The morale of the American prisoners
was easily broken, and each one strove to look out for himself even
at expense of his comrade's life. In contrast, the Turks maintained
military discipline and group solidarity. This evidence would seem
indicate that, while individual differences were insignificant, cultural
differences did influence adjustment to the camp situation.
There are also grounds to believe that different value systems
influenced the way in which contrasting cultures adjusted to
slavery. While the African made the adjustment successfully,
the American Indian, when he was enslaved, did not. The African's
agricultural labor had contained many similarities to the work
required on the plantation, but the Indian, accustomed to a migratory
hunting existence, was totally unprepared for plantation slavery.
He found nothing in it to sustain his values or his will to live, and he
was unable to make the adjustment.
If the African's agricultural background helped his adaptation
to American slavery, then we must assume that his detachment
from his heritage was not complete.
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