Description

Martyr, madman, murderer, hero: John Brown remains one of history's most controversial and misunderstood figures. In the 1850s, he and his ragtag guerrilla group embarked on a righteous crusade against slavery that was based on religious faith -- yet carried out with shocking violence. His execution at Harpers Ferry sparked a chain of events that led to the Civil War. Banks talks about Wilderness - chopping trees, sound of an ax familiar, Wilderness - silence, unimaginable to us today, Wilderness - imagine darkness, cold, wind, need for sanity, Sanity - John Brown mad? important question, Sanity - concluded John Brown incredibly sane, not always rational, Sanity - John Brown more sane than Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone, etc, Sanity - whites think insane, blacks think sane, Sanity - acts were crazy in racist society, heroic to blacks, Sanity - white/black, John Brown emblematic of our history, culture, Seminary/Personality - wanted to preach, not intellectual, Business - obsessive dream to succeed, 1830s like 1980s, Business - he could do it honestly, Business/Man of Times - desire to get rich quick, Man of Times - working class, rural, typical # of kids, Family/Farming - needed children for labor, Tannery/Success - young "chieftain" carving out a community, Childhood (Ohio was "West") / Cattle drive extraordinary, Cattle drive - Western feat, physically unimaginable, Personality - emotional intensity, exciting/terrifying, Description of John Brown - tall, big man, though actually not that big, Personality - funny, playful, children felt comfortable w/him, John Brown as Father - kids...

Record Contributed By

WGBH

Record Harvested From

Digital Commonwealth