Blood Justice Worksheet
Blood and Justice
Historical Reflection Series: 1859-1860
Student Name
Date
The Reflection Prompt
John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry forced the American public to confront a terrifying question: When the law itself is an instrument of oppression, what is the moral path forward?
Write a one-paragraph response addressing the following themes:
- The moral imperative to resist unjust laws versus the duty to obey the state.
- Whether violence is a justifiable strategy for social and political change.
- How John Brown should be remembered in the context of American history.
Evidence Requirement
Your response must include direct quotes from the primary source exchange between Margaretta Mason and Lydia Maria Child. Focus on how their competing visions of morality and law inform your conclusion.
Response Draft
"He will make the gallows holy as the cross." — Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1859
Brown Raid Source Sheet
The Harpers Ferry Files
Primary & Secondary Sources
On October 16, 1859, John Brown and a small band of followers seized the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia, hoping to spark a slave insurrection. The following documents capture the immediate moral firestorm and the long-term historical debate that followed.
The Mason-Child Exchange (1860)
From Margaretta Mason of Virginia
"Do you read your Bible, Mrs. Child? If you do, read there ‘Wo unto you, hypocrites’... You would sooth with sisterly and motherly care the hoary-headed murderer of Harpers Ferry! A man whose aim and intention was to incite the horrors of a servile war—to condemn women of your own race, ere death closed their eyes on their sufferings from violence and outrage... to see their husbands and fathers murdered, their children butchered, the ground strewed with the brains of their babes."
Reply from Lydia Maria Child
"As for John Brown, his reputation may be safely trusted to the impartial pen of History... the principle for which John Brown died is the question at issue between us. You refer me to the Bible... Abolitionists also have favorite texts... ‘Remember those that are in bonds, as bound with them.’"
"Throughout the slave states, the testimony of no colored person, bond or free, can be received against a white man. Any drunken master, overseer, or patrol, may go into the negro cabin and commit whatever outrage he pleases with perfect impunity…"
Historical Perspectives
Steven Mintz (2005)
"Brown was transformed, in the eyes of thousands of northerners, from a brutal terrorist into a prophet and avenging angel... John Brown’s prophetic truth was that slavery could not be purged from America except with blood... moral suasion and political institutions had failed to place slavery on the road to extinction."
David S. Reynolds (2005)
"Brown saw slavery as a state of war against an entire race… a social evil so egregious, so entrenched. For those of John Brown's moral vision, American slavery—a system of oppression, torture, rape, and murder—had to be eliminated by any means. As it was."
"The gallows holy as the cross"
Prophet of Blood Slides
Harpers Ferry 1859
PROPHET OF BLOOD
The Moral Crisis of John Brown’s Raid
The Raid
On October 16, 1859, John Brown and 21 men seized the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia.
- Goal: Armed slave insurrection.
- Outcome: Failed. Brown was captured, tried for treason, and hanged.
- Impact: Polarized a nation already on the brink of civil war.
"I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood."
Unjust Laws
Is there a moral imperative to resist laws that violate human rights?
"The Abolitionists... are familiar with the laws of the slave states, which are sufficient to inspire abhorrence in any humane heart."
— Lydia Maria Child
Key Questions
- Does legal obedience end where moral conscience begins?
- When political institutions fail (Dred Scott, Fugitive Slave Act), what recourse remains?
Violence & Change
"There are times when a society works itself into a logjam; and that logjam must be burst by violence."
— Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.
"A man whose aim and intention was to incite the horrors of a servile war..."
— Margaretta Mason
The Debate
- Is violence ever the "lesser evil" against systemic oppression?
- Can moral suasion succeed when the law protects the oppressor?
Your Reflection
In a single paragraph, argue your position on the moral imperative of resistance and the use of violence.
Use Direct Quotes
Mason vs. Child
Define "Imperative"
Law vs. Conscience
Place Brown
Hero or Terrorist?
Prophet of Blood Teacher Guide
Teacher Guide
Prophet of Blood: John Brown Reflection Task
Instructional Context
This reflection task is designed as a summative assessment for a unit on the escalation of the sectional crisis (1850s). Students must synthesize primary source evidence with complex moral philosophy regarding civil disobedience and political violence.
Essential Question
"Can a violent act be considered morally righteous if it aims to end a greater systemic violence?"
Facilitation Tips
Before the Writing
Lead a 5-minute "Silent Discussion" on the board. Write "Violence" and "Peaceful Protest" on opposite sides. Ask students to place "John Brown" along that spectrum and briefly explain why.
During the Writing
Encourage students to look specifically for the Biblical justifications used by both Mason and Child. Ask: "How can the same text lead to such opposite moral conclusions?"
Evaluation Criteria
| Criteria | Evidence of Proficiency |
|---|
| Use of Evidence | Seamlessly integrates at least two direct quotes from the Mason-Child letters (e.g., Mason's charge of "murderer" vs Child's focus on "principles"). |
| Moral Argument | Moves beyond "Brown was right/wrong" to address the logjam of legal institutions (Dred Scott) versus the moral duty of the individual. |
| Nuanced Remembrance | Acknowledges the tension between Brown's brutal methods and the egregious nature of slavery as "a state of war." |
Extension & Connection
- Comparative History: Compare John Brown's philosophy with Henry David Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" (non-violence) versus Brown's militant action.
- Modern Connection: Discuss the concept of "John Brown's Body" as a Union marching song—how did his image help win the war he failed to start at Harpers Ferry?
