Question

In her letter, Maria tells John Brown "I cannot sympathize with the method you chose to advance the cause of freedom. But I honor your generous intentions.... Why do you think Maria could not "sympathize" with John Brown's methods?​

Answer 1

Maria's statement implies that she disagrees with John Brown's violent methods of advancing the cause of freedom. While she may have shared Brown's goal of ending slavery, she believed that violence was not the best way to achieve that goal. Maria's letter suggests that she had a moral objection to the use of violence and may have believed that it would cause more harm than good.