Short Answer
Note: Your teacher will grade your responses to the following question to ensure you receive proper credit for your answer.
Some historians say that attacks by abolitionists actually strengthened sectionalism in the South instead of weakening it. How might the abolitionists have been contributing to the tensions arising over slavery? Provide two specific examples of the Southern response to the abolitionist attacks.
The abolitionists contributed to the tensions arising over slavery in the following ways:
1) By publicly criticizing the institution of slavery and advocating for its immediate abolition, abolitionists challenged the Southern slaveholding states' economic and social systems, which heavily relied on slave labor. This threatened the Southern way of life and caused increased defensiveness and resistance from the South.
2) The publication of anti-slavery literature, such as Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin," had a significant impact on public opinion and led to increased support for abolition in the North. This sparked fear among the Southern states, who saw it as an attack on their way of life and perceived it as a threat to their social order.
Two specific examples of the Southern response to abolitionist attacks are:
1) The passage of restrictive laws known as "Slave Codes." In response to growing abolitionist sentiment, Southern states enacted laws that limited the rights and freedoms of slaves, making it increasingly difficult for them to escape or gain freedom. These laws were aimed at maintaining control and suppressing any attempts to challenge the institution of slavery.
2) The violent backlash against abolitionists. Southern mobs often targeted abolitionist speakers and destroyed printing presses that published anti-slavery materials. Notable examples include the attack on abolitionist leader Elijah Lovejoy's printing press in 1837 and the assault on Senator Charles Sumner by Representative Preston Brooks in 1856. These acts of violence demonstrated the South's determination to protect slavery and deter any anti-slavery activity.