation occurs because many people want to control others. Epps also rapes Patsey because she cannot fight for her rights ( 12 Years a Slave ). Brown, James Burch, and Hamilton are also able to smuggle different slaves.

According to John Burton’s Basic Human Needs Theory, “people have unique needs that must be fulfilled” (Burton 19). Social struggles are usually determined by the nature of such human needs. Human beings are usually motivated to engage in violent behaviors (Burton 42).

Throughout the film, it is notable that Solomon Northup works hard in order to achieve his goals. He eventually finds himself in the hands of different slave-owners. He works hard in order to become free. He also fights back after being attacked by John Tibeats ( 12 Years a Slave ).

This film explains how the society fails to fulfill Northup’s needs. The existence of unfulfilled needs eventually results in social conflicts. Sociologists should therefore work hard in order to satisfy these human needs. Many slaves such as Patsey also encounter different challenges.

According to Ted Gurr’s Relative Deprivation Theory, people will always engage in various acts of violence. Ted believes that “a frustration-aggression mechanism is the leading cause of violence” (Gurr 38). Frustrations can also produce anger and pain.

This form of anger can eventually result in violence. Relative deprivation occurs “when people encounter major discrepancies between their gains and expectations” (Gurr 94). Deprivation can also cause violence or rebellion. This situation might occur even when the government fulfills the basic needs of its people.

Poor leadership can also result in violence. The stories presented in this film explain why many African Americans fought tirelessly for their rights. They were unhappy with the social, economic, and political issues affecting their lives.

The challenges encountered by Patsey shows clearly that many women suffered in the hands of different slave-owners ( 12 Years a Slave ). Bass and Northup are also saddened by the challenges encountered by different African Americans ( 12 Years a Slave ). This situation explains why inequality is experienced in the United States even today.

Johan Galtung’s Structural and Cultural Violence Theory examines the origin of human disagreements. Violence occurs whenever there are specific political and socio-economic arrangements in a given community. According to John Galtung, “structural or cultural violence will eventually result in direct violence” (Galtung 292).

However, this kind of violence arises from the existing structural developments. The “political and social conditions in a specific community can result in violence” (Galtung 294). That being the case, leaders and communities should work hard in order to deal with structural violence.

The existence of inequality has redefined the history of America. The movie explores how different African Americans such as Patsey encounter numerous problems.

The social and political conditions experienced during the time failed to favor many African Americans. This situation resulted in different conflicts. Bass is against slavery because it affects the lives of many people ( 12 Years a Slave ).

According Vamik Volkan’s Ethnic Violence and Psychoanalysis Theory, different groups tend to have unique values. Such traits dictate the behaviors of different communities. A “proper understanding of people’s psychologies can produce positive results” (Levine 276).

Human beings should understand the irrational attributes associated with violence. This approach will make it easier for every community to deal with ethnic violence. Many individuals “assign different cultural identities to other groups” (Levine 278).

The theory explains why different communities engage in endless fights. The concept of awareness can make it easier for many groups to deal with their conflicts. Throughout the Reconstruction Period, many whites believed that every black citizen was inferior.

Vamik’s theory explains why “class struggles have been experienced in the United States for many years” (Levine 279).

Max Weber has made numerous contributions to Modernization Theory. According to the sociologist, rationality is a core value towards modernization. The “main mission of every society is to be deliberated” (Wheeler 9). However, the absence of “a smooth process towards modernization will result in disagreements” (Wheeler 17).

This is the case because many people will always focus on their basic needs (Wheeler 18). This theory explains why “the idea of rationalization encouraged many African Americans to fight against slavery and inequality” (Wheeler 18). Northup eventually becomes a free citizen. He eventually reunites with his family after 12 years of slavery.

The film “12 Years a Slave” explores the existence of conflicts in the American society. A proper understanding of the social, political, and economic backgrounds of different groups can result in better resolutions. Although the film does not offer the best resolutions, it encourages people to focus on the needs of their neighbors.

Slavery is a malpractice than can result in disagreements and class struggles. Hans Morgenthau’s theory describes the origin of inequality. The government should use the above theories in order to fulfill the needs of its citizens (Burton 92). Every society should embrace the best practices in order to deal with different conflicts.

