Father Henson’s Story of His Own Life · Chapter
VII: A New Home explained
Josiah Henson recounts his years in Kentucky under Amos Riley, where he becomes a Methodist preacher and witnesses the heart-wrenching sale of his fellow slaves.
What happens
Josiah Henson recounts his years in Kentucky under Amos Riley, where he becomes a Methodist preacher and witnesses the heart-wrenching sale of his fellow slaves. Tormented by guilt over his past loyalty to his master, he resolves to seek freedom for himself and his family. With the help of a kind Methodist preacher, he obtains permission to travel to Maryland, begins fundraising in Cincinnati, and embarks on a journey toward self-purchase and liberty.
Themes in this chapter
Quest for Freedom
Henson's burning desire for freedom drives his actions; he resolves to escape the system and secure liberty for his family.
Family Separation
The sale of Henson's companions reopens old wounds and highlights the constant threat of family dissolution under slavery.
Faith and Religion
Henson becomes a Methodist preacher, using his faith to inspire others and as a means of personal and communal uplift.
Resilience and Survival
Despite witnessing horrific scenes, Henson channels his agony into a determined plan for freedom, showing remarkable resilience.
Characters to notice
- Josiah Henson
Narrator and protagonist; becomes a Methodist preacher, experiences deep guilt and resolve, and begins his quest for freedom.
- Amos Riley
Brother of Isaac Riley; Henson's master in Kentucky, who grants him a pass to travel to Maryland.
- Isaac Riley
Original master; remains in Maryland and sends an agent to sell his slaves except Henson's family.
- Charlotte
Henson's wife; mentioned as part of his family he seeks to free.
- Mr. Francis Newman
Kind Methodist preacher who advises Henson on buying his freedom and provides a letter of recommendation.
Key passages
“What else, indeed, can be the feeling of the slave, liable at every moment of his life to these frightful and unnecessary calamities, which may be caused by the caprice of the abandoned, or the supposed necessities of the better part of the slaveholders, and inflicted upon him without sympathy or redress, under the sanction of the laws which uphold the institution?”
Henson reflects on the constant terror slaves face from unpredictable and unjust punishments, sanctioned by law.
Expresses Henson's growing hatred of slavery and his realization of its inherent cruelty.
“One absorbing purpose occupied my soul—freedom, self-assertion, deliverance from the cruel caprices and fortunes of dissolute tyrants.”
Henson's single-minded goal becomes achieving freedom and asserting his own will against oppressive masters.
Highlights his transformation from passive loyalty to active pursuit of liberty.
“I opened the subject one Sunday morning while shaving Mr. Amos, and adroitly managed, by bringing the shaving brush close into his mouth whenever he was disposed to interrupt me, to 'get a good say' first.”
Henson cleverly uses the act of shaving to prevent Amos from interrupting while he asks for permission to travel.
Shows Henson's strategic cunning in navigating power dynamics with his master.