Amazing Grace Analysis

Amazing Grace is a movie about the campaign against the slave trade in the British Empire, Led by a man named William Wilberforce, who was responsible for steering anti-slave trade legislation throughout the British Parliament. This title is tied to the hymn “Amazing Grace”, which has to do with slavery as well. John Newton, a crewman aboard the Slave ship, and subsequent religious conversation, which also inspired him for his poem that is in the hymn. Basing in the time of 1782, Wilberforce recounts the moments that led him to where he is now, a sick, retired politician. William considers quitting politics and studying theology, however, he is persuaded by his friends William Pitt, Thomas Clarkson, Hannah More, and Olaudah Equiano that he will be more effective doing the work of God in the very unpopular, important, and dangerous issue of the abolition of the British slave trade. The first time William tried his bill, the bill failed, and many years later, he tried again, succeeding in his bill, abolishing the slave trade in Britain forever. In my life, I plan to actually take my time to plan things, put them into action, and succeed in my own personal “bills”. William Wilberforce took his time for the bill, his friends pushing him to try again. He knew what he was doing by taking his time and taking things slow allowing things to pass. Pitt became Prime Minister, Wilberforce becoming a key supporter and confidant. William keeps up the fight but after years of failure he is left exhausted and frustrated that he was unable to change anything in the government.

Finally, with a renewed hope for success William devises a backdoor method of slowly weakening the slave trade through seemingly innocuous legislation. Aided by Thornton, Clarkson, and new ally James Stephen and cheered on by the now terminally ill Pitt, he reintroduces his bill to abolish the slave trade. Over the 20 year campaign, the bill was finally passed and slave trade was abolished in