For instance, the American government should have dealt with slavery during the period. The film explains how conflicts and class struggles emerged in America during the time. This development will continue to affect the lives of many Americans. Many descendants of these slaves are also struggling in order to achieve their goals.

12 Years a Slave. Ex. Prod. Brad Pitt. New York, NY: Fox Searchlight Pictures. 2013. DVD.

Burton, John. Conflict: Human Needs Theory. New York: McMillan, 2003. Print.

Galtung, Johan. “Cultural Violence.” Journal of Peace Research 27.3 (1990): 291-305. Print.

Gurr, Ted. Why Men Rebel. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. 2012. Print.

Levine, Howard. “Large-Group Dynamics and World Conflict: the Contributions of Vamik Volkan.” The Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Associations 54.1 (2006): 273-280. Print.

Molly, Sean. “Truth, Power, Theory: Hans Morgenthau’s Formulation of Realism.” Diplomacy and Statecraft 15.1 (2004): 1-23. Print.

Wheeler, Norton. “Modernization Discourse with Chinese Characteristics.” Springer 22.3 (2005): 3-24. Print.

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12 Years A Slave - List of Essay Samples And Topic Ideas

12 Years a Slave is a memoir and slave narrative by Solomon Northup, an African-American who was born free in New York state but kidnapped and sold into slavery. Essays could analyze the historical and societal context of the narrative, discuss its impact on the abolitionist movement, or compare it to other slave narratives and their portrayal of slavery. A vast selection of complimentary essay illustrations pertaining to 12 Years A Slave you can find at PapersOwl Website. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

12 Years a Slave Movie Critique

12 Years a Slave is based on the true story of Solomon Northup, an American African man who was taken from the North and sold into slavery. This movie accurately describes what slaves went through in their lives. It shows everything from the slaves being sold, and separated from their families to them being beaten. To what life was like on the plantations, and how they were treated. Since slaves were seen as property, they were sold as such. They […]

12 Years a Slave Summary

Watching 12 Years A Slave gave me a very realistic, but very shocking visual about everything that we have learned in class regarding slavery this semester and how slavery really was in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries in America. Before watching the movie, I thought I had a good idea of what slavery was like up until the ratification of the 13th Amendment in December of 1865, which officially ended it in the United States of America. However, what […]

Twelve Years a Slave Movie Analysis

Twelve Years a Slave (2013) Director: Steve McQueen Title of work: Twelve Years a Slave Date of release: October 18, 2013 Good films are not only a source of positive emotions, but are also a critical analysis of events that have occurred. "Twelve Years a Slave directed by Steve McQueen" is a great movie based on a true story. This films context make the audience think during and after the movie is over. McQueen depicts slavery on three levels, with […]

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Main Issues of 12 Years a Slave

12 Years a Slave by Solomon Northup 2) Narrator: Author (Solomon Northup) Point of view: First person 3) Tone: determined Quote: After Solomon becomes a slave he gets some help from the others in which they say keep your head down if you want to survive with which he responds "I don't want to survive. I want to live"(Northup 71). This shows his determination because even if he has yet to become a slave he is determined to make it […]

My Impressions from 12 Years a Slave

Slavery was extremely important to America. I mean, it led to a civil war and it also lasted a very long time, looking back to 1619 through the 1800's, this is over 200 years. However, slavery is most important because we still struggle with its legacy today. The film, 12 Years a Slave, is aimed specifically at topical issues of slavery. The story really depicts the struggles African Americans were subjected to for these 12 years, the bondage of slavery […]

Who is Solomon Northup?

