Heros of Justice Essay example

Submitted By ceemac
Words: 1112
Pages: 5
Open Document
HEORS OF JUSTICE

While there were several heroes of justice that attempted great strides to eliminate racial and gender injustices during the late 1900’s I will be elaborating on two, David Walker and Sojourner Truth. Though Walker and Truth differ in gender they both were abolitionist and fought for the equal rights of man. These two heroes made history through their hard work, determination they put into their narratives and speeches. I will show how David Walkers “Appeal” and Sojourner Truth’s “Ar’n’t I a Woman” in similar ways helped make America what it is today.
David Walker was famous for his pamphlet “Appeal to the Coloured Citizens of the World” which called for the emancipation of slaves and defended violent rebellion as a means for slaves to gain their freedom if necessary. “Walker’s prophetic and liberatory language was a forerunner of other nineteenth-century freedom fighters like Sojourner Truth, Henry Highland Garnet, and Frederick Douglass who also used their mastery of the English language to challenge the political and moral constructs of American slavery.” (Mitchell) The appeal is structure off the U.S. Constitution and that is not surprising since the Constitution echoes the Declaration of Independence, which is what Walker was fighting for “Independence” for all man. Walker uses biblical theology to support how God made all creatures, so therefore all men are equal “and who can dispense with prejudice long enough to admit that we are men, notwithstanding our improminent noses and woolly heads, and believe that we feel for our fathers, mothers, wives and children, as well as the whites do for theirs.”. (page 230) Walker used several examples from the bible to show how God was a just God and didn’t want his people suffering and wouldn’t let his people suffer forever under their oppressors. “I refer you in the first place to the children of Jacob, or of Israel in Egypt, under Pharaoh and his people” and most of us know how that story ended. (page 232) The Lords people were eventually revolted and got away from Pharaoh after a lot of illness and pain from God came to Pharaoh. Walker’s goal was to instill pride in the black readers of “Appeal” and give them hope that change would someday come for them.
Sojourner Truth was a famed African-American abolitionist, like Walker, and a women's rights activist. Truth originally “earned frame for ability to deliver folksy as well as fiery speeches that denounced slavery.” (page 245) She was committed to the cause of abolishing slavery and worked on several civil rights fronts. In 1851 Sojourner Truth took to the podium at a women’s right convention to address a hostile audience of hecklers provoked by the clergy and the press. “Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, authors of the History of Woman Suffrage, reported: “Gentlemen and ladies alike who attempted to speak were interrupted by shouts, hisses, stamping, cheers, rude remarks and all manner of noisy demonstration.” (Lipscomb) Even though Truth brought with her the two most hated elements during that time, being black and a woman, she was able to open her mouth and speak over all the insults cast upon her color and sex. Truth showed no fear as she stood before her oppressors and made them listen to what she had to say. In her speech she stated “I have as much muscle as any man, and can do as much work as any man. I have plowed and reaped and husked and chopped and mowed, and can any man do more than that?” (page 247) Truth, being able to identify with all these “manly” jobs as a woman I think helped enhances the effectiveness of what she was saying to her audience. She wanted her audience to realize that women, even African American women, were brave, strong and worthy of respect and rights. “Several men argued that men were superior because Christ was a man and because Eve, a woman, caused the expulsion of humankind from Paradise”. (overview) “And how came Jesus into the world?” then to answer her
Show More

Related Documents: Heros of Justice Essay example

Is Antihero Different From A Villain

remains with us in various manifestations. The complex nature of his or her character makes the motivations of the antihero less obvious than that of a strictly delineated hero. So what makes an antihero? How is he or she different from a villain, and how do these archetypes reflect variations in human morality? Traditionally, a hero is honest, upstanding, righteous, brave, and true. These days, such heroes exist only in comic books, where the worlds portrayed are black and white. Our…

