- What is the movie about? Summarize the plot of the film mentioning the main characters.
The movie tells the story about a group of slaves that are taken from Africa to the United Sates illegally and how they are judged because of the murder of two Spaniards. This film shows us the debate that took place between the ongoing on slavery or free them.
2.What was the Triangular Trade? What nations benefited from it?
Triangular trade is a historical term indicating trade among three ports or regions.
The best-known triangular trading system was the Atlantic slave trade, which lasted from the late 16th to early 19th centuries. During this time, European countries such as Britain, Spain and France had colonies in the Americas and Africa. The ships carrying slaves, crops and manufactured goods between West Africa, the Caribbean and American colonies and the colonial powers in Europe.
3.Do some research and explain the conditions in which slaves were captured and transported from Africa to the Americas.
Some of them hadn´t seen the sea in their whole life and didn´t know what was going on as they didn´t understand their captors language.
They were packed just like if they were logs and many of them died because of the pressure. Men were considered as a threat for the traders so they were all tied with iron chains. Women and children were apart, exposed to all the sexual abuse that came from the captors.
Slaves were fed as animals and the ones who refused were forced to do it. People who died during the voyage were thrown to the sea and those who felt sick were killed.
Hygiene was nonexistent and there was an awful smell because they hadn´t a place to relieve themselves and as a result there was a lot of possibilities to die from a disease.
4.What enlightened ideas appear in the movie?
We can see a lot of enlightened ideas in the John Quincy Adams argument. The main things are based on freedom and equality and ``The Natural Law´´, which says that God has given to every human being certain rights and they can do anything to achieve that state. Moreover, following that right of equality he also argues that there is no difference for God between black and white.
5.Who was Joseph Cinqué? Did he really existed?
Joseph Cinqué was originally called Sengbe Pieh and lived in Sierra Leona. He worked as a farmer and was captured and illegally sold to portuguese traders. He was the starter of the revolt in the ship and he also returned back to his homeland after the judgement, there is no much information about his later life.
6.What is the role of John Quincy Adams, former US President, in the movie?
In the movie, former President John Quincy Adams begins to argue the Amistad case in front of the U.S Supreme Court. He was the son of America´s second president, founding father and avowed abolitionist John Adams.
Following the freedom and equality ideas, he defended slaves in a very intense speech knowing it may led in a civil war but arguing that it was worth.
Triangular trade is a historical term indicating trade among three ports or regions.
The best-known triangular trading system was the Atlantic slave trade, which lasted from the late 16th to early 19th centuries. During this time, European countries such as Britain, Spain and France had colonies in the Americas and Africa. The ships carrying slaves, crops and manufactured goods between West Africa, the Caribbean and American colonies and the colonial powers in Europe.
3.Do some research and explain the conditions in which slaves were captured and transported from Africa to the Americas.
Some of them hadn´t seen the sea in their whole life and didn´t know what was going on as they didn´t understand their captors language.
They were packed just like if they were logs and many of them died because of the pressure. Men were considered as a threat for the traders so they were all tied with iron chains. Women and children were apart, exposed to all the sexual abuse that came from the captors.
Slaves were fed as animals and the ones who refused were forced to do it. People who died during the voyage were thrown to the sea and those who felt sick were killed.
Hygiene was nonexistent and there was an awful smell because they hadn´t a place to relieve themselves and as a result there was a lot of possibilities to die from a disease.
4.What enlightened ideas appear in the movie?
We can see a lot of enlightened ideas in the John Quincy Adams argument. The main things are based on freedom and equality and ``The Natural Law´´, which says that God has given to every human being certain rights and they can do anything to achieve that state. Moreover, following that right of equality he also argues that there is no difference for God between black and white.
5.Who was Joseph Cinqué? Did he really existed?
Joseph Cinqué was originally called Sengbe Pieh and lived in Sierra Leona. He worked as a farmer and was captured and illegally sold to portuguese traders. He was the starter of the revolt in the ship and he also returned back to his homeland after the judgement, there is no much information about his later life.
6.What is the role of John Quincy Adams, former US President, in the movie?
In the movie, former President John Quincy Adams begins to argue the Amistad case in front of the U.S Supreme Court. He was the son of America´s second president, founding father and avowed abolitionist John Adams.
Following the freedom and equality ideas, he defended slaves in a very intense speech knowing it may led in a civil war but arguing that it was worth.