Solomon Northup was born in July 10, 1808 in Minerva, New York. His father, Mintus, was once a slave himself but was released into freedom due to the death of his former slave owner or "master". Solomon Northup and his brother, Joseph, grew up knowing freedom. Growing up, Solomon would help his father out on the farm. He also enjoyed reading and playing the violin. In 1829, at the age of 21, Solomon Northup married Anne Hampton on Christmas Day. […]

Solomon from 12 Years a Slave

12 years a slave book is a story of Solomon Northup who is a free black man, married and have 3 children who live in Saratoga Spring, New York. He's a talented carpenter and who can plays the violin for a living, until he met his kidnappers who lied, drugged, and sold him to a slavery. What makes Solomon northup's experience of slavery so different from others? Solomon background is started from his ancestors on his paternal side were slaves […]

12 Years a Slave: a Unique View on Slavery

Solomon Northup portrays an unique view to the narrative on slavery. He was born in New York as a free man. Northrop's father was a liberated slave, so while Northup knew of the horrors of slavery, he only knew the taste of freedom. In March of 1841, Solomon Northup agrees to join a circus as a fiddle player to make extra money for his family. While with the two men who recruited him into the circus, Abram Hamilton and Merrill […]

12 Years Slave Film Review

The motion picture opens with a gathering of slaves accepting direction on cutting sugar stick. A man sits lazily on a wagon of pure sugar cane stick root, watching the men work. The scene moves to a gathering of shacks. The slaves are eating. Solomon Northup sees the dull juice of blackberries and it gives him an idea to make ink and a plume. Lamentably, the plan comes up short. The juice is too thin. Afterward, in the swarmed slave […]

The Greatness of 12 Years a Slave Movie

In 1853 Solomon Northup, an African-American born a free man, wrote his biography about how at the age of 33 he got kidnapped and separated from his wife and 3 children by two men he met who offered him lucrative work with a circus. Believing both men's words Northup followed them to Washington D.C. where after various stops to multiple saloons throughout the night Northup remembers getting ill with a severe headache and nausea. Shortly after leaving his room and […]

Solomon Northup in Twelve Years a Slave

Whites have for years have argued that slavery was great for African Americans to be slaves because it civilized them, and they would be content within bondage. This was not the case, at least according to those who were held in bondage. The accounts of slavery are importantly known because of those who were emancipated or runaway slaves. In the novel, Twelve Years a Slave, Solomon Northup composed a narrative about his life as a free man, and about his […]

Depiction of Slavery in Twelve Years a Slave

Twelve Years a Slave follows the narrative of Solomon Northup and his twelve-year experience being a free man then kidnapped to be turned into a slave. He expresses a different outlook into slavery since he had never lived it himself. Being brand new into slavery he is shocked at the horrible mistreatment that slaves endured. His father being a slave that was freed allowed Northup to have a family of his own. He was a free man robbed from his […]

12 Years of Slave: Significant Issues of the Film

The film 12 Years of Slaves is based on the autobiographical story of Solomon Northup. The film, annals the strenuous experiences of slavery and the dehumanizing effects of human oppression. This film portrayals the years of slavery withstood by Solomon Northup, an African American man who is a free citizen in New York. Inebriated from drinking, two men erroneously offers him work, he awakens in chains, before being quickly transported to the South to an existence of indentured servitude. The […]


Release date :	March 7, 2014 (Japan)
Director :	Steve McQueen
Screenplay by :	John Ridley
Production companies :	Regency Enterprises; River Road Entertainment; Plan B Entertainment; New Regency; Film4 Productions
Adapted from :	Twelve Years a Slave
Awards :	Academy Award for Best Picture

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12 Years A Slave: An essay, a review.

I purposely waited until saw McQueen’s 12 Years A Slave twice before writing an essay in dedication to the thought this film is responsible for provoking. I wanted to ensure that I hadn’t been beguiled by the beauty of the Louisiana setting, the intriguing melancholic score or the creative nuances that make this film easily one of the best cinematic experiences I’ve ever had.

Having said all of that, anyone who’s seen the film will agree or flounder trying to argue that the transfer of Northup’s horrifying experiences within the physical and spiritual confines of slavery from print to film wasn’t an industry clinic in screenplay and film adaptation.

But enough movie love, now for a healthy dose of relativity. As much as I love this film, I loved the fact that it was even made more . This story needed to be told on film. In all my years of thinking I was well versed in what slavery was, I never seriously extended my curiosity toward the exploration of the inhumane reality that “free” Black people were sold into slavery right on North American soil. To further illustrate; Often when we think in terms of slavery, we tend to romanticize that Black People were only kidnapped, stolen and whisked away from the shores of Africa. I was ignorant in not considering how often “free” Black People were kidnapped, stolen and whisked away from the shores of the Atlantic, renamed and sold into slavery right here in North America.

