| Title | : | The Unnatural Trade: Slavery, Abolition, and Environmental Writing, 1650-1807 |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0300224419 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780300224412 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 280 |
| Publication | : | Published August 27, 2024 |
How did late eighteenth-century British abolitionists come to view the slave trade and British colonial slavery as unnatural, a “dread perversion” of nature? Focusing on slavery in the Americas, and the Caribbean in particular, alongside travelers’ accounts of West Africa, Brycchan Carey shows that before the mid-eighteenth century, natural histories were a primary source of information about slavery for British and colonial readers. These natural histories were often ambivalent toward slavery, but they increasingly adopted a proslavery stance to accommodate the needs of planters by representing slavery as a “natural” phenomenon. From the mid-eighteenth century, abolitionists adapted the natural history form to their own writings, and many naturalists became associated with the antislavery movement.
Carey draws on descriptions of slavery and the slave trade created by naturalists and other travelers with an interest in natural history, including Richard Ligon, Hans Sloane, Griffith Hughes, Samuel Martin, and James Grainger. These environmental writings were used by abolitionists such as Anthony Benezet, James Ramsay, Thomas Clarkson, and Olaudah Equiano to build a compelling case that slavery was unnatural, a case that was popularized by abolitionist poets such as Thomas Day, Edward Rushton, Hannah More, and William Cowper.
The Unnatural Trade: Slavery, Abolition, and Environmental Writing, 1650-1807 Reviews
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The Unnatural Trade: Slavery, Abolition, and Environmental Writing, 1650-1807 by Brycchan Carey explores the British abolitionist movement’s shift in viewing slavery as an unnatural institution and a “dread perversion” of nature. This academic work examines the intersection of eighteenth-century environmental writing, science, and abolitionist thought, particularly focusing on slavery in the Americas and the Caribbean.
Before the mid-eighteenth century, natural histories provided much of the information on slavery to British and colonial audiences. These accounts were often sympathetic to slavery, casting it as a “natural” practice to support plantation economies. However, as the abolitionist movement gained traction, activists began repurposing these natural history narratives to argue against the morality of slavery, portraying it as an unnatural violation of human and environmental harmony.
Carey delves into the writings of naturalists and travelers, such as Richard Ligon, Hans Sloane, and James Grainger, showing how their depictions were later utilized by abolitionists like Olaudah Equiano and Thomas Clarkson. By connecting environmental discourse with the anti-slavery cause, Carey offers a unique perspective on how the movement framed slavery as a defiance of natural order, strengthened by abolitionist poets and intellectuals. This work is essential reading for those interested in the history of abolition, environmental thought, and their unexpected intersections.
