Considering U.S. Slave Emancipation in Comparative Perspective

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3744 Jean-Brillant
Salle 420-14 (4ème étage)
(métro Côte-des-Neiges)

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Considering U.S. Slave Emancipation in Comparative Perspective

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This talk uses three brief examples or “mini”-case studies to consider the Civil War-induced emancipation of the American slaves in broad comparative perspective. The first case study places U. S. emancipation in the general context of emancipation elsewhere in the modern Western world, while, the second and third focus more specifically on the comparison between the aftermath of southern slavery and Russian serfdom. Although freedom came very differently to American slaves and Russian serfs, in some ways the consequences of emancipation were surprisingly similar. Central themes of this talk include the interplay of change and continuity in post-emancipation societies, the complex relationship between the process and the consequences of emancipation, and the utility of comparative analysis in providing context and thereby helping historians make reasoned judgments about the past.