AbstractOn August 21, 1831, a man named Nat Turner led the most infamous slave revolt seen by any previous generation. This well-known slave revolt took place in Southampton, Virginia, and was orchestrated by Nat Turner himself. Nat Turner was born into slavery and was offered far more than most slaves will ever receive. He could read and write, and because of this he was known as a preacher by his slave owner and his fellow slaves. After walking around and talking to people of color stating that there would be better days. Although in his travels he saw the irony in what exactly he was preaching to his brothers and sisters and from this sighting, he realized that time was needed for a change. Through a message he received from God himself in a dream, he saw what was to come. Being a slave revolt opposing the white men themselves. After rallying his fellow slaves, they led a nearly successful slave revolt until Nat Turner and his people were attacked at a checkpoint by a group of whites. Nat Turner made it out alive and was on the run for 2 months after the event, but was captured and hanged on November 11, 1831. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay that surrounds and cages that fury is but a form of self-preservation.” Nat Turner defended a much greater cause by organizing and leading a rebellion that would cause mass panic among ordinary whites and would also represent a rise during the year 1831. Through Nat Turner defending what he believed was God calling him to take a stand, at Nat Turner's execution in the rebellion, Nat Turner showed why his black brothers and sisters should stand with him and show not to give up hope, he depicted tragedy, triumph and the way he led his rebellion impacted America .Nat Turner was born into slavery on October 2, 1800. Nat's father was believed to have run away from the plantation when he was very young while Nancy, his mother, was a house slave for their owners . The plantation where Nat Turner was born was owned by a man named Benjamin Turner in Southampton County, Virginia. Growing up, Nat Turner showed a very unusual caliber, and his owner gave him the opportunity to learn to read and write. In 1810, Benjamin Turner died and Nat passed to his eldest son, Samuel Turner. With her consent, Nat Turner took advantage of every opportunity he could take to expand his knowledge and, most importantly, his religion. He was so absorbed in religion to the point of reading the Bible and even studying books related to the Old Testament. Having said that, it brings him to the point that he grew into adulthood living almost according to the words of the prophets. As he grew up, he became more and more confused as to why he was a slave and not a freedman. He believed he possessed more knowledge than the vast majority of freed slaves he witnessed. However, no matter how true it was, he was still seen as a slave despite what he thought. Undeterred, Nat Turner continued to expand his strength and knowledge about his faith. Turner once said: "Having early discovered that I was great, I had to appear so, and therefore I carefully avoided mingling with society, and shrouded myself in mystery, devoting myself to fasting and prayer." Nat Turner would soon become a preacher and begin preaching to the slaves of neighboring slave owners, as seen in Nate Parker's film "The Birth of a Nation." In this film, NatTurner was seen traveling with Samuel Turner, his owner, to preach and subdue slaves considered undisciplined. Samuel's main motive in doing so was due to being financially strained and he saw how much he had to profit from Nat Turner's preaching. When Nat went to preach to his brothers and sisters, he saw how terribly they were treated. Seeing countless atrocities against him and his fellow slaves made him want to stand up for what he believed was right. While there is no evidence that this movie actually happened, it still signified what Nat Turner believed was his mission and calling from God himself. Throughout Nat Turner's preaching, he felt as if God was trying to contact him through his dreams. Sometimes, hearing things like, “Seek the kingdom of heaven,” the Spirit told him, “and all things will add to you.” He began to believe what he was told, even trying to understand exactly what each dream really meant. Turner's strengthening of his preaching ability gave him a more recognizable character in his county and made it easier for him to immediately become familiar with most of Southampton County. That said, it allowed him greater freedom of movement. Around 1821, Nat Turner ended up running away from his plantation for about thirty days. This is because his master supposedly placed him in charge of an overseer who may have whipped Nat and punished him, making him long for his freedom. Although he successfully escaped, he turned back. His fellow slaves were disconcerted by his voluntary return, despite the consequences that might follow. Having said this, Nat responded by saying, "And the niggers found fault and murmured against me," Turner later recounted, "saying that if they had my good sense they would serve no master in the world." Having said all this, in his mind Nat Turner did not see himself working for