William Wilberforce (the sociable voice of abolition) [ Politics ]
… long parliamentary speeches were crucial in the success of his fight, but it is primarily his personality and the moral virtues he came to embody that were decisive. ‘The voice of abolition‘, as he was nicknamed, was first and foremost a … nation. His determination, his religious conversion and his evolution away from a life of dissipation towards a life of virtue and selflessness have been amply studied: less so the role of his sociability in securing abolition. He also … rescued her character from the deepest stain of dishonour’ ( An Appeal 108-109). His enactment of the Christian hero’s virtues did not estrange him from true politeness 20 but, on the contrary, made him embody a new type of sociable man, …
Abolition | Activism | Benevolence | Charity | Evangelicalism | Friendship | Philanthropy | Religion | Slavery
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