Words 532 - Pages 3

Compare And Contrast Batman And Beowulf

comic book hero. He is also strong in a way that only a hero could be. Also, he has a similar sense of justice to Batman or any other hero that wants to help their people for the greater good. Beowulf, a true Anglo-Saxon hero, is strong, brave, and has a sense of duty and justice, much like modern-day heroes. The first quality that Beowulf shares with modern-day superheroes is his superhuman…

Words 669 - Pages 3

Dolores Clara Fernandez Huert What Defines A Hero

What defines a hero? In my book, you need to be courageous, passionate, and inspirational. Dolores Huerta has all those qualities. That makes her a hero. Dolores Clara Fernandez Huerta is an American labor leader and civil rights activist who, with Cesar Chavez, is a co-founder of the United Farm workers Association, which later merged with the Agricultural Workers Organizing Committee to become the United Farm Workers. Dolores Huerta makes an amazing hero A hero like Dolores needs to be courageous…

Words 289 - Pages 2

Oedipus Tragic Hero

fit[s] [Aristotle’s] guidelines. Oedipus is the model of the “tragic hero,” because the concept is based on him” (Moliken and Osborne 69). In other words, Aristotle came up with his definition of the “tragic hero” by looking at the story of Oedipus Rex by Sophocles; thus, it makes perfect sense that Oedipus Rex fits the description of a “tragic hero” perfectly. The first requirement to be considered a tragic hero is that the hero of the story must be “a man of noble stature. He [must] not [be] an…

Words 1515 - Pages 7

The Classic American Western Essay

people added depth to the plots of these movies. All westerns are surrounded by the element of justice. It’s present in “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” when they are followed by men paid to kill the men and it is present in “Hondo” with the Cavalry and also in “The Ox-bow Incident” even though it was corrupt justice. When you think of justice in western movies, you think of swift vigilante justice, not very many trials with it usually ending in a hanging. Some westerns are based on fact…

Words 841 - Pages 4

The Crucible Essay

Robert Chin McCarty AP English 3 October 2013 Defining a Hero Often times in history, people reward others who've sacrificed their lives doing deeds beyond measure. At the same time, carrying out small acts of kindness can also label people as "heroes." In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, a prominent character that goes by the name of John Proctor displays what society would classify a person as a hero. However, society is so blinded by how he had justifiably reacted when he had faced his time…

Words 617 - Pages 3

Essay On Beowulf Is A Hero

Beowulf is a hero considering the old times. In modern day Beowulf is a fictional hero that has an impact on individuals from day to day basis. Heroes travel great distances in order to conquer the evil or their deepest fears. This story is about a man that defeats the monsters that are feared by many. There also is a time in which a hero would gain an ability to overcome the threat in this case it’s a sword that is blessed and can only be picked up by the giants as well as Beowulf. “In his far-off…

Words 480 - Pages 2

How Does Oedipus Have A Sense Of Justice

Everybody has a sense of justice in this world. Oedipus Rex is know to be a tragic hero, and this is because of all the attributes he has as a character. From the very beginning of the play, we see that he cares for the city of Thebes very much. He is worried that his home will perish. Oedipus’s sense of justice begins to take over his entire being once he is told the murder of Laius is living in his domain. His downfall, journey, and lesson begins when he curses the killer and anyone helping him…

Words 495 - Pages 2

American Hero? Essay

HERO What is a hero? A hero is someone that people admire. In today's modern times, people hear the word hero all of the time. In 19 centuries, it wasn't hard to be a heroin America. Getting a name of the hero is like working hard on the game or making money on business, or lack of something. In American life history, we have seen a lot of heroes. There was a real hero. People who declare American Constitution are genuine heroes for…

Words 828 - Pages 4

Atticus Finch Research Paper

something you truly care about? As a population we will not always believe or think the same way, especially on topics like racism and injustice, so it is very important to have a hero to look up to. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch faces many delamas with racism, however he does not quite live up to the hero status. Literary critic Christopher Metress, author of the article “The Rise and Fall of Atticus Finch” proves that Atticus is a coward. Metress’s argument is correct, because…

Words 1016 - Pages 5