First published 1975
Davis explores the contradictions between revolutionary ideals of freedom and the persistence of slavery across the Atlantic world. This second volume follows his Pulitzer Prize winning study of slavery in Western culture. Davis traces how the Age of Revolution created new debates about human bondage while economic interests preserved the institution. He analyzes the gap between Enlightenment philosophy and colonial practice, showing how revolutionary movements both challenged and reinforced slavery. The book covers five decades when democratic revolutions swept America, France, and Haiti while millions remained enslaved. Davis demonstrates how antislavery sentiment emerged alongside new forms of racial justification for bondage. This scholarly work reveals how the era's political upheavals transformed but did not eliminate slavery, offering readers insight into the complex relationship between liberation movements and human exploitation during this pivotal period in Atlantic history.
Genres: history, 20th-century, 19th-century, academic, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-fiction
Setting: America, France, Haiti
Period: 1770-1823
576 pages · Hardcover · Cornell
Content warnings: slavery