ipl-logo

Corruption Of Slavery Rhetorical Analysis

1241 Words5 Pages

Bloody, Cruel, and demeaning are words that represent slavery. Many inhuman acts taken on the slaves included: separating families, treated like property, working for nothing, and abusive beatings. Slaves lived horrible, poorly treated lives. Frederick Douglass escaped slavery and told his story. In his writing, he shared all the gruesome sights he encountered through his life as a slave. His writing expressed the idea of how corrupt the system of slavery was. By using the rhetorical devices, antithesis, rhetorical questions, and anaphora, Douglass expresses the corruption of slavery through slaves, Christianity, and slaveholders.
The slaves display the corruption of slavery through Douglass’s descriptive words and rhetorical devices. Douglass …show more content…

He expresses this through the use of rhetorical questions. A rhetorical question Douglass used was when he asked “Does a slave look dissatisfied? It is said, he has the devil in him, and it must be whipped out. Does he speak loudly when spoken to by his master” (Douglass 62). This rhetorical question is connected to Christianity because of the reference to the devil. The devil is the worst of God and highly disliked in the religion. By saying that there is the devil in slavery Douglass wants to shows the corruption of Christianity. Another example of Douglass’s use of rhetorical questions is when he asks, “I am left in the hottest hell of unending slavery. O God, save me! God, deliver me! Is there any God? Why am I a slave” (Douglass 52). This is a rhetorical question because he is asking if there is any God, and asking why he is a slave. Douglass is speaking to God in this quote, showing his belief is Christianity. Then he goes on and uses the rhetorical question to question God’s existence. This rhetorical question show the corruption of slavery because he was questioning God’s existence. This is a big deal for the time that the book was written. Christianity was a strong religious belief; nobody would question the existence of God, he was just there. But, Douglass questioned it. This is corrupt because his life as a slave was so corrupt that his beliefs in Christianity

Show More
Related

Fredrick Douglass 'Second Great Awakening'

555 Words | 3 Pages

1. Fredrick Douglass witnessed harsh and violent actions throughout his slave life, as slave owners utilized Christianity as a justification for these actions and for the system of slavery. Douglass experienced this religious abuse throughout his life as a slave. However, in 1832, when he began working for Captain Auld, he witnessed the misuse of religion in the setting of a violent action. After Auld whipped a young woman, he justified his actions by quoting the Bible: “He that knoweth his master’s will, and doeth it not, shall be beaten with many strips” (33).

Read More

Frederick Douglass An American Slave Rhetorical Analysis Essay

732 Words | 3 Pages

By appealing to the emotions of the reader, Frederick Douglass can build his argument of how awful slavery was and how the slave owners used Christianity to justify what they did. In the book, Narrative of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, the author uses his language to bring meaning to what he is writing. He creates an emotional connection to the reader using pathos, and builds his argument using the credibility of others, using ethos. In his book he uses his words to prove his argument to the reader of how the slave owners would use Christianity to justify slavery and violence, and how slavery affected everyone who was

Read More

Essay Comparing Frederick Douglass And Harriet Jacobs

486 Words | 2 Pages

Douglass tells us this by saying that he believes anyone who is a slave owner cannot be a Christian. In his view, he believes being a slave owner violates the very principles of being a Christian. Auld quote he believes that the Christianity practiced by the Slave owners and the Christianity practiced by non-slave owners are two

Read More

Hypocrisy Of Slavery Rhetorical Devices

1032 Words | 5 Pages

In 1776, on July 4th, the 13 English colonies officially declared their freedom from England. However, as the years progressed, slavery became incorporated into everyday American life. In 1852, former slave Frederick Douglass gave a speech to celebrate America’s independence; however, instead of praising the country, he censured Americans for saying they were a “country of the free”. In the speech, Hypocrisy of American Slavery, Frederick Douglass declares that Americans should not be celebrating their freedom when there are slaves living in the country. To convince his audience that Americans are wrong celebrating freedom on the 4th of July when slavery exists in their country, he uses emotional appeal, ethical appeal, and rhetorical questions.

Read More

Rhetorical Devices In The Fourth Of July

1056 Words | 5 Pages

First, Frederick Douglass uses rhetorical questions to elucidate to the listener the many social inequalities between black and white people. For example, Frederick Douglass says, “Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice embodied in the Declaration of Independence extended to us?” (para. 1). He is implying that the rights stated in the Declaration of Independence are not given to those of African American race. The audience will begin to realize that they are not treated with the same liberties as those who are considered free.

