IndexThe discrimination of slavesBetween submission and hopeConclusion“12 Years a Slave” is a heartbreaking drama film, directed by Steve McQueen and based on the real-life events of a free African-American man. The film is an adaptation of a short story of the same title published in 1853. The story is set in 1841 in the United States and tells the tragedy of the kidnapping of the prestigious violinist and freeman Solomon Northup by two men, Hamilton and Brown, and selling him into slavery. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Northup's sorrows last 12 years and finally end when he is freed and reunited with his family which already has two new members, his son in law and his grandson. As stated at the end of the film, Northup was one of the few kidnapping victims to regain freedom and put the slavers on trial. Due to the few rights blacks had at the time, Northup unfortunately lost the case, being unable to testify against the whites. Historically, slavery in the United States began by bringing Africans to work in the New World in the 17th century. Today, slavery still plays an important role in what we stand for, such as equality, freedom and justice for all. This article is an analysis of the film "12 Years a Slave", which illustrates the concepts of the institution of slavery in the United States. An institution that in my opinion has replaced morality and religion in a brutal social Darwinist concept; survival of the fittest. In the United States, slaves were not only unable to determine themselves, but they also had no rights. They were also brutally treated, dehumanized, and subjected to degradation by white rule. “My goal is to provide a frank and truthful statement of the facts: to repeat the story of my life, without exaggeration.” The opening scene of "12 Years a Slave" features a group of slaves being instructed to cut sugar cones. Perhaps this beginning is an overview of what the audience will later learn about the conditions and state of mind of the slaves on the plantations. The look of pain and suffering, the sadness in the eyes are evident from the beginning of the film. Solomon Northup's life changes dramatically in the blink of an eye. The free man who lived happily with his family turns into a slave subjected to various types of humiliation and torture. The man who travels to Washington DC as a violinist wakes up in a cell chained to the floor, trying in vain to proclaim himself a free man. He is subjected to the humiliation of being stripped of his identity. From now on he is a Georgian catwalk slave. He tries to protest but it's useless. He is beaten with a wooden paddle and then with a leather belt mercilessly, then sent to a slave pen with others. The next day, Northup is shipped to New Orleans with other Africans. Along the way he has a conversation with two men, Robert and Clemens. They tell him that if he wants to survive he must hide his identity and not tell anyone that he is an educated free man and should adapt to being a slave. “I don't want to survive, I want to live,” Northup replies. He probably didn't know what awaited him. Eliza, a slave and mother who loses her children and her freedom papers, is raped by the slave trader. Robert who tries to intervene is killed by the merchant, which makes Northup realize that resistance is not a solution. In a very touching scene, Robert's body is thrown into the sea, while Eliza and Northup watch along with the other slaves in the face of this tragedy. Returning to Northup who is now given the new name, Platt, and comessold with Eliza to Mr. Ford. Now perhaps he is starting to give up and realize that “the word is silver but silence is gold”. The scars on his back remind him that it is useless to talk, as he tells Eliza. On Mr. Ford's plantation, Northup obeys orders, but is still a man of character and dignity. He displays clever techniques on the plantation which impress Mr. Ford. John Tibeats, a man with power on the plantation, tries to beat Northup out of jealousy and tension begins between them but the magic turns on the wizard. Northup resists and beats John with his own whip. Quickly and inhumanely John and other thugs place the noose around Northup's neck. He is hanged from the tree, barely able to support himself on tiptoe for hours until Mr. Ford finally rescues him. He pays an arm and a leg for hitting a white man. Mr. Ford saves his life but, on the other hand, he carelessly sells him when he has a financial crisis. Slave DiscriminationFor about 100 years slaves in the United States had to suffer brutal treatment not only physically but also psychologically. “Among the first objects of the planters' assault were the names that Africans bore in the New World, and with them the lineage that structured much of African life.” The inhumane treatment of slaves is evident throughout the film in several scenes. Slaveholders justified their treatment with biblical texts, such as Mr. Ford, who collects his ointments and quotes Luke 17:2: “It would be better for him if a millstone were put around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, rather than that he should offend one of these little ones.” Due to Ford's financial crisis, Northup is now one of the properties of Mr. Epps, known for his ruthless behavior, whose heart is full of hatred. He also justifies his actions with religion and quotes Luke 12:47 to his slaves on the first day on his plantation: “And that