The following is a list of key terms and definitions used in the vari- ous chapters of this book. Agency: An interpretive concept meaning that despite the enormous power of slaveholders, enslaved people creatively forged an identity and culture independent of those who owned them. Anti-literacy laws: A series of laws passed in slave states that prohibited the teaching of literacy skills to slaves and free black people. Ashcake: A bread commonly eaten by enslaved people, made from corn- meal, water, and sometimes salt that was cooked in the fire covered in ashes. Once cooked the ashes were removed. See hoecake. Big House: The name given to the slave owner’s home. Brer Rabbit: An animal trickster figure appearing in many slave folktales who repeatedly outwits and triumphs over more powerful rivals. Brer Wolf: An animal figure appearing in many slave folktales whose attempts to capture and eat Brer Rabbit are frustrated by the rabbit’s supe- rior guile. Chattel principle: The idea that enslaved people were owned as property by slaveholders and could be bought and sold at will. Chesapeake: The geographic and cultural region that encompasses Maryland and Virginia. Coffle: A group of slaves chained together, usually to travel to a slave market. GLOSSARY
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