The rhetoric of racial exclusion in the Thomas Jefferson’s writings: attitudes towards slavery and forming the image of African Americans

this article analyzes Thomas Jefferson's role in shaping the image of African Americans in the political and public discourse of the late 18th and early 19th centuries in the United States. The study is based on the imagological method, which allows for identifying the ways racial stereotypes were constructed and reinforced in Jefferson’s public statements and works, including “Notes on the State of Virginia”. The paper examines Jefferson’s contradictory views on slavery as well as his ideas regarding the colonization of freed African Americans. Special attention is given to the influence of these views on subsequent political and public rhetoric in the United States. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the mechanisms behind the formation of racial imagery in American history and its impact on future policies and social attitudes.

Thomas Jefferson, abolitionism, “Notes on the State of Virginia”, slavery, African Americans, American Colonization Society