In a way that Roots, Amistad, Beloved, The Color Purple, Glory, Imitation Of Life, A Raisin In The Sun, Queen and other film depictions of Black People surviving in a disordered world at the end of the white man’s whip and under the white man’s arbitrary control, 12 Years A Slave surpasses it’s cinematographic peers. I liken it to The Passion Of The Christ in the sense that, although we have the biblical and apostolic recount of Jesus’ tortured last days on Earth; Until Mel Gibson unabashedly displayed his torture on film, for me, it was merely a story . Slavery is not a story. It is a poignant, relevant and historical reality as was the violence, torture and degradation. As is the social psychopathy that has thus evolved because of it. For me, this movie epitomizes living in “niggery” and is a point blank example of why I believe that no Black Person should use or condone the use of the *N* word and especially by other Black People. There is an abomination of power within that word and it is loaded with venom that has been used to dehumanize us from the dawn of the North Atlantic slave trade up to this very second in time.

Like many of you, I can recall the annual Roots marathon during Black history month and being expected to re-watch it year after year. My parents knew that it was important for me to see the human travesty that was slavery and that reading about it simply wasn’t enough. This is also why I insisted my teens watch this film. It wasn’t just that I wanted them to see a contemporary take on our history as North American Black People, I need them to understand that if there was ever a time to be a Black Person living in North America, it’s now. There is simply no excuse for average or sub par effort when they do not face the constraints our ancestors had to and who did not give up and accept the status quo and merely exist; They endured in the hope that one day their generations would live . I remember my father being angered by the scenes in Roots and his explosions of emotion when he felt the anguish and helplessness of Kunta Kinte. Even into his mid 70’s, Daddy claims he’d rather have died trying to free himself of bondage by inflicting violence on anyone in his path rather than accept life as a slave. I’ve seen this movie in theaters twice now and both times, I kept wishing for Django to ride up and kill every oppressor in his path.

As a demonstrative period piece, this story allows for no heroes and makes no false pretenses about who people were in relation to the social hierarchy in this time. The white women in this film felt no disregard toward owning, degrading and brutalizing people and even encouraged it while, rare white people, who were intrinsically abhorred by slavery still referred to Black People as “niggers”. A reminder that language is ultra powerful when objectifying humans. I walked away feeling like the majority of white people in this time were absolutely terrifying because they were absolutely crazy. The violence inflicted on human beings at the hands of other human beings is unfathomable and yet, I understand that in order for slavery to have been sustained, immeasurable violence, abuse, neglect and brainwash had to exist and the people carrying out this violence had obvious mental issues, although lucid enough to utilize the bible as a tool of obedience to assert power over others; It takes a disconnected and sick individual to not see a fellow human as a fellow human and deduce that they worth only the value that they serve as commodities .

In terms of history and violence as it relates to enslaving and violating human beings, we often neglect to validate her story. Without giving any of the story away, Patsy is absolute misery personified. Patsy reminds us that Black Women existed for three reasons: To labor, bear commodities and satisfy the lust and desires of their controllers. The list of desires is open ended. Patsy is the reason I will never classify myself as a feminist for I believe the disdain, superiority, ignorance, insecurity and hatred portrayed by the white women in this film was an accurate depiction. It was was alive and kicking during the suffragette movement and the contemporary feminist movement is rife with discord now. I’m a womanist and my heart aches for Patsy who couldn’t be protected by men who had also been dehumanized and made powerless to protect themselves let alone others by the very same men who victimized her. There are no heroes in this movie. The actions of every character are motivated simply by social status, lack of choice and survival. At times, the imagery in 12 Years A Slave depicting this powerlessness is enough to make you vomit.

