The French appear to have been faced with a deep moral conflict when the issue of slavery confronted them. It wasn’t the idea of slavery per se, as slavery itself was an established and economically valuable facet of life in French colonial holdings. What happened was the challenge, by its simple nature, that the notion of slavery posed to the French idea of self. The qualities gained and then cultivated since the beginnings of France as a kingdom, the very notions of what it meant to be a Frenchman, were irreconcilable with the idea that a man could own another man as property. How this played out in the practical may not always have been the most altruistic of responses, but nonetheless the two ideas were not compatible, and, in concept at least, slavery did not and could not exist within France itself. That slavery flourished in the colonies was a completely different matter, and one that would have ironic consequences in itself, as French magistrates struggled to deal with surging numbers of Africans in France seeking their freedom and the potential stress this could place on how they already quantified the order of things. Returning freed slaves to the colonies would have done nothing but incite revolt, as those in bondage heard the words first hand of their brethren who had since been made freemen simply by existing within body of France itself, rather than one of its holdings.
That is what makes the French response to slavery singularly unique. The pressures of monarchy and the history of the country, its roots in feudalism, its emerging ideals and the long tradition of superior knowledge, and a supreme self confidence in French notions of citizenship and philosophy led to a clash with the reality of slavery. Obviously, the results were compounded by the limitations of the bureaucracy to process slavery as it applied in practicality, though it was simultaneously in conflict with the overall system. The idea, though, makes this a battle of reality against perception, not necessarily with how the French saw the world, but rather, how they saw themselves.
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You bring up an interesting perspective about the topic of slavery in France. The French seeing slavery as a challenge to their sense of self as French citizens is quite a moving point. The main focus of Peabody's work seems to have been on the religious aspect of things. However if a French citizen found slavery contrary to their very existence, it may explain the reasoning behind the monarchy's policy against it. Great post!
ReplyDeleteThis essay is a great example of how two people can interpret the same reading so differently. As I was reading Peabody, I got almost none of the high-minded idealism that you refer to here, that slavery did exist in various forms in France throughout its history. They did have a popular myth going around that all who set foot in France are free, but I put that on an equal footing with most brides wearing white to their weddings, it makes them feel a connection with the past but that's about it. It makes me wonder if I shouldn't go back and read it again.
ReplyDeleteWhat I got from Peabody is that the motivations of the attorneys who sued for freedom for individual slaves were generally financial, political or even egocentric and the Admiralty courts and the Parlement of Paris were falling all over themselves to curtail the absolute power of their monarch. The handful of slaves that won their freedom using the Freedom Principle were fortunate enough to be able to exploit a power struggle for their own purposes.
I hope this doesn't mean I'm getting old and cynical.
I saw the same thing in Peabody that you did. From my understanding of the reading, the French freed the slaves, or wanted to free the slaves because it was part of their ideology and philosophy as a country that slaves had not exised for hundreds of years, thus could not exist in France now. I'm not sure that the issue of morality played much of a role, but that isn't to say that the French weren't moral. I think that for them, the issue was mainly the fact that it was a sort of tradition that slavery hadn't existed in France for a while, therefore, we can't let it exist now. Thats why the French freed the slaves that asked for their freedom.
ReplyDeleteAll that to say that I agree with you.