Draft:Myth of the "Happy Slave"

The myth of the happy slave is a myth that implies individuals enslaved in the United States were content with being slaves. It romanticizes slavery by creating the image of slaves happily conducting labor while singing songs or expressing joy in other forms. Those who opposed abolition used the myth to justify and promote slavery. Following the American Civil War, the myth continued to be used to selectively frame history.

Use of the myth
During the period of enslavement, and later during Reconstruction, the happy slave myth was perpetuated through songs, movies, and art. For example, an 1841 illustration by Edward Williams depicts a group of happy slaves dancing behind their master with the caption, "God Bless you massa! you feed and clothe us. When we are sick you nurse us, and when too old to work, you provide for us!" Works like this romanticized slavery at the time and validated slave owners.

Following the abolition of slavery, the myth continued to be invoked as a means of framing history. For example, in 1998 Randolph Community College in Randolph County, North Carolina was exposed for teaching that most slaves were happy in enslavement and were loyal southerners, with professors claiming they aimed to restore pride to their confederate ancestors.

Rebuking the myth
The myth was criticized while slavery was legal through the publication of slave narratives. In Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, and Written by Himself, Frederick Douglas criticized the myth of the happy slave by explaining horrific details of how slaves were treated. Douglas also addressed the belief that the singing of songs within groups of slaves was evidence of happiness and contentment. He instead explained that the songs served as a way of building hatred for slavery and as a means of resistance.