Slave and Citizen Summary

Tannenbaum's thoughts in Slave and Citizen support his belief that American slavery and slavery in Brazil were completely different. Both societies used slavery for economic enhancement but as far as their methods in the treatment of slaves they were worlds apart. Although located in the same hemisphere, and time period, when it came to ethics and moral views these nations did not see eye to eye. In America the slave was considered to be an uneducated Negro, but in Brazil, they were deemed slaves because they had fell upon hard times. Common idea is that slavery is a form of degrading other human beings for fiscal matters. But in this era, slavery was depended on for economic stability and progression in both countries. Tannenbaum doesn't disagree with that idea. His argument focuses on the practice and conditions in which slavery was applied.
A slave in America had a slim opportunity for freedom, or to advance in the culture. To most people in the U.S., they were considered property valued as much as cattle and other livestock. A vast majority of the labor that English settlers performed when they first arrived in the New World, was now the Negro's duty. No scheduled hours. No pay was recieved. Still, the Negro's hard work served as the backbone for much of the nation's goods and economic climb. Even with this role, slaves were given little to no respect for their efforts.