servant, who knew the will of his master, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, he will be beaten with many stripes. This is Scripture." Epps takes these words literally and whips his slaves, who do not behave well on the plantation and pick the smallest amount of cotton. Instead, to demonstrate his racism, when a white farmer picks the least amount of cotton, Mr. Epps tells him that he shouldn't worry and that he can still improve. The women of “12 Years a Slave” are subjected to peculiar suffering; a slavery full of sexual, psychological and physical pain. Mothers are separated from their children, as in the case of Eliza, who is separated from her children, despite the kindness of Master William Ford (scene 31:00). It wasn't the family or the individual human being that mattered, but only the economic profit of the slave traders. This marketing represented the frustration of African family life. This phenomenon is not just a scene from “12 Years a Slave,” but was acknowledged in the House of Representatives apology in 2008: “As enslaved families were torn apart after being sold separately from each other.” Epps enjoys committing sadistic acts on his slaves. Perhaps the circumstances of his plantation make Northup doubt whether he will ever have the chance to feel free again. One of the most influential characters in “12 Years a Slave” is Patsey, the beautiful joyful creature, a very hard and industrious worker who harvests the highest amount of cotton on the plantation. Patsey is raped by her master and hated by his wife. She is deprived of the simplest rights and is painfully destroyed. Although Patsey seems like a very calm and patient girl at first, she is the one who has the most emotional scenes in the film. The audience will naturally cry when he begs Solomon in a trembling voice to take his own life andto end her pain as an act of mercy, because she herself is not strong enough to do so. She is the most tragic figure in history and is a reflection of the bitter life of slaves who prefer death and turning to the "merciful god", as she says, to the life of slavery. Northup asks her how she can fall into such desperation, he has already asked Eliza this too, but later in the film the audience realizes that he too has begun to give up. Between Submission and Hope Hopeful Northup accepts the lead of the white farmer, Armbsy, who joins them on the plantation and who is there in need of money. Northup decides to risk trusting him, as he seems like a decent man. She offers him all her savings to deliver a letter to his friends in New York. Armbsy accepts this without hesitation: "To help you, I put myself at risk." But he immediately betrays it to Mr. Epps who menacingly confronts Northup. All hope seems lost. Hope is crushed to dust as he burns the letter. Days pass and the tragedy continues. Pain, melancholy and death from tiredness are part of every working day. When an old man dies while picking cotton, the other slaves no longer show sadness. The overseer mercilessly shouts: “nigger get up” and then realizes that he is dead. The slaves dig to bury him, blow a gasket, and sing the spiritual chant “roll Jordan roll,” as we see the anger in Northup's eyes, as he sings louder and louder, feeling the pain and injustice. When he joins the song halfway through, it becomes clear to the audience that he too joins the helpless community that finds hope and security in the songs. A community that still dreams of freedom. Not freedom in Jordan where they are not enslaved, but in the afterlife when they die and their sorrows end. And you can't help but empathize with them as they repeat the strong lyrics: "roll Jordan roll, roll Jordan roll, my soul rises to heaven, Lord, to hear when Jordan rolls" Another Northup moment begins to submit is when injustice is committed on Patsey by the end of the film. Mr. Epps is as angry as a bee that has landed on its stinger. Patsey is missing and threatens all the slaves with force and violence for his loss. But Patsey quickly returns to justify that it is a day of worship and that she has been to the nearby plantation to get some soap to clean herself, since Mrs. Epps has deprived her of her most basic rights. Not believing her and provoked by his wife, Mr. Epps forces Northup to carry out the most difficult mission. He orders him to hit Patsey. Mr. Epps, at his wife's instigation, demands that Northup hit harder and harder otherwise he would be next. Patsey screams and struggles to no avail as Mr. Epps begins torturing her until her "meet and blood" flows the same way. This is Northup's greatest moment of black mood and full desperation, which is evident when he breaks his violin after this horrible injustice. Finding himself all alone and hopeless, Northup meets Samuel Bass, a Canadian carpenter who works for Mr. Epps for a while. . It was when life on the plantations seemed to be at its lowest point that a glimmer of hope emerged. Bass is a loyal man and an outspoken abolitionist who does not approve of slave ownership. “It's all wrong, all wrong, sir. There is no justice or righteousness in this… this issue of slavery” and “How many slaves are there on this bayou as white as any of us?” he says to Mr. Epps as Northup listens to the conversation. Despite his plausible and rational thinking, Bass fails to convince Mr. Epps. On the contrary, Northup finds an ally in Bass, thanks to whom Northup manages to deliver his letter to the.