16th and 19th Century Advocacy Narratives

16th and 19th Century Narratives of Advocacy

• Narratives of advocacy, written by authors within the intellectual sector, advocated for exploited groups (Amerindians in the 16th century, enslaved Africans and Afrodescendants in the 19th century).
• These narratives aimed to inspire empathy in readers who perceived themselves as civilized, influencing societal changes.
• Success of these narratives depended on whether capital (and the ruling class) needed or could profit from change.
• External factors like state intervention impacted the narratives' popular acceptance and impact on lawmaking.

Defining "Narratives of Advocacy"

• Authors belong to or assimilate into the intellectual sector.
• Target readers perceive themselves as civilized.
• Portray exploited groups to inspire empathy in readers.
• Circulated relatively widely during the exploitation period.
• Considered influential in legal changes.

Capital's Role in Change

• Capital (a process of using money to create more money) inherently seeks to maximize profit through resource (human and non-human) exploitation.
• Capital's willingness to change relies on societal support and specific conditions.
• Capital, which is ultimately a process, does not mean an organization, but is a force impacting social change and exploitation.

Types of Capital

• Early Forms included usurer's and merchant's capital.
• The discovery of gold, enslavement, and other practices driven by capital marked the beginning of capitalist production.
• Marx described capital as having blood and dirt on it, symbolizing exploitation.

Fear of Rebellion

• The fear of slave uprising was a factor, especially after the Haitian Revolution.
• This fear shaped efforts to end the slave trade to avoid increased risk of rebellion.

State's Role in Filtering Narratives

• The state's ideological state apparatus can filter out narratives of advocacy, potentially influencing whether such narratives become popular.
• As advocating texts become popular, this makes them likely to effect change.

Specific Examples of Narratives

• Covers 16th century Amerindian texts and 19th-century texts advocating for enslaved Africans and Afro-descendants. Examples of texts mentioned include Carta en lengua latina de dóminicos y franciscanos a los regentes de España (1517), Carta al Rey del Padre Fr.Pedro de Córdoba (1517), Información en derecho del licenciado Quiroga (1535), and Historia de las Indias by Las Casas (mentions regret over suggestion of African slavery.)

Related Comparative Studies

• Includes work by authors such as Lorna Williams, Julio Ramos, and Ilia Casanova-Marengo, examining slavery representation in literature.
  • Studies analyzed relevant texts like Autobiografı́a de un esclavo poeta, Francisco, Sab, Cecilia Valdés, and Sofı́a which used language and other literary tools to advocate for social change. Analysis considers the linguistic heterogeneity of the 19th-century abolitionist writings, which influenced perceptions of slavery and enslaved individuals.

Key Concepts in Theoretical Framework

• Empathy: Its historical development, a complex emotion aroused through various means.
• Social Hegemony: Its description through Gramsci and Bourdieu's concepts.
• Civilization and Civility: The meanings of these terms in the 16th and 19th centuries, as defined by various authors.
• Authors and Readers: Defining aspects of their demographics, roles, and motivations in this historical context.
• Representation of the "Other": How exploited groups are portrayed in texts and their effects on readers and society. This includes analyzing how these groups are represented differently in various texts.