Overall, I think this movie is an important film and that it is a “must see” for a variety of reasons. As a period piece, Spielberg’s award winning Lincoln, which I actually found quite boring, pales in comparison. Canada’s own Lawrence Hill’s, The Book Of Negroes is being adapted to film and is set to release in 2014. Now this is a story I can’t wait to see on screen. Although the story is fictitious, it’s set to the degrading reality which is our history rooted in slavery and I am excited to see the heroine Aminata come to life and leap from the page. To watch Her evolve from a curious and sheltered child stolen African child to an intelligent, brave and industrious grown African Woman living within and beyond slavery in North America will be worthwhile.

Isn’t that what we’re all really doing anyway; Trying to live beyond slavery? There is no “post racial” era and Jim Crow hasn’t up and died. North America is still very much polarized in terms Black and White and, structural, intentional and institutionalized racism is typical. Are we really so far removed from the plight of our grandparents? Are we really so far removed from Solomon who probably never thought that as a “free” Black Man living in the North, he’d be sold into slavery; Like the Black Man whose rights and freedoms are infringed upon with racial profiling or, locked up for driving while Black with no access to decent legal representation? The Black Men and Women who’re handcuffed, arrested and humiliated for innocently shopping at Macy’s. Both the book and film are the recount of a fascinating and thought provoking experience but, now that we’re thinking and talking about it, what are we to do with the insight?

Light reflected is enlightenment infinite.

4 responses to “ 12 Years A Slave: An essay, a review. ”

Are we living in a post-racial and more tolerant society??

Peace Sistar BlackLit101…I agree with you concerning the violence put upon our people being forced into becoming enslaved servants. However the imagery of who were slaves and who were masters/owners is absolutely incorrect. Should a child view this movie, yet not understanding the complicated dialogue will remember two things for sure. (1) White people are owners and masters and can dominate over (2) the Black people referred to as slaves. Solomon was enslaved in New Orleans, LA and it was well known and is well documented that the population of people in Louisiana, especially New Orleans the population including the enslaved ran from light bright people that looked white, to dark skinned people. In fact “massa” had been having sex with his slaves for many, many years. As such there were many, many children running around the plantation that looked not only like “massa” in physical features but in skin tone as well. In fact, the way the Homer vs Furgueson case was hinged upon placing a Black man on a train in New Orleans that would be barely distinguishable from a white man. By 1896 only 50+ yeas from the time Solomon was forced into slavery in New Orleans, when the Jim Crow laws went into effect, the white street car drivers sued the state of Louisiana stating it would be an undue burden on the drivers to try and distinguish who was white and who was black. Surely if the people were portrayed properly we would see dark people owning slaves and we would have seen white people as the enslaved. But we don’t. This reinforces images as whites supreme and Blacks subservient. Yet, and still, other images of Solomon in New York shows him as the “only” free Black man. And during a scene a Black slave was so intrigued to see a free Black family that he just walks into a haberdashery just staring. False images. When he reaches DC, again he is the only free Black person shown on film. I thought really??? J.A. Rogers has helped to dispel this myth. The child who sees this movie will have emblazoned in their minds supreme white people and subservient Black people. It’s time to show the many, many white people that were shipped to the Americas as slaves. In fact this is the etymon of the word kidnapped. White children nabbed in Europe to be sent to the Americas as slaves. The brain works by collecting symbols. No matter the dialogue, the brain especially of children will recall images of the supreme white slave owner and the down trodden Black slave.

Thank you for your comments Amenta. Have you read the book that the film is adapted from? I think that McQueen did a wonderful job is staying true to the narrative while balancing the scenery/imagery. The STORY is the point and I do believe he got that part exact on point. ~R

Great review sis. The film was well acted. Lupita Nyongo was very impressive in her role. The cinematography was beautiful as well. I haven’t read the book yet. But I plan on it.

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Twelve Years a Slave

by Solomon Northup

Twelve years a slave study guide.

Twelve Years a Slave is the memoir of Solomon Northup , a free black man who was kidnapped and sold into slavery. Published in 1853, the same year in which he was liberated, it covers his twelve years in servitude.

