Questioning the official American history in Solomon Northup‟s twelve years a slave

Abstract

This research analyzes the hidden contradictions in the American official history written by the whites and exercised upon the blacks as reflected in Solomon Northup's Twelve Years a Slave. The first person speaker of the narrative rejects all the contradictions and segregations in the officially practiced apartheid policy. This study tries to see the social condition especially racism toward African American slaves in Solomon Northup’s Twelve Years as a Slave. Besides, it also identifies the forms of struggle of African American Slave against the practice of racism as it was officially approved in the then America. Moreover, this study also relates the racism reflected in the narrative with the real social condition of racism toward African American in nineteenth century. While analyzing the questioning practice of the African-American against the officially approved historical practices of the whites, new historical practice of 'thin descriptions' is minutely analyzed.