12 Years A Slave

"My name is John Tibeats, William Ford's chief carpenter. You will refer to me as Master. Mister Chapin is the overseer on this plantation. He is responsible for all of Ford's property. You too will refer to him as Master. This plantation covers many hundreds of acres, and you will traverse the Texas road between the forest site and the sawmill in double time. Any clever nigger on that path that gets a little light-footed, I will remind him that on one side men and bloodhounds patrol the border and on the other the bayou provides a hard living, with alligators and little to eat or drink that won't kill you. No slave has escaped here with his life. You're here to work niggers, so let's commence."

"You will not live to see another day!"

"You see how fit the boy is. Like ripe fruit. He will grow into a fine beast."

"Get up! Get up, we dance tonight! We will not waste the evenin' with yer laziness. Get up."

"If you want to survive, do and say as little as possible. Tell no one who you really are and tell no one that you can read and write. Unless you want to be a dead nigger."

"I will not fall into despair! I will keep myself hardy until freedom is opportune!"

"I apologize for my appearance. But I have had a difficult time these past several years."

"Because the law states that your liberties are undeniable? Because society deems it so? Laws change. Social systems crumble. Universal truths are constant. It is a fact, it is a plain fact that what is true and right is true and right for all. White and black alike."