This text is part of the Teaching Hard History Text Library and aligns with Key Concepts 4 and 8.
Source
This text is in the public domain. Retrieved from http://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47da-ff96-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99
Text Dependent Questions
- QuestionWhat is happening in this picture?AnswerThe slaver and his men are burning brands into the skin of people he enslaved.
- QuestionWhat is branding and what is its purpose? What is an example of something that might be branded?AnswerBranding burns a symbol onto the surface of something to indicate the owner of whatever has been branded. Cattle are often branded.
- QuestionGiven what you know about branding, how do you think white people saw enslaved people?AnswerIt means that they were a lowly piece of property. If they escaped, they could be reenslaved based on the brand.
- QuestionHow might this belief and the action of branding inform others’ opinions?AnswerSince slavery was such a large institution, the belief that enslaved were simply property and therefore subhuman must have been held by much of America.
Reveal Answers