Read More

Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass Rhetorical Analysis Essay

648 Words | 3 Pages

‘’ No words, No tears, No prayers, from his glory victim, seemed to move his iron heart fro his bloody purpose.’’ (page 5). Douglass appeals to the mournful emotions of the audience by expressing how the overseers gave no mercy or cared about the effect of whippings to the slaves. Douglass use of parallelism displayed how slavery was

Read More

Frederick Douglass's Arguments Against Slavery

1080 Words | 5 Pages

All the terrible and inhuman things that Douglass describes are the practical and usual things that happened in his time, they are not extraordinary. His true stories and multiple details from his life give the reader an idea about the effects of slavery on the life of different people in the

Read More

Frederick Douglass Rhetorical Analysis

935 Words | 4 Pages

Slavery is equally a mental and a physical prison. Frederick Douglass realized this follow-ing his time as both a slave and a fugitive slave. Douglass was born into slavery because of his mother’s status as a slave. He had little to go off regarding his age and lineage. In the excerpt of the “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

Read More

Frederick Douglass Hypocrisy Essay

1049 Words | 5 Pages

Group Essay on Frederick Douglass “That this little book may do something toward throwing light on the American slave system”, and that Frederick Douglass does in his eponymous autobiography. Douglass throws light by dispelling the myths of the slave system, which received support from all parts of society. To dispel these myths Douglass begins to construct an argument composed around a series of rhetorical appeals and devices. Douglass illustrates that slavery is dehumanizing, corrupting, and promotes Christian hypocrisy. Using telling details, Douglass describes the dehumanizing effects of the slave system which condones the treatment of human beings as property.

Read More

Frederick Douglass Use And Abuse Of Power Essay

498 Words | 2 Pages

The Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass shows the imbalance of power between slaves and their masters. In his book, Douglass proves that slavery is a destructive force not only to the slaves, but also for the slaveholders. “Poison of the irresponsible power” that masters have upon their slaves that are dehumanizing and shameless, have changed the masters themselves and their morality(Douglass 39). This amount of power and control in contact with one man breaks the kindest heart and the purest thoughts turning the person evil and corrupt. Douglass uses flashbacks that illustrate the emotions that declare the negative effects of slavery.

Read More

What To The Slave Is The Fourth Of July Essay

636 Words | 3 Pages

He proclaims that "…While we are…living, moving, acting, thinking, planning, living in families as husbands, wives and children, and, above all, confessing and worshipping the Christian's God, and looking hopefully for life and immortality beyond the grave, we are called upon to prove that we are men!" By showing the mundanity of the slave, Douglass shows the audience that the slaves are human and therefore unable to be considered property. He forces his audience to examine their own lives and realize their similarities to the slaves and the hypocrisy of slavery. He doesn't give his audience a chance to disagree with his stance on slavery because he makes such a blunt argument. Douglass asks again, "Must I undertake to prove that the slave is a man?

Read More

Frederick Douglass Negative Effects On Slaves

753 Words | 4 Pages

Frederick Douglass’s narrative provides a first hand experience into the imbalance of power between a slave and a slaveholder and the negative effects it has on them both. Douglass proves that slavery destroys not only the slave, but the slaveholder as well by saying that this “poison of irresponsible power” has a dehumanizing effect on the slaveholder’s morals and beliefs (Douglass 40). This intense amount of power breaks the  kindest heart and changes the slaveholder into a heartless demon (Douglass 40). Yet these are not the only ways that Douglass proves what ill effect slavery has on the slaveholder. Douglass also uses deep characterization, emotional appeal, and religion to present the negative effects of slavery.

Read More

Frederick Douglass: Overcoming Obstacles

392 Words | 2 Pages

Douglass encountered multiple harsh realities of being enslaved. For example, the ex-slave was practically starved to death by his masters on multiple occasions. In fact, “[He was] allowed less than a half of a bushel of corn-meal per week, and very little else... It was not enough for [him] to subsist upon... A great many times [he had] been nearly perishing with hunger” (pg 31).

Read More

Rhetorical Devices In Frederick Douglass

631 Words | 3 Pages

Frederick Douglass Rhetorical Analysis Essay The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, written by Frederick Douglass himself, is a brutally honest portrayal of slavery’s dehumanizing capabilities. By clearly connecting with his audience’s emotions, Douglass uses numerous rhetorical devices, including anecdotes and irony, to argue the depravity of slavery. Douglass clearly uses anecdotes to support his argument against the immorality of slavery. He illustrates different aspects of slavery’s destructive nature by using accounts of not only his own life but others’ alsoas well.

Read More

Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass Irony Analysis

812 Words | 4 Pages

Lastly, Douglass’ explains his thought on slavery and from what he says it becomes ironic. One of the ironies in the book that Douglass talks about is how religious slaves are more cruel than non-religious slaves. In chapter 9, Douglass’ master, Thomas Auld, became

Read More

More about Corruption Of Slavery Rhetorical Analysis

Related Topics

Open Document