Mental vs. Physical Slavery

A mental slave is one who is forced to work and is clueless to the existence of another lifestyle. A physical slave refers to an individual who is being used for labor but differs from a mental slave in that he/she is aware of the situation. Now that I have defined the two terms, I will argue that being a mental slave is worse than being a physical slave. Mental slavery not only includes ignorance to the reality of the condition, but with it comes physical slavery and a lack of awareness to be able to do anything about it.

                In Frederick Douglass’ case, he transitioned from a mental slave to a physical slave after learning to read. Reading allowed him to discover a world he knew nothing about prior to being literate. Not only did he become aware of the existence of a world where people of his skin color live as a free individuals, he also learned and understood what he must do to become a free man (Douglass).  Realizing that there were other things he could be besides a slave not always worked in his favor, however. Being conscience of his situation led him to become discontent and at times feel so dissatisfied with his life, something he had not felt before learning how to read. He expresses this strong unhappiness when he states that “learning how to read had been a curse rather than a blessing” (Douglass, 653).

                These sorts of emotions were crucial for him to pursue his freedom. If learning how to read had not changed his feelings towards his status quo, he would have not been encouraged to fight for his independence. European Americans exploited African Americans for such long time because they were able to shut them up in mental darkness and made them believe that this is how things were meant to be (Douglass). Furthermore, the slaveholders would successfully make the slaves believe that there was little difference between liberty and slavery by giving them “freedom” during the winter holidays where they would purposely push the slaves to have too much freedom (drink until they were sick) (Douglass). Douglass was able to notice all of the tricks that the slaveholders used on them to make them content with their lives. Becoming aware of all these details would enrage him to the point where he could take it no longer and had no choice but to run away.  

                Ultimately, becoming a physical slave, where his body is the only part of him that is exploited, allowed him to reach freedom for his own. While he was a physical slave he faced the same hardships that a mental slave encounters such as beatings, labor, injustice, and nearly death; he however had something the rest lacked: identity, knowledge, drive, anger. Being a physical slave is favorable to being a mental slave simply because one has awareness and therefore can seek the tools to create change in one’s life.

                Today things are much different, yet there are things that still remain the same. Although physical slavery has been prohibited, within our society we will still find mental slavery. Unfortunately, the interests of people of color are still not as important as those of the White folks. Our democracy often prioritizes the needs of White Americans. This can be seen in places such as schools, the segregation of neighborhoods, and in elections.  People of color are often pushed to live in poor conditions because they have not been able to attain an education. The lack of education prevents them from reaching the voting booth and making a significant impact to their lifestyles. These three factors contribute to a positive feedback loop difficult to escape.  In a time like this, strong leadership and smart activism is required.

                Of the three individuals we studied for this section, Sojourner Truth seems to have a better understanding of the series of events that must happen for true equality to become a reality. Although she did not organize a movement in her time, her words were of power and truth (Stewart). Such was her power that she was able to stop a riot with her gospel singing (Stewart). Today, what we most need is truth. The White citizens need to know that they are still oppressing the people of color (whether purposefully or not) by limiting their abilities to attain an education. The people of color need to hear that they are now in this situation because they have stopped fighting for their rights and are instead fighting each other. They must unite and fight for a fair educational system in which all students can attain quality education. They must unite and fight for their communities to be as clean and beautiful as those of the Whites. They must unite and fight for each other and educate one another on how they have been satisfied by attaining their physical freedom. Sojourner Truth would be able to speak these truths. She would let it be known that the fight is not over and she, with her firm confident voices, will get the point across that freedom can be seen off in the distance, but there still is some way to cover.