ABSTRACT
The West Indies illustrate several interesting assumptions made in the aftermath of abolition about the newfound relationship between Africa and Great Britain. These assumptions had solidified even before the bill had officially passed both houses because the British public proved so responsive to the discourse of morality and humanity. The British Legislature had encouraged and supported these profitable trade ventures for two centuries. Since the post-abolition Briton remained committed to expanding commerce and trade, he or she discovered a new purpose for these acts that was founded on morality and Christianity rather than bondage and despair. The pan-Atlantic concept of the British Empire was in the process of transforming into a global empire that practiced a more ethical form of trade. A growing discourse of inevitability structured the new writings and became the prevailing characteristic of the new law. Abolition succeeded not just through efforts of the extraordinary but because of the true nature of the Briton.
