Propositions Defining Slavery and Emancipation (1833)
Lydia Maria Child
But if slaves were allowed to redeem themselves progressively, by purchasing one day of the week after another, as they can in the Spanish colonies, habits of industry would be gradually formed, and enterprise would be stimulated, by their successful efforts to acquire a little property. And if they afterward worked better as free laborers than they now do as slaves, it would surely benefit their masters as well as themselves. . . .
But the slave holders try to stop all the efforts of benevolence, by vociferous complains about infringing upon their property; and justice is so subordinate to self-interest, that the unrighteous claim is silently allowed, and even openly supported, by those who ought to blush for themselves, as Christians and as republicans. . . .
-The arguments in this passage best represent the ideas of

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The arguments presented in the passage advocate for the gradual emancipation of slaves through the opportunity to purchase their freedom, which aligns with the beliefs of antebellum reformers who sought to abolish slavery. The mention of slaveholders using complaints about property rights to oppose emancipation also reflects the political and social tensions of the time period. Choices A, C, and D do not align with the arguments presented in the passage.