The Confessions of Nat Turner | Short Essay Answer Key

Short Essay Answer Key

1. Describe the world that Nat lived in from a slave's perspective. Now describe it from a white person's perspective.

Virginia in the early 1800s. A slave would not usually know how to read or write. His world would be confined to the area he lived or wherever his master let him go. He could be sold at any time, had no money, and only ate what was given to him or what he could steal. He knew only what he could see, hear, taste or smell. Since reading and writing were beyond him (by law) there was no way to read newspapers. A white person, on the other hand, could read and therefore imagine all kinds of things. He or she was also free to attend plays, musical performances, and more.

2. Nat tells Gray in the Introduction, "I don't think you understand about this...
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