a righteous or earthly master. No, not at all, instead he saw himself working for Jehovah, who was the angry and vengeful God of Israel. Later, Nat Turner supposedly married a woman named Cherry. In the film, Nat is seen trying to convince Samuel to buy her, stating that she would be a strong woman of great value. At first she was very against wanting to live on the plantation and wanting to run away, but after meeting Nat, they fell in love and got married. However, this was never seen as a legitimate marriage because marriages between slaves were never considered, unlike those between freed men and whites. After getting married, Samuel Turner ended up dying in 1822, so Nat Turner and Cherry were sold to different plantations. Cherry ended up being sold to a man named Giles Reese and Nat Turner was sold to Thomas Moore. They might see each other from time to time, but it still caused them both tremendous pain and meant the grief that came with living as a slave. Nat Turner perpetually saw how whites treated black men and women. Slave owners behave with complete, and udder, benevolence. Splitting families, selling Negroes to carefree masters, and even denying education to black men and women because they felt it was not necessary for them to retain knowledge. He became increasingly irritated by the way he and his people were treated. All this causes his imagination to fly towards incandescence perpetuating fasting and even Old Testament prayers. From this Nat began to have apocalyptic and bloody visions in the woods southwest of Jerusalem. “I have seen white spirits and black spirits engaged in battle,” he later declared, “and the sun hasdarkened - the thunder rolled in the sky and the blood flowed in streams - and I heard a voice saying: 'Such is your fortune, such you are called to see, and let it become rough or smooth, you must surely bear it.'” All the visions and sightings that Nat Turner was receiving from white spirits made him think that Judgment Day was approaching. This makes Nat want to achieve “true holiness”. Nat Turner, seeing how everything around him was being affected, began to cause him to preach to his brothers and sisters that something important was about to happen for their betterment. Furthermore, Nat also told them about the strange events that happened to him recently and how a white spirit gave him the power of the seasons. At first glance, many people nowadays may not believe it, but during this time, slaves were looking for freedom and wanted to believe that freedom was just around the corner for them. Thus making everyone believe in what he was preaching to them. They even began to believe that he could control the weather and heal diseases. Despite all these visions, he still didn't know what his mission was. On May 12, 1828, Nat recalled: "I heard a loud noise in the heavens and immediately the Spirit appeared to me and said that the Serpent was loosed, and Christ had laid off the yoke which he had borne for the sins of men, and I I had to take him on and fight against the Serpent.” From this he finally understood what he was destined for and what his mission was. “I should get up, prepare myself and kill my enemies with their own weapons.” kept his lips sealed and would not speak or mention a word of it. However, sometimes this would be very difficult for him because he would simply write and talk about how he and the others would have to be free sometime to be whipped and tormented. After the sign that Jehovah gave, there were no more to follow, thus causing Joseph Travis, who was a local wheelwright at the time, to return to everyday life. he married Moore's widow and forced them to move to his home near Jerusalem. Now coming under Travis' authority, Nat Turner saw him as "a gentle master" and even placed "the utmost trust" in him. In February 1831, Nat Turner received a sign. This is a solar eclipse. All he thought was that it was the sign he had been waiting for. Seeing a black spot on the eclipse made Nat assume that this was a message to God telling him to move. Not long after, on August 13, another sign arrived. This is a disorder that causes the sun to appear dimmer and possible to look at directly. Nat Turner then realized that the time had come for him and his people to move toward freedom by any means necessary. On August 21, 1831, Nat Turner and his brothers and sisters met near Travis' house in the woods near a place referred to as "Cabin Pond" to celebrate. There Nat met two new recruits. These two men were called Jack and Will. Jack was one of Hark's friends, while Will was simply a man willing to fight for freedom by any means necessary. Even if it meant dying while undertaking this task. For the rest of the night he made plans for the mission that would take place very soon. Around two in the morning the next day, they decided to leave. They ended up passing by where Cherry was. A place that belonged to its owner Giles Reese. Next, they would head to the Travis house to begin their first objective of the operation. Entering the Travis home, Nat Turner entered first by placing a ladder in a window with Will following soon after. His other followers do”.
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