The assignment
Elizabeth Sprigs, Letter to get Father (Links to an external site.)
Elizabeth Sprigs, Letter to get Father. Interpretation.
Elizabeth Sprig was an indentured servant in Maryland who financed her passage from England in return to serve a term as a indentured servant. She wrote this letter to her father to complain and ask for any bits of help that could be given. She was complaining about the harsh treatments that she was given by her master and how hard life was in Maryland. As a side note, Elizabeth did her term during the 18th century. During the 18th century, being an indentured servant wasn't as common as the 17th century. She tells her father to please forgive her and tries to get as much pity as possible out of him. She tells her father that she is beat and whipped and then given hardly any food after a long day of working and slaving for her master. She also tells him that she is being treated worst than animals get treated. She was almost naked most of the times because they had no clothing as well. And she was forced to sleep on the ground. To end, Elizabeth begged her father to send some type of food, clothing or even money to her if it's possible and asks her family if it is all possible.
Elizabeth signed up for this in hopes of a brand new life and opportunity. However, she did not fully get what she hoped for right away as the indentured servant she is living as. Also the fact that she was a woman could have led to more of the pain and agony she had to face. During this time, women were not subjected as people and equal to men. Her master could have thought of women as a mere toy for the man therefore, she was treated worst than usual. I think she went through so much that she just had to ask her father for help because she could not take anymore of the pain.
Elizabeth Sprigs, Letter to get Father (Links to an external site.)
Elizabeth Sprigs, Letter to get Father. Interpretation.
Elizabeth Sprig was an indentured servant in Maryland who financed her passage from England in return to serve a term as a indentured servant. She wrote this letter to her father to complain and ask for any bits of help that could be given. She was complaining about the harsh treatments that she was given by her master and how hard life was in Maryland. As a side note, Elizabeth did her term during the 18th century. During the 18th century, being an indentured servant wasn't as common as the 17th century. She tells her father to please forgive her and tries to get as much pity as possible out of him. She tells her father that she is beat and whipped and then given hardly any food after a long day of working and slaving for her master. She also tells him that she is being treated worst than animals get treated. She was almost naked most of the times because they had no clothing as well. And she was forced to sleep on the ground. To end, Elizabeth begged her father to send some type of food, clothing or even money to her if it's possible and asks her family if it is all possible.
Elizabeth signed up for this in hopes of a brand new life and opportunity. However, she did not fully get what she hoped for right away as the indentured servant she is living as. Also the fact that she was a woman could have led to more of the pain and agony she had to face. During this time, women were not subjected as people and equal to men. Her master could have thought of women as a mere toy for the man therefore, she was treated worst than usual. I think she went through so much that she just had to ask her father for help because she could not take anymore of the pain.
The Reflection:
Reflection: Document Interpretation Calculus of Slavery
In this assignment, I did Elizabeth Sprig's letter to her father about her being an indentured slave. In this I have learned a lot. One very important skill I picked up on while doing this assignment is the ability to feel and put myself into the shoes of the document itself. As I read this I started to understand how it felt to be an indentured slave. Although I did not see it or completely know what happened, I feel more insight of what happened by reading a primary source of evidence from back when the letter was written. It amazes me how the indentured slaves would even want to leave where they were for this hope of a new place. It puts me in the position if wondering if I would have done what she did. It's astonishing to me how people were willing to exchange where they were now and become a slave just to have a fresh start at a new land. Looking at it today, when immigrants move to America, I wonder if it's for the same reason that Elizabeth Sprigs came here for.
In this assignment my ability to write has improved because by putting myself in her shoes, I am able to see things easier and it reflects on my writing a bit better. In my next assignment I hope to keep improving on my writing abilities. If I could change the way I wrote this assignment I would probably try to write more and think about why she did what she did. Also I think I would add quotes to help refine my paper more One big thing I could do outside of this class that helps me improve in this class is continue reading more primary sources because they give you a bigger glimpse of what actually happened back then. Because, I'm also taking other classes that require writing this class is helping my writing for all of them. Looking back on this assignment, I realized I did so much wrong I wish I could fix.
Reflection: Document Interpretation Calculus of Slavery
In this assignment, I did Elizabeth Sprig's letter to her father about her being an indentured slave. In this I have learned a lot. One very important skill I picked up on while doing this assignment is the ability to feel and put myself into the shoes of the document itself. As I read this I started to understand how it felt to be an indentured slave. Although I did not see it or completely know what happened, I feel more insight of what happened by reading a primary source of evidence from back when the letter was written. It amazes me how the indentured slaves would even want to leave where they were for this hope of a new place. It puts me in the position if wondering if I would have done what she did. It's astonishing to me how people were willing to exchange where they were now and become a slave just to have a fresh start at a new land. Looking at it today, when immigrants move to America, I wonder if it's for the same reason that Elizabeth Sprigs came here for.
In this assignment my ability to write has improved because by putting myself in her shoes, I am able to see things easier and it reflects on my writing a bit better. In my next assignment I hope to keep improving on my writing abilities. If I could change the way I wrote this assignment I would probably try to write more and think about why she did what she did. Also I think I would add quotes to help refine my paper more One big thing I could do outside of this class that helps me improve in this class is continue reading more primary sources because they give you a bigger glimpse of what actually happened back then. Because, I'm also taking other classes that require writing this class is helping my writing for all of them. Looking back on this assignment, I realized I did so much wrong I wish I could fix.