Research Catalog

Double character : slavery and mastery in the antebellum southern courtroom

Title: Double character : slavery and mastery in the antebellum southern courtroom / Ariela J. Gross.
Author: Gross, Ariela J., 1965-
Publication: Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, ©2000.

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Request for On-site Use Request Scan How do I pick up this item and when will it be ready?	Text	Use in library	KF482 .G76 2000	Off-site

Details

Description

xi, 263 pages : illustrations; 24 cm

Summary

"In a groundbreaking study of the day-to-day law and culture of slavery, Ariela Gross investigates the local courtrooms of the Deep South where ordinary people settled their disputes over slaves. Buyers sued sellers for breach of warranty when they considered slaves to be physically or morally defective; owners sued supervisors who whipped or neglected slaves under their care. Double Character seeks to explain how communities dealt with an important dilemma raised by these trials: how could slaves who acted as moral agents be treated as commodities? Because these cases made the character of slaves a central legal question, slaves' moral agency intruded into the courtroom, often challenging the character of slaveholders who saw themselves as honorable masters.
Gross looks at the stories about white and black character that witnesses and litigants put forth in court. She not only reveals the role of law in constructing "race" but also offers a portrait of the culture of slavery, one that addresses historical debates about law, honor, and commerce in the American South."
"Gross maintains that witnesses and litigants drew on narratives available in the culture at large to explain the nature and origins of slaves' character, such as why slaves became runaways. But the legal process also shaped their expressions of racial ideology by favoring certain explanations over others. Double Character brings to life the law as a dramatic ritual in people's daily lives, looking at trials from the perspective of litigants, lawyers, doctors, and the slaves themselves. The author's approach combines the methods of cultural anthropology, quantitative social history, and critical race theory."--Jacket.

Subject

Genre/Form

History

Note

Includes index.

Bibliography (note)

Bibliography: p. [231]-250.

Contents

Chapter One: Court and Market -- Chapter Two: Honor and Dishonor -- Chapter Three: Slaves' Character -- Chapter Four: Masters' Character -- Chapter Five: Body and Mind.

ISBN

0691059578
9780691059570

LCCN

00035395

OCLC

ocm43694426
43694426
SCSB-1144438

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library