Harsh Restrictions In Gary Paulsen's Nightjohn

Slavery? Did it even end? Slavery lasted from the 16th century to the 18th century in the United States. Some chose to embrace history, and others hide it away, pretending it didn’t happen. Although Gary Paulsen’s Novel, Nightjohn, is considered historical fiction, the descriptions of the living conditions, harsh restrictions and brutal punishments can be corroborated with multiple sources. The living conditions shown in Nightjohn can be proven to be historically significant though other reliable sources. In Nightjohn, the living conditions were very inhumane. They were treated more like animals than humans. Not only did they sleep in a tight space, they also ate out of a trough. It may seem unbelievable, but it can be verified by other sources. …show more content…
In Nightjohn, several restrictions were brought up throughout. For example, none of the slaves were allowed to read, write, pray, have any knowledge of their family, etc. Similar situations have been states in primary sources such as in the narrative written by Frederick Douglass, a former slave. In his narrative he shares his own experiences with the restrictions placed upon him. He writes,”I have no accurate knowledge of my age, never having seen any authentic record containing it.” Douglass is saying that he didn’t even have the simple right to know his own age. It was so strict that if he brought it up to his master, he’d suffer consequences from it. Like how in Nightjohn Sarny wasn’t allowed to know or even speak of her age. Another historical document that describes the restrictions placed upon the slaves like in Nightjohn, is the former slave Frederick Douglass. He writes “Whatever became of my mother and father, I didn’t know for a long …show more content…
In Nightjohn, punishments included horrific whippings, cutting off limbs and even being ripped apart by the dogs. These drastic punishments have been accounted in many primary sources. For example, a former slave named Mrs. Esther Easter described her experience with punishments. She said “...I don’t try to run away cause of the whips. I don't see one whipping and that’s enough. They wasn’t no fooling about it. A runaway slave from the Jenkins plantation was brought back, and there was a public whipping, so’s the slaves could see what happens when they tries to get away. The runaway was chained to the whipping post, and I was full of misery when I see the lash cutting deep into that boy’s skin. He swell up like a dead horse, but he gets over it, only he was never no country for work no more.” Overall, she described the harsh whipping of another slave being used as a punishment. The slave owners wanted to try to make sure the others wouldn’t try to do whatever the slave getting punished did. Another example is from James Ramsay, a doctor working for several sugar plantations, wrote about the punishments he witnessed. He recalled that, “The ordinary punishments of slaves are cart whipping, beating with a stick, sometimes the breaking of bones, the chain, and iron crook around the neck… a ring around the ankle, and confinement in the dungeon. There had been

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Harsh Restrictions In Gary Paulsen's Nightjohn

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Slavery In Gary Paulsen's Nightjohn