Blog #5

The first article titled “James Henry Hammond and the Plantation as a Business Enterprise” was mainly about how a plantation and slave owner names James Hammond became one of the wealthiest men in the entire country during the 1830’s and 40’s. In 1831 James first took over his fathers plantation inheriting slaves, the value of the land, and other plantation assets. Hammond did not wait long to introduce new innovative agricultural changes and systems. He wanted to build on his fathers by developing such “agricultural success that could distinguish the ambitious carolinian among all the other planters of the South” (p.31). Hammond experiences peaks and dips in his illustrious career as a plantation owner. His plantation served as a place for control and achievement. He was a leader in the agricultural industry and later became known as an innovative role model for early American business.

In the next article, “The Business of Slavery and the Rise of American Capitalism”, explained how the business of slavery came to be and how it shaped the economy during its existence. The slave traders were more recognized as business men or insiders, who rather than social outcasts, became some of the U.S’s most ingenious merchants. It explained how these individuals who were recognized as entrepreneurs, shaped the business of slavery and overall influenced the trajectory of American capitalism. However the book also explained how there were many backlashes or consequences of American capitalism. One of which was many of the market actors or celebrities played into the whole idea of slavery and produced changes in their acting. This resulted in many negative aspects in the development of American acting. Another was that, “the slavery business thrived on intergenerational theft, displacement, humiliation, and misery” (p.58). However they ultimately help shape the American economy in many incremental and unintentional ways.