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Noah's Curse

The Biblical Justification of American Slavery

Stephen R Haynes author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Oxford University Press Inc

Published:25th Apr '02

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Noah's Curse cover

"A servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren". So reads Noah's curse on his son Ham, and all his descendants, in Genesis 9:25. Over centuries of interpretation, Ham came to be identified as the ancestor of black Africans, and Noah's curse to be seen as the biblical justification for American slavery and segregation. In this book Stephen Haynes examines the history of the American interpretation of Noah's curse. He begins with an overview of the prior history of the reception of this scripture and then turns to the distinctive and creative ways in which the curse was appropriated by American pro-slavery and pro-segregation interpreters. He argues that the story of Noah's curse was compelling for antebellum white Southerners because it resonated with the themes of antiquity, domesticity, race, and sin.

This is a sober and sobering study which sets in context a number of important but little-known sources that will give pause for thought in any reflection on the liberative potential and the social impact of the Bible. H. S. Pyper, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament
Elegantly written, deeply learned, and forcefully argued, this is an important book that deserves a wide readership. * The Journal of American History *
... brilliant study ... provides fascinating insights into the religious mind of the slaveholding South. * The Journal of American History *
Haynes's study provides a thorough and rich sense of the interpretive history of this scriptural story. * Christian Century *
... a wide-ranging interdisciplinary study. * Christian Century *
A brief review cannot begin to do justice to the fascination of this masterly and chilling study or to its contemporary relevance. * Church Times *
Outstanding ... determination to show not simply how issues and events look in retrospect, but how they appeared to people at the time. * Howard Temperley, Times Literary Supplement *

ISBN: 9780195142792

Dimensions: 241mm x 163mm x 25mm

Weight: 603g

322 pages