Q: How did literacy affect the slaves and why do you think they were so determined to learn how to read?
A: I can only imagine what it would be like not to read. Being an African American slave left no freedom or choices. Literacy affected the black slaves by allowing them to become educated. They knew they were not stupid or deserving of the way they were being treated, and I believe that learning how to read gave them some dignity and sense of accomplishment. Many slaves risked their lives to learn how to read, and others had very secret and complex ways of learning. By learning how to read, it gave the slaves hope that they would someday be free and when they were they would have some foundation to build on. Also, reading gave them a way to check up on what their master was doing without their master knowing. This let the slaves get a step ahead in any situations that were going on where they worked. Reading is such a powerful tool, and by passing it on to other slaves, it kept their race and culture motivated and filled with at least a little hope and pride.
The picture is an example of how horribly African-American slaves were treated.
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