Benjamin Banneker effectively convinces Jefferson to end slavery through his use of imagery, allusions, and figurative language. One of the main literary devices Benjamin Banneker uses is imagery. The use of imagery throughout the paper, allows the audience to create a clearer picture. Imagery is also useful for demonstrating and conveying ideas. An example of imagery, “reflect on that time in which every human aid appeared unavailable.”
In his letter to Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Banneker cries out against slavery and how Thomas Jefferson seemed to have forgotten the slaves when he was writing the Declaration of Independence. With his use of religious connotation, repetition and references to Jefferson’s own past Banneker channels his feelings of negativity against slavery to Jefferson. Banneker knows that Jefferson is a religious man as most men were back in the day and by bring God in to his arguments he shows Jefferson that god too, is against slavery. He writes that Jefferson is “convinced of the benevolence of the Father” and that Jefferson “counteracts his mercies” by allowing slavery to go on. Jefferson is just not getting the picture from God that Slavery is not a good thing.
Benjamin Banneker had ancestors that were slaves, so he felt he needed to show how cruel slavery is. Banneker wrote this letter to convey his message to Thomas Jefferson, secretary of state. Banneker utilizes rhetorical devices and rhetorical appeals to argue against slavery. Banneker presents repetition when saying, "Sir” to show respect toward Jefferson, despite disagreeing with the secretary of state’s views. "You" is repeated to keep the matters personal.
The year is 1791. A time of immense controversy over the ownership of slaves divided the country. During this time Benjamin Banneker writes to the Declaration’s framer Thomas Jefferson on his outrage on this issue. With great effectiveness, Banneker uses rhetorical strategies of emotional appeal and contrasting the men’s two lives to argue his stand on slavery.
Banneker uses multiple rhetorical devices to argue against slavery and create a sense of guilt in Jefferson. Jefferson’s guilt trip starts by Banneker using logos in his first paragraph. He starts off by reminding Jefferson that, “the British Crown were exerted with every powerful effort in order to reduce you [Jefferson] to a state of servitude.” With this, Banneker establishes that Jefferson was one of the numerous colonists that felt the colonies should not be under British rule. Also, Banneker builds on to the fact that Jefferson was once a servant himself, consequently starting to guilt Jefferson, since Jefferson supports slavery despite once being a “servant” himself.
Banneker know his place in terms that he is black, so he is not treated as equal. Banneker brings up the fact that Jefferson knows how he feels, as Jefferson has gone through having his freedom stripped from him. Banneker tells Jefferson to recall the time when “the arms and tyranny” of the king were applied with a stern effort to reduce him to a “State of Servitude.”
Benjamin Banneker, the son of former slaves, writes to secretary of state Thomas Jefferson about the dispute over slavery in America. Banneker is a free man and believes slavery is morally wrong. He chooses to write particularly to Thomas Jefferson because of Jefferson’s negative inclination towards African-Americans as well as the fact that he is in charge of domestic policy. Ultimately, Banneker wants Jefferson to come to his own realization that slavery is wrong and that equality shall remain supreme in America. Banneker provides a syllogistic argument in order to remind Jefferson of the past.
Benjamin Banneker, son of former slaves, wrote to Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, in attempt to argue against slavery to achieve a solution. Jefferson and Washington were the secretary of state, and the President of the United States at the time, so in order to convince them Banneker has to be very persuasive so that they can even consider his proposition. Banneker uses three main tactics to try and persuade Jefferson and Washington, these tactics are: Comparing Jefferson’s and Washington’s experiences to his own and trying to find a common link for them to understand and identify themselves with, appealing to common sense, and he leaves room open to interpretation and lets Washington and Jefferson the ability to decide what to do about the problem. Banneker uses comparisons to find a common link with his audience, this tactic can be effective if used properly with relevant examples. What Banneker does is that he uses specific examples to compare, one of the examples he uses, is the American Revolution; He compares slavery to the lack of freedom that the U.S had when they were a British colony.
Benjamin Banneker, an educated son of former slaves, wrote a strongly worded letter to Thomas Jefferson in which he argued the possession and oppression of slaves. With the use of tone, allusion, and parallelism; Banneker criticized the Secretary of State and framer of the Declaration of Independence for his hypocrisy and condemned him with the purpose of awakening his morals and bringing an end to this violation of life and liberty. Throughout this letter Banneker assesses the situation with a respectful, yet accusatory tone. He only addresses to Jefferson as “sir” which shows a sign of respect for Jefferson`s position, but this does not stop Banneker from condemning Jefferson for his role in slavery.
Slavery has sadly been in America from the start. Many have different opinions about slavery whether it should stay or be abandoned and forgotten. Although one person has written to Thomas Jefferson about one of history’s most important subject. Banneker starts it off by writing his strong views on how wrong slavery is not just listing all the problems, but in a letter that he uses strategies to make his view convincing. Benjamin Banneker uses rhetorical strategies such as ethos, logos, and various style elements to argue against slavery.
Slavery is a very harsh system in which, people are treated as property rather than actual human beings. Benjamin Banneker was not only a former, but a great thinker and an author. In 1791, Banneker wrote to Thomas Jefferson to discuss his views on slavery. In his letter, Banneker used emotional diction, tone, and allusion to argue his point that slavery is unjust and should be abolished.
The quote also appeals to Jefferson’s emotions because Banneker makes him feel guilty about slavery. Jefferson
Hypocrisy is one of the worst moral crimes someone can commit. Benjamin Banneker's letter to Thomas Jefferson explains that he has committed this crime. He has gone back on his morale of everyone having unalienable rights by letting slavery continue to happen, and Banneker believes he is the prime contender in allowing this crime to happen and that he should be the start and make the move to stop slavery. Banneker explains this to Jefferson in such a way that the letter is both respectful and thoughtful while also being rude due to the use of how he phrases his sentences, that his argument can not be questioned because of his use of ‘Sir’ to show his respect, and his ardent choice of words which are all collectively used to explain how Jefferson is being hypocritical and show him why he should fix this.
Benjamin Banneker, the son of former slaves, wrote a letter to Thomas Jefferson to argue against slavery. Banneker was an educated man, he was an astronomer, mathematician, surveyor, author, and farmer, yet, Jefferson had not known this information. Banneker makes his argument through the use of allusion, diction, and repetition, which causes Banneker to seem reliable and have intelligence. To remind Jefferson of his own subjugation, Banneker alludes to the British Crown. “..British Crown were exerted with every powerful effort in order to reduce you to a State of Servitude.”
Slavery through the eyes of activists On December fifteenth, in eighteen sixty-five, the United States abolished slavery with the thirteenth amendment. Powerful individuals such as Frederick Douglass, David Walker, Nat Turner, Sojourner Truth, and Benjamin Banneker were people that longed to see the day that they would be free from slavery. Although these five individuals were never in contact with one another they all shared the same drive and motivation to change the way people viewed slavery for the better. These individuals accomplished their goal of changing slavery with a strong belief in god, a strong political voice and a light in them that never died.
