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.
Throughout his letter, Banneker makes use of diction with very heavy negative connotations. For example, Banneker used the phrases “groaning captivity”, “cruel oppression” and “injustice” to refer to slavery. Banneker chooses these words to emphasize the cruel actions that were being done to the slaves. Banneker also refers to the slaves as “[his brethren]”. By calling the slaves “[his] brethren”, it established his ethos because it personalizes the letter because it shows that these harsh conditions were done to him too. By making use of these phrases, Banneker makes an appeal to pathos that would make Jefferson to ponder over whether or not keeping slaves enslaved is the right idea. Making use of these words also emphasizes the vulgarity of slavery which is what Banneker wanted to convey to Jefferson.
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The tone overall tone of the letter is satirical. Throughout the letter, Banneker subtly reprimands Jefferson. For example, in the second paragraph of his essay, Banneker directly quotes Jefferson’s input to the Declaration of independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, and that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” By directly quoting Jefferson, Banneker essentially say it is ironic that Jefferson preaches equality, yet denies African Americans this “equality”. In a sense, Banneker is labeling Jefferson a hypocrite for not enforcing something he feels so strongly