Northup recounts his life beginning in New York, establishing his origin and his status as a free man residing in the North with his family. He then shares the details surrounding his kidnapping and experiences within the slave market, and the subsequent years of captivity and enslavement he endures until he steps onto free soil again twelve years later. Through his story of plight, Northup describes the daily interactions between him, other slaves, and the various masters he works under, as well as specific and extensive knowledge of agricultural practices and southern customs – shedding more light on slavery than any textbook can.

The memoir is dedicated to Harriet Beecher Stowe, whose fictional narrative, Uncle Tom's Cabin , was published only one year earlier. Critics have noticed Northup's story bears many similarities to Stowe's, such as the condemnation of the legal system itself rather than individual slave owners, as well as the shared setting of the novels. The publication of Twelve Years a Slave helped affirm the fictional, albeit accurate, words of Stowe regarding the institution of slavery.

Northup enlisted David Wilson, an antislavery editor, as his amanuensis. Scholars have debated how much of the work was written by Wilson, but most seem to agree that Northup provided the facts and did indeed play a large role in its writing.

Twelve Years a Slave was a bestseller, with 25,000 copies sold in its first two years. Subsequent editions were published as well, but the work fell into obscurity until 1930, when a young woman named Sue Eakin found a copy of the narrative in a plantation house and then for sale in a local bookshop. Intrigued, especially when the bookseller claimed it was pure fiction, she pursued everything she could find about Northup, eventually corroborating his narrative in numerous ways and bringing it back into the public domain. While not as widely read as the Narrative of Frederick Douglass or Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl , it provides an outlook critical to the national debate leading to the Civil War as well as an understanding of a brutal yet significant aspect of American history.

Notably, British director Steve McQueen adapted the work into an Academy-Award-winning film in 2014.

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Twelve Years a Slave Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Twelve Years a Slave is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Why did Solomon carve his initials into the tin cups?

Solomon cut their initials into the tin cups they were given aboard ship.

With a small pocket knife that had not been taken from me, I began cutting the initials of my name upon the tin cup. The others immediately flocked round me, requesting me...

This question is far too involved for a short-answer. I suggest you begin by reading through GradeSaver's theme page for the unit.

What is the symbolism of the the sentence,

The "monsters" represent the white men who lured Solomon away.

Study Guide for Twelve Years a Slave

Twelve Years a Slave study guide contains a biography of Solomon Northup, literature essays, a complete e-text, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

About Twelve Years a Slave
Twelve Years a Slave Summary
Character List

Essays for Twelve Years a Slave

Twelve Years a Slave essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup.

A Literary Analysis of Twelve Years a Slave

Lesson Plan for Twelve Years a Slave

About the Author
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Introduction to Twelve Years a Slave
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Twelve Years a Slave Bibliography

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Twelve Years a Slave

88 pages • 2 hours read

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Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Introduction-Chapter 5

Chapters 6-12

Chapters 13-18

Chapters 19-22

Key Figures

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Twelve Years a Slave opens with an excerpt from William Cowper’s 1785 blank verse “The Task.” Why do you think Solomon Northup chose these particular words for his epigraph? How does this epigraph support the abolitionist aims and thematic interests of Twelve Years a Slave ?

Following the widespread attention of both fictional slave narratives—such as Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin —and nonfictional slave narratives—such as Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave—Twelve Years a Slave quickly became a bestseller. Critics of abolitionism, however, scrutinized the book’s details for accuracy and veracity. Examine two to three rhetorical strategies Northup uses throughout Twelve Years a Slave to prove—and illustrate—that his narrative is truthful.

While the chronology and many of the major events in Steve McQueen’s 2013 film adaptation of Twelve Years a Slave remain true to Northup’s memoir , the film changes several details, combining characters, attributing one character’s words to another, and even—in some cases—fictionalizing moments. Analyze at least three changes between the original memoir and the 2013 film. Do you think these changes were necessary, or do you think they detracted from the impact of the book?

