Republican concept of free labor in nineteenth-century America

¶ … Free Labor

The majority of people that settled in America were of Catholic Protestant origin. The protestant ethics that each man was destined to work to his 'calling', the divine aspect of his/her occupation. The Republicans fervidly rallied for the cause of free labor. There existed a visibly significant divide in the lives and customs of Northern and Southern states of America, former being composed of free and enterprising populations whereas latter formed the major share of slave societies. The abolition of slavery, as was practiced in the southern part of America during 1800s, was the main aspect of a free enterprising society. In the backdrop of such diverse social structures and practices in Northern and Southern parts, the concept of 'free labor' got its bulk of explanations coming from Republicans. Before explaining Republican concept of free labor, it is imperative as to what was meant by the term 'labor' by the Republicans and how it differed from modern day concept of labor. Labor was a broad concept in context of Republican political ideologyinspired by Daniel Webster, one that included all those who produced goods materials, and small business man. Thus, "free labor for Republicans was expanding, competitive and enterprising society" (Foner, 14). The Republican concept of free labor was related to the ability of men and women to freely participate in the economic life and be the masters of their own fate.

Having discussed the general concept of free labor that is referred by the Republican context, following are the main parts included in this paper. Section II will describe that according to the Republican Party, why was the concept of free labor the key to a good society? Section III will highlight that how southern slave society contradicted Republican's ideal notions of a free labor social order? Part IV will conclude the paper will restatement of the central thesis of this paper.

Free Labor: Key concept to a good society

The republican concept of free labor was significantly circulated by the congressmen and other political leaders that represented Republican part. Labor was regarded as any productive vocation or occupation that resulted in gaining wealth and social recognition. The essential element of the concept professed by Republican men was that no distinction between laboring class and middle class exists. They agreed with Webster that the farmer, the small businessman, the independent craftsman were all laborers. Thus, Republicans included vast number of professions and productive men earning their livings as the laborers. Labor was described as literal term and not to represent only the people working as wage earners.

Southern slave society: An essential conflict with free labor social order

There were many distinctions in the Northern and Southern economic and social outlook of America. There were conflicting ideologies being pursued in these regions and the economic progress of Northern region was associated to the free enterprising class known as the middle class. The class thrived in the Northern region by investing in their own businesses, small and large. On the contrary, Southern society was based on slavery system. The Northerners demanded that the slavery of fugitives' slaves shall be abolished and free soil in the west was to be enforced. The essential elements that divided the Northerners and Southerners were the matter of slavery. The Southerners insisted on expanding the scope of slavery by legalizing that fugitive slaves are handed back and those escaping to Caribbean and Central America not to be allowed to stay there. The compromise of 1850 did not last long and the Fugitive Slave Act became the contentious issue between conservatives of South and the enterprising Northerners. The southern owners, by using the legal cover of the Fugitive Slave Actenslaved the fugitive slaves again.

This was resisted by the Northerners. Their way of life and liberty was essentially at conflict with the slavery-based values of Southern owners. The concept regarding economic progress and equality of opportunity as being professed by the Republicans and other Northerners had no place for slavery in the society. The lack of opportunity and to be master of owns life was related to the ultimate progression of society. Bonded labor created social classes, not by virtue of respective effort put by each class to gain economic progress but by political and legal maneuverings. It was through enslavement that Southerners created did not allow poor and destitute to strive for better economic and social prospects.

Such deep was the issue of slavery that it broke down the part of Whigs during 1850s and led Republicans to replace them as a symbol of hope, prosperity, and economic progress. The main reason of elimination of Whigs from national scene was their persistence to support the slave system in south whereas its own leaders were not willing to support such oppressive practice while rest of Americas strived for economic progress. Such diverse and conflicting was the issue of slavery and the difference in Southern and Northern concepts of economic progress that 'The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854' nearly destroyed two political parties, Whigs were totally eliminated from political scene and Democrats saw their party divided on sensational lines. W.C. Pennington quoted that the slavery impacted each and every aspect of economic and thus the social life of African-Americans. He said "the being of slavery, its, and its body, lives and moves in the chattel principle, the property principle, and the bill of sale principle" (Henretta, Edwards & Self, 358). The domestic slave trade was considered to be absolutely what Republicans essentially wanted to abolish in figurative sense as well. The Republicans held the view that "Free labor meant independence from wage earning with fixed salaries, if northern person is wage earning and dependent for whole life, he is no different from southern slave" (Foner, 15). Thus, the Republican viewed dependence of a northern on the wages for whole of his life as being equal to the status of a southern slave. This figurative explanation indicates that the southern way of life and economic conduct was fundamentally conflicting with that of Republican's notion of free labor and enterprise, let alone being inconsistent with Republican ideology.

Conclusion

The Republican concept of free labor, as described by Zachariah Chandler, meant "that a young man goes out for service, for labor by wages and earns enough money to start his own farm and becomes employer of labor." Thus, it was contradictory to the oppressive and conservative notions of labor held by the southern slave owners. The progress of American society, according the Republican perspective, lay in the enterprising and middle class men who strived for better economic prospects. The practices of slavery and such oppressive social and economic systems were opposed to the very concept of economic justice that was held by Northerners.