Abstract
This paper analyzes the influence of sports and recreation on slave culture and shows that through variables such as social interaction and competition slaves attempted to live a life of normalcy and individualism. In the midst of the names and stories told about the horrors of slavery, negligence towards the true identity of those who experienced the institution's harsh practices has developed. Sports became a realm of self-identification and freedom for slaves, providing a contradictory scope against the stereotypical views on the issue. Slaves, though bound by slavery’s strict guidelines, infused past tradition with new culture to provide themselves with the fundamental needs of any human, free or in bondage.
Recommended Citation
Griffith, Jon
(2010)
"Sports in Shackles: The Athletic and Recreational Habits of Slaves on Southern Plantations,"
Voces Novae: Vol. 2, Article 11.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/vocesnovae/vol2/iss1/11