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"12 Years a Slave": An Analysis of the Film Essay
Get a custom Essay on "12 Years a Slave": An Analysis of the Film. The two main ethnic groups presented in this film are White and African Americans, and the three social groups are affluent slaveholders, working for middle class, and enslaved people. The movie starts with the story of a free African American violinist Solomon Northup ...
Film "12 Years a Slave"
Introduction. 12 Years a Slave is a dramatic chef-d'oeuvre film that highlights the brutal experiences that slaves underwent in the hands of their masters in the Southern America. Undoubtedly, the movie reinvigorates the debate on the historical significance of slavery in the contemporary United States. ... This essay, "Film "12 Years a ...
A Detailed Analysis of the Film 12 Years a Slave: [Essay Example], 1974
12 Years a Slave movie: essay A brief summary of the main plot. Solomon Northup lived with his family in upstate New York in the late 1830s. He was a free black man that worked as a carpenter and violin player. In 1841, two men approached Solomon saying they worked for the circus. They asked him to accompany them to Washington and play his violin.
A Critical Introduction to 12 Years a Slave
A Critical Introduction to 12 Years a Slave Kathryn Hampshire, Bryce Longenberger, Ramona Simmons, and Esther Wolfe, Ball State University Key Words: 12 Years a Slave, Steve McQueen, slavery, violence, visual culture, cinematography, mistresses, suicide Abstract: In this critical anthology of essays, the au-thors examine Steve McQueen's 12 ...
12 Years a Slave
Solomon Northup's 12 Years a Slave recounts the author's life story as a free black man from the North who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in the pre-Civil War South. The son of an emancipated slave, Northup was born free. He lived, worked, and married in upstate New York, where his family resided. He was a multifaceted laborer and also ...
12 Years a Slave: The Analysis of the Film
An example of a movie that gives the audience the opportunity to percept history is 12 Years a Slave. We will write a custom essay on your topic tailored to your instructions! Steve McQueen's film 12 Years of Slave is based on a memoir. The movie portrays the story of Solomon Northup, who is kidnapped as a free African-American living in New ...
12 YEARS A SLAVE
essay on the historical accuracy of the movie 12 years a slave The book, Twelve Years a Slave, is a traditional American slave narrative told by Solomon Northup to ghostwriter David Wilson. It is one of the most important of the slave narratives because it was published shortly after Harriet Beecher Stowe's immensely popular and influential ...
12 Years a Slave Study Guide
The circus turned out to be a sham, and upon his arrival in Washington D.C., Solomon was kidnapped, drugged, beaten, and sold into slavery. He spent the next twelve years of his life enduring the horrors of slavery in Central Louisiana—an experience he later recorded in his memoir, 12 Years a Slave. He was eventually freed from slavery with ...
Essay Samples on 12 Years a Slave
12 Years a Slave Movie Summary: A Tale of Endurance and Injustice. Introduction "12 Years a Slave," directed by Steve McQueen, is a poignant portrayal of the harrowing journey of Solomon Northup, a free Black man from New York who is abducted and sold into slavery. Set in the 19th century United States, the film brings to...
A Critical Introduction to 12 Years a Slave
Abstract. In this critical anthology of essays, the authors examine Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave from a variety of analytic frameworks, including feminist theory, trauma studies, film theory, and deconstruction. The authors explore critical questions concerning the politics of representing trauma and violence, the politics of slave ...
Twelve Years a Slave: Analyzing Slave Narratives
In the summer of 1853, Twelve Years a Slave was published in Auburn and Buffalo, New York, as well as in London, England. By 1856 it had sold 30,000 copies, a sales record rivaling that of Frederick Douglass's 1845 Narrative in its first five years of publication. In the fall of 2013, weeks after 12 Years a Slave, a major motion picture based ...
"12 Years a Slave" Movie Analysis: Confronting the ...
Introduction. The film "12 Years a Slave," directed by Steve McQueen and released in 2013, stands as a haunting and gut-wrenching portrayal of the brutal realities of slavery in the United States during the 19th century.
The Movie "12 Years a Slave" Critical Essay
The film "12 Years a Slave" gives a clear picture of slavery in the United States. This dark history created complex socio-economic and political developments in the country. Such issues also continue to affect the lives of many Americans. This paper examines the movie "12 Years a Slave" using different conflict resolution theories.
Twelve Years a Slave Essay Questions
Twelve Years a Slave Essay Questions. 1. What are the "free papers" that Solomon has? Solomon lived in a time in America when most black people were slaves. However, in some parts of the country, some slave owners could decide to free their slaves after a period of time, or the slaves could be released after their master died.
12 Years a Slave Movie Summary: A Tale of Endurance and Injustice
Introduction "12 Years a Slave," directed by Steve McQueen, is a poignant portrayal of the harrowing journey of Solomon Northup, a free Black man from New York who is abducted and sold into slavery.
12 Years a Slave Narrative, History, and Film
Essay Review I—12 Years a Slave:Narrative, History, and Film 107 and Rescued in 1853 was one of the most popular of the late antebellum first-hand accounts of southern slavery. It sold 30,000 copies, not quite rivaling the popular-ity of Frederick Douglass's Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself(1845), which sold over 30,000 copies in its
Twelve Years a Slave
Twelve Years a Slave is an 1853 memoir and slave narrative by Solomon Northup as told to and written by David Wilson.Northup, a black man who was born free in New York state, details himself being tricked to go to Washington, D.C., where he was kidnapped and sold into slavery in the Deep South.He was in bondage for 12 years in Louisiana before he was able to secretly get information to friends ...
12 Years A Slave Free Essay Examples And Topic Ideas
13 essay samples found. 12 Years a Slave is a memoir and slave narrative by Solomon Northup, an African-American who was born free in New York state but kidnapped and sold into slavery. Essays could analyze the historical and societal context of the narrative, discuss its impact on the abolitionist movement, or compare it to other slave ...
Analysis Of 12 Years A Slave
The movie 12 Years a Slave was released in 2013, covering the pre-civil war period in America, this astounding award winning motion picture film, tells the story of a free man sold into slavery and regaining his freedom in the end. Based upon the true story and autobiography of Solomon Northup, the film captures the audience's hearts and ...
12 Years A Slave: An essay, a review.
I purposely waited until saw McQueen's 12 Years A Slave twice before writing an essay in dedication to the thought this film is responsible for provoking. I wanted to ensure that I hadn't been beguiled by the beauty of the Louisiana setting, the intriguing melancholic score or the creative nuances that make this film easily one of the best cinematic experiences I've ever had.
Twelve Years a Slave Study Guide
Twelve Years a Slave is the memoir of Solomon Northup, a free black man who was kidnapped and sold into slavery. Published in 1853, the same year in which he was liberated, it covers his twelve years in servitude. Northup recounts his life beginning in New York, establishing his origin and his status as a free man residing in the North with his ...
Twelve Years a Slave Essay Topics
Introduction-Chapter 5. Chapters 6-12. Chapters 13-18. Chapters 19-22. Key Figures. Themes. Symbols & Motifs. Important Quotes. Essay Topics. Essay Topics. 1. Twelve Years a Slave opens with an excerpt from ... While the chronology and many of the major events in Steve McQueen's 2013 film adaptation of Twelve Years a Slave remain true to ...
What Is 12 Years A Slave Thesis
1 November 2014. {Twelve Years a Slave Analyst Paper By: Solomon Northup} { Introduction to Thesis} thesis:Twelve Years a Slave, is a vivid memoir of Northup's captivity as free man in the slave ridden south. Solomon's experience was one of countless millions kidnapped, and sold into slavery. What makes his Solomon's story unique, is that he ...

12 Years a Slave: Movie Review and Analysis

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Turning Students Toward the Written Slave Narratives:

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12 Years a Slave

12 Years a Slave: Introduction

Historical Context of 12 Years a Slave

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A Critical Introduction to 12 Years a Slave

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Twelve Years a Slave : Analyzing Slave Narratives

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Activity 1. Analyzing the Text: Eliza Loses Her Children

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The Movie “12 Years a Slave” Critical Essay

Introduction

12 Years a Slave Movie Summary: A Tale of Endurance and Injustice

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Main Issues of 12 Years a Slave

My Impressions from 12 Years a Slave

Who is Solomon Northup?

Solomon from 12 Years a Slave

12 Years a Slave: a Unique View on Slavery

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12 Years A Slave: An